If You Want to Write
by Brenda Ueland
G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1997
179 pages, $11.95

reviewed by Karen Fisher-Alaniz

www.inkthinkerblog.com — Brenda Ueland’s book, If You Want to Write, is not just for aspiring writers. It is aimed at anyone who has within them a yearning to create. Ueland taught writing at colleges and universities. She wrote more than 5 million words in her lifetime. But the accomplishment she was most proud of, was teaching ordinary people to write, at her local YMCA. The book is sprinkled with examples of her students’ accomplishments and their struggles to achieve them.

And Ueland has no qualms about stating what is true, that she is a great writer and a magnificent teacher. She quotes William Blake, “He who knows not his own genius has none.”

Chapter titles include “Everybody is talented, original and has something important to say”; “Be careless, reckless! Be a lion, be a pirate, when you write”; and “Why you are not to be discouraged, annihilated, by rejection slips.” But my personal favorite is the chapter “Why women who do too much housework should neglect it for their writing.”

Why is that my favorite? This book was originally published in 1938 by a woman who dared to wear pants and get her hair cut short at a barber shop. I am inspired by the fact that she was telling women, still under social pressures to keep their ankles covered, to forget their housework and pluck away at a typewriter instead. Her lessons, her wisdom are both timeless and timely. She was indeed a renaissance woman.

If You Want to Write is subtitled, A Book About Art, Independence and Spirit. Many pages contain long footnotes, more like after-thoughts. I often found those even more compelling than the text itself. Ueland leads by word and by example, giving us confidence to follow her, when she says to, “…work from now until you die, with real love and imagination and intelligence, at your writing… If you do that, out of the mountains that you write some mole hills will be published.”

And so…dirty dishes sit in my sink and mounds of laundry on the floor as I pluck away! Oh what joy to neglect my housework.

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Karen Fisher-Alaniz recently finished transcribing more than 400 pages of letters her father wrote during World War II. She is currently writing a book based on the secret life he led as a code breaker during the war. Contact her at karenlalaniz@hotmail.com.

Although this article was published by Kristen King, the original author retains all copyright and should be contacted for reprint requests.

Contents Copyright © 2006-2014 Kristen King

Starting from Scratch: A Different Kind of Writer’s Manual

 By Rita Mae Brown

Bantam, 1989

272 pages

reviewed by Sarah E. White

www.inkthinkerblog.com —

If only Rita Mae Brown would take a little time out of her busy schedule of writing best-selling mystery novels with her cat Sneaky Pie to revise and update her wonderful book of advice to writers, Starting from Scratch. You’ll get an idea how old the book is from the cover, which features Brown, her cat, a stack of manuscript papers and a typewriter.

This book is like a time warp to that weird, wonderful world before the Internet and pervasive home computers (there is brief mention of how great computers are, but she insists a writer needs a typewriter, along with good reference books and a cat or two). The references to technology will make you grin, and the age of this book is by no means a reason not to read it.

When she says “Starting from Scratch,” she means it. Brown spends a large portion of her book talking about words: what they mean, which ones you should use (Anglo-Saxon versus Latin), verbs, passive voice, adverbs and adjectives, the joy of the subjunctive and the need to find the emotionally evocative word.

Of course there are sections here on plot and character development, writing dialogue and ways to make money writing, but the really interesting parts of this book are those the other books don’t have, including Brown’s curriculum for a four-year “literary conservatory” and her list of the best reads in English from 665 to 1981. She also explains why every writer should learn Latin and provides exercises such as the parent game, where you start by giving yourself imaginary parents, then famous people and people you know and finally your characters.

This book is definitely a worthwhile read even more than 15 years after its publication. Brown has a wonderful, chatty voice and a lot of wisdom to share with writers of all levels. You’ll probably find yourself inspired to tackle her reading list, and maybe even to take a crack at learning Latin.

****

Sarah E. White is a freelance writer and editor living in Arkansas. She is the author of Doing the Write Thing: The Easy Way to Self-Edit. Her home on the web is http://www.sarahewhite.com.

Although this article was published by Kristen King, the original author retains all copyright and should be contacted for reprint requests.

Contents Copyright © 2006-2014 Kristen King

On Writing Well

www.inkthinkerblog.com — By William Zinsser

Collins, 2006

336 pages, $14.95

reviewed by Terrisa Meeks

Within the first 10 pages of William Zinsser’s On Writing Well, he tells us that the most important thing a writer brings to her work is herself. “Ultimately, the product that any writer has to sell is not the subject being written about, but who he or she is,” he says. For the rest of On Writing, he encourages writers to be genuine, accurate, and skilled with the English language.

On Writing Well feels like a text book, probably because it’s loaded with instructions and examples. The chapters can stand alone, so if you’re fascinated with sports writing, turn directly to Chapter 17. Chapter 10, “Bits and Pieces,” encapsulates most of the material in On Writingand is so thorough that it could have been titled “Nuts and Bolts.” He instructs us to read, read, read—and to embrace the rewriting process, which he describes as “the essence of writing well: it’s where the game is won or lost.”

The degradation of the English language annoys him, and he singles out repeat offenders: government documents, “journalese,” and pompous businesses. Zinsser wants verbs to remain verbs and nouns to remain nouns. Nonfiction writing is his focus, and he makes a good argument that fiction shouldn’t have a monopoly on the literature label. Using examples like Joan Didion and H.L. Mencken, he makes a point that’s hard to dispute.

“The secret of good writing is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components,” Zinsser tells us. He does his best to give us the tools we need to remove junky adverbs, imprecise nouns, and fuzzy organization. He also explains how to focus a story. When one of his students tells him that she wants to write an article about the decline of Iowa farms, Zinsser helps her distill the idea into one small town, one farm, one family. Readers have to connect with a story, he explains, and a close-up on people and places is the best way to hold their attention.

Zinsser is a precise writer who admits that he protects his work “fiercely,” even buying back his pieces from publications that want to make changes he feels are unacceptable. For most writers, this isn’t an option, but it’s refreshing to hear a different point of view on this topic. Most advice to writers encourages more flexibility, not less.

On Writing Well concludes on the same note it began: “When we say we like the style of certain writers, what we mean is that we like their personality as they express it on paper.” Follow Zinsser’s advice, and your readers will find you articulate and clear. What else could a writer ask for?

****

Terrisa Meeks is a freelance writer based in Las Vegas, Nevada. You can visit her on the web at Just Write or Vegas Girl.

Although this article was published by Kristen King, the original author retains all copyright and should be contacted for reprint requests.

Contents Copyright © 2006-2014 Kristen King

Get a Freelance Life:MediaBistro.com’s Insider Guide to Freelance Writing

www.inkthinkerblog.com — by Margit Feury Ragland

Three Rivers Press

320 pages, $14.00

reviewed by Sarah E. White

If you ever wished you had a wise older sister in the freelancing business, someone who could tell you everything you need to do (as well as what not to do) to succeed as a freelance writer, you need to read Get a Freelance Life: MediaBistro.com’s Insider Guide to Freelance Writing by Margit Feury Ragland.

This book is chock full of wisdom on just about every aspect of living the freelance life, from coming up with ideas to reading contracts, running your business to getting affordable health insurance, and much more.

The first part of the book is, without a doubt, worth the price of admission. “Are You Ready to Be Free?” lists 11 questions you should ask yourself to find out whether you’re suited for a freelance career. It goes into the basics you need to set up a freelance writing business and some ideas for building relationships that will get you jobs in the future.

Another great feature of this book is the plethora of real-life examples used throughout. You’ll get to see real freelancers’ websites, resumes and query letters, giving you an idea of how you might design and word your own. There are also editorial guidelines and calendars from real publications that show you how different publications approach planning, as well as a section talking about which parts of some magazines are most open to freelancers. This information might help you break in to some of your favorite publications.

And if you didn’t major in journalism and have never spent time working as a staff writer for a magazine or newspaper, Get a Freelance Life has got you covered there, too. Chapters on different kinds of articles, how to get your first assignment, reporting, writing and what an editor does with your story after you write it will help newbies and seasoned pros alike understand the business a little better.

If you’re new to the freelance writing world, or would like to start freelancing and don’t know where to begin, you absolutely need to read this book. If you’ve got a little writing under your belt and would like to take your freelancing career to the next level, this book will give you insight on how to do just that. Even more experienced writers will likely find ideas in this book that will change the way they work.

Ragland, who teaches classes for the media networking site MediaBistro.com, should be commended for sharing so much information and knowledge about the way the freelancing world really works. There are many places you can go to find some of this information, but rarely is it all presented in one place, and in a format that you can carry around with you, dog-ear and return to over and over when you have questions and need guidance. It’s a 24/7 career counselor for writers. It should leave you feeling inspired and a little less scared about this crazy writing world.

****

Sarah E. White is a freelance writer and editor living in Arkansas. She is the author of Doing the Write Thing: The Easy Way to Self-Edit. Her home on the web is http://www.sarahewhite.com.

Although this article was published by Kristen King, the original author retains all copyright and should be contacted for reprint requests.

Contents Copyright © 2006-2014 Kristen King