My goodness-gracious, this book is one hell of a monster.
It is the ultimate Russian nesting doll of and about art, memory, satire, and "Art". If I wasMy goodness-gracious, this book is one hell of a monster.
It is the ultimate Russian nesting doll of and about art, memory, satire, and "Art". If I wasn't already a huge fan of Nabokov, I probably would have thrown this book across the room.
Nabokov wrote this novel as a tribute to his native language and is the last, and undeniably brilliant, of that period. It is a prime example of a supremely self-satisfied intellectual engorgement. Beautiful turns of phrase, rich and belligerent in its knowledge of the Russian Greats, it waves itself under the noses of anyone who might dare to understand it.
Look. I know my fair share of the greats of Russian Literature, but aside from my Dostoyevski, I'm like a babe in the woods against my Pushkin and Gogol. Coming up against The Gift makes me flail like a flensed man hung from a gibbet. Or like the remaining skin of a man. In Siberia. If I wasn't a dedicated fan of the writer and his gorgeous prose, the brilliant structure, the way he nested his prose within prose within prose and went ALL META on me in a way that made my head spin, I probably would have cut off his self-satisfied intellectual engorgement and thrown it out the window of a moving car.
I both loved and hated this book. I wanted to DNF it because I couldn't follow so much of it. I didn't know enough of any of the poets of the period, let alone a sufficient number of the greats, to know whether Nabokov was MAKING THEM UP OUT OF WHOLE CLOTH a-la Possession. I guess I could look it up, but frankly, I'm happy I'm done and I want to move on. :)
It's definitely going to be right up your alley if you A: love Russian literature, B: love to hear about writers crafting their magnum opuses, C: are tolerant of monstrous egotists. :) ...more
For whether it was helpful to me, personally, I'd say... no.
So what WAS it? Exactly what it says. It refers to twoFor what this is, it's pretty good.
For whether it was helpful to me, personally, I'd say... no.
So what WAS it? Exactly what it says. It refers to two different types of writers and allows for the differences between right-brained and left-brained individuals, saying, point-blank, that you've got to shore up your defenses. Good enough.
Beyond that, we're dealing with the very basic ideas of keeping tension, not overwhelming the opening with too much backstory, keeping the descriptions strong and not crazy, and best of all, the good stuff about the plot.
Of course, she uses some of the classics like Lord of the Flies and Great Gatsby and even Hunger Games, but it all boils down to introducing great antagonists early (even if it's the main character), having them fail and come to their big realization at the 3/4 point, and then wrapping it all up.
Very good for beginners.
What is not covered is, say, the dramatic structure of Shakespeare's plays, the non-plot heavy character-driven classics, or anything much beyond the cookie-cutter. And most of the cookies are left out, too.
But at least it does capture the spirit of the Plot. Boiled down. Sanitized. And ready for the next invitation to joining her next seminar. :)...more
There are two or three different books in this book, but by all apparent surfaces, it is all a single, exhaustive tome on ANALOGY.
As I read it, I wasThere are two or three different books in this book, but by all apparent surfaces, it is all a single, exhaustive tome on ANALOGY.
As I read it, I was struck by how vast and careful his analysis was and how I would have REALLY loved this as a teen, being fascinated by all the variances, categories, and richness of analogies. They are a source of amusement, creativity, vast and widespread accidents, a mode and end of consciousness, and an integral aspect of math and science. What is an equal sign but an analogy? And let's not forget Einstein making thought experiments that later became provable.
Analogy is in every word we use, constraining and freeing our understanding of the world as well as tumbling it into a mass of contradictions. Only logic and careful analysis can free it, but the source of all our greatest creativity comes from it.
As a kid, and perhaps unused to all the varieties of analogy and hungry for such a careful and well-thought-out stream of reasoning, I probably would have given this a full 5 stars just for is sheer chutzpah.
As an adult, I think it went on WAY TOO LONG.
Once the great and rather obvious arguments had been made, fought over, and survived the logic grinder, I was perfectly happy to throw it on the grill and garnish my the buns of my life with thrilling mustard, spicy onions, wholesome lettuce, and timely tomatoes.
I could easily see this book fueling the understanding of our cognition or developing Artificial Intelligence. I can see it becoming a monumental if a rather pedantic tribute to obviousness. But it is obvious only because we're in the heart of it.
Or rather, I might recommend this book to aliens trying to understand us humans. Or AIs from other stars trying to get a good grip on our alien psychology.
For the general lay-reader, DESPITE it being always lightly humorous and clear, I cannot recommend this... except, perhaps, in small doses while sitting on the toilet.
But am I happy I read it? Yes. I can say I'm a complete convert to the line of logic. It aligns to my own reasoning very well. But was it often boring AF? Yes. It was that, too....more
This is a much-needed primer for authors needing a kick-start on their marketing campaign.
A lot of it isn't news, but being reminded of everything thaThis is a much-needed primer for authors needing a kick-start on their marketing campaign.
A lot of it isn't news, but being reminded of everything that's necessary and to highlight a few steps we might be missing, it's fairly essential.
Big takeaways: Every reader, every kind of contact, needs to be earned by a real voice, a personalized message. It's unfortunate for the author who would rather spend his or her days actually writing and polishing the stories that they are so invested in, but it's still important. And kinda obvious.
No one likes spam or blather. Take your time with each person, build contacts, build relationships, make real friends. Then ask for help, especially after you've given it first.
Does this sound daunting for confirmed introverts like myself?
Oh. Yes!
I don't have any issue with treating anyone like they are real people. It's the amount of headspace required to build vast networking empire that makes me want to quail. I don't think I'm any good at any of that. I don't out and mix with people. At all.
If I'm talking with people about things that get me excited, and so much DOES get me excited, then I'm as right as rain. But ACTIVELY asking for help in the much-vaunted art of begging without actually seeming to beg?
It sounds so phony. It sounds so self-serving. It makes me squirm.
And yet. And yet. Writing books is an almost solitary endeavor... at least at first. Some of us are forced to accomplish miracles in a perfect vacuum.
But selling books? It requires word of mouth and therefore a constant building of relationships. We have to use our tools REGARDLESS of our strengths. :) Alas.
I guess it's time to start making friends and begging them to do the things we're unable to do! lol...more
I was thoroughly charmed by this well-written guide on how to write better. :)
Maybe it's because real language changes. Maybe it's because true clariI was thoroughly charmed by this well-written guide on how to write better. :)
Maybe it's because real language changes. Maybe it's because true clarity comes from the spaces between the words and not absolutely from the rules about the words.
But that's not to say that this cogent discussion on grammar isn't rife with practical examples and great reflection, because it does. It just happens to bring up the fact that one generation's Haberdash is another's charming fireside chat. Moreover, it uses humor, skepticism, and common sense to throw out the grammar nazism and return us back to the firm hand of insight and delight.
For writing should not be a chore.
It should edify, clarify, and wrap us up in a warm comforter and hand us a favorite beverage and ramble on about what it really loved about its day. Am I clear?
Rules are for chumps, yo. But learn them first before you break them. :)
(Advice I think I will always have to take to heart.)...more
This was a rather satisfying look into a SF Grandmaster's life. Robert Silverberg had been on the scene since 1955 but had decided to stop writing, goThis was a rather satisfying look into a SF Grandmaster's life. Robert Silverberg had been on the scene since 1955 but had decided to stop writing, go into full retirement, about a decade ago. That doesn't mean he ignores the SF community, however, nor has he gone recluse. He just retired.
These transcribed conversations with Alvaro feel like a very comfortable and wide-ranging exploration on many topics, all of which were very well organized and compiled and I never once got the impression that this was anything other than a near-biography of this fascinating man.
For one, I never realized that he was quite this accomplished or aware of his prose and how it fit in with so many of the previous fiction greats, and I mean the classics such as Faulkner and Hemingway, not only the SF masters that had come before him. He's hyper-aware of everything he did and he is, or was, extremely aware of all matters of craft even when he was doing hack work. When he was popular enough to write his preferred medium-- his Silverberg medium--, he flourished like never before.
It's an old story perhaps, but it's truly fascinating to me to see just how moderate and professional the man is, never taking anything to extremes despite what might be considered relatively outrageous subjects in some of his novels.
His personal code was always writing as work and he took all his craft very seriously, at all stages. It really sheds a lot of light upon his body of work for me. I've only read something like five of his novels, but knowing all that I now know about him, I respect him a lot more.
This is a very enjoyable and informative read. And it might possibly be my top pick for the non-fiction nominations for this year's Hugo... and that's including Carrie Fisher's charming prose and Neil Gaiman's collection of essays and speeches.
We shall see. Only one more to go and then I'll be properly informed. :)...more
I'm sure a million other people mentioned that this is a streamlined and summarized version of Campbell's Hero of a Thousand Faces, but I read it anywI'm sure a million other people mentioned that this is a streamlined and summarized version of Campbell's Hero of a Thousand Faces, but I read it anyway because maybe that was exactly what I needed. A simple reminder of a simple tool. Not bad, not great, but at least it was informative to the point of jogging my memory....more
While this might not have been my absolute favorite book on writing, it ranks up there with some of the best. I especially appreciated the passion he While this might not have been my absolute favorite book on writing, it ranks up there with some of the best. I especially appreciated the passion he espoused for simply writing a damn good book above and beyond any other consideration. Sounds simple, no? Well the advice is taken across a wide board of problem areas, be it agents, editors, publishing platforms, and best of all, every writer's worst enemy: themselves. Never get complacent. Don't aim for status. Aim for great storytelling and the rest will follow suit.
Simplicity itself. So if I've given away everything that makes this book so valuable, then why should anyone else read it? Because it's pretty damn exhaustive on the big points that make any novel a great novel, and enjoins us to partake of some pretty decent workbook exercises that focus more on connections and character development than things like plot. It was quite useful, and the rest was, for the most part, positive and uplifting if you're trying to be an author that doesn't mind staring the hard facts in the face.
It wasn't so much a manual of how to write as it was an encyclopedia of writing terms and conventions, all conveniently laid out in alphabetical orderIt wasn't so much a manual of how to write as it was an encyclopedia of writing terms and conventions, all conveniently laid out in alphabetical order.
Seriously, nothing new is under the sun, and I've known about all of these since high-school, but sometimes it's kinda nice to be reminded of what you might have forgotten in your old, old, old age. You know, kinda like that old saying, "I've forgotten more than you've ever known." It makes me feel a little bit like a curmudgeon and an old fogey.
It's not a bad state to live in, btw. I recall that I wanted to be a curmudgeon when I was 16.
Now that I've read this, I feel like my life-long dream has finally come true. ...more
I have read better books on how to create good fiction, but none were as exacting about plot maintenance, and of course, this is a good thing for a boI have read better books on how to create good fiction, but none were as exacting about plot maintenance, and of course, this is a good thing for a book on plots. That being said, I think I should have been writing, rather than reading a book on plots. Sure, I felt the conflict and the build-up while reading it, but the lack of my action, or no-action, was a glaring defect that I desperately wanted to rectify. So, as a book on plots, I desperately wanted to make one by putting the book down.
It's not a bad instructional book; it's just one that I, like most people, are overjoyed to ignore. You know: like grammar....more
When it comes to reading books on how to write, I'm biased and totally unconcerned about being objective and realistic. That being said, this is a greWhen it comes to reading books on how to write, I'm biased and totally unconcerned about being objective and realistic. That being said, this is a great book and a fun read. :) It encourages and gives great advice. I've never read one of her books, but I'm perfectly willing to try a few, based on the quality of her writing about writing. It's a good sign that she can tug my emotional authorial apron strings like this. Of course, what I really want to see is the complete novel she wrote in a single month. Perhaps it's a stinker, perhaps I'm going to give it a great deal of that proverbial benefit of the doubt because of the extreme pressure she was put under. Still, it's an interesting little mind game I'm going to lay on my psyche. Thank you Holly! ...more
Very decent guide to writing both novels and short fiction. It reminds me of a great deal I should always keep in mind while reading, as well. My apprVery decent guide to writing both novels and short fiction. It reminds me of a great deal I should always keep in mind while reading, as well. My appreciation for novels might just improve some more with these kinds of reminders. :)...more
I thought this book on writing was very good, although I tend to like Card's later, more informal discussions better. Seeing how I've read almost all I thought this book on writing was very good, although I tend to like Card's later, more informal discussions better. Seeing how I've read almost all of his work, it's interesting to see what he has to say about it, too. :)...more
I was just curious and it was a short read. Brought up all of the same stuff I've read before, elsewhere, but it is still nice to recap.I was just curious and it was a short read. Brought up all of the same stuff I've read before, elsewhere, but it is still nice to recap....more
I thought the idea of a virus that prevents email with improper grammar from being sent was fantastic. The virus ought to be endorsed by all colleges,I thought the idea of a virus that prevents email with improper grammar from being sent was fantastic. The virus ought to be endorsed by all colleges, corporations, and curmudgeons; at least it ought to be stamped with the Trusted Application status once it has been hatched and flown. Of course, that might mean we'll have a great internet dark age when almost everyone will have gone silent. Alas. It's a fun book, I recommend it to everyone....more
What the heck have I been doing with my life! Wonder Boys has been one of my favorite movies of all time because it hits all the wonderful buttons of What the heck have I been doing with my life! Wonder Boys has been one of my favorite movies of all time because it hits all the wonderful buttons of writing and reading and being deliciously messed up and being so HUMAN.
So when I DID finally make the connection that one of favorite movies was really based on a book by an author I already described to myself as "wonderfully inventive and crazy", I made a facepalm that even my great-grandfather felt.
So here I read the novel at long last. And it was like coming home. It was the greatest comfort food. It was all of the joyous mess and the compilation of all cautionary tales about writers and writing that I've ever seen. :)
It was pure joy.
Grady is such a mess. But his problem isn't that he has writer's block. He has the other problem. No constipation here! He also has a bit of the Midnight thing, too. And a drug problem. But he's also got heart and he still believes that he'll conquer the world. You know. Eventually. :)
And then here comes another mess to compliment his own in the form of his editor. And then a young student who's just as nuts but who has at least finished his novel, and all of them get into one horrible mess after another.
Expect dead dogs, Marylin Monroe, Vernon's butt-cheeks, elevators and expulsion. :) I can't describe how wonderful this novel is because it just feels like a puzzle piece that slides right in and tells me that I'm not only just as flawed as these kids, but that I must be just as crazy as them if I can identify so strongly.
Oops. There goes my right to carry around my Sanity Badge... well at least I don't have to keep paying the monthly dues. :)
This is going to be one of my long time favorite novels and I might just revisit it regularly. It is SUCH a delight. :) Crazy delight. :)
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