Has anyone read the book bird by bird?

Question

I want to know what i am getting myself into by reading this book... am looking for a quick summary of the book...

Answer 1

okay

This is an author that is VERY into the organic writing process. She isn't into alot of planning and preparing and thinking and thinking.

It's all about your characters.

The more time spent getting to know your characters, their traits, likes, dislikes, hatreds, etc., will guide the progress of your book, in other words, you are trying to write a character into a certain situation, according to Bird by Bird, the character will tell you whether they would do it or not.

She's also into encouraging the writer with gentle prodding - give yourself permission to write a crappy first draft - don't think about the whole novel, just take it piece by piece.

If you're looking for some serious inspiration to get going on your book, I'd highly recommend reading Bird by Bird. It's well written.

There's an accompanying book on tape called Word by Word which, in my opinion, is even better, because you can hear her dry, nasally, sarcastic sounding voice.

Good luck.

FP

Answer 2

I've read this book at least a dozen times. It is one of my two absolute favorite books about writing-- and the best part of this book is that the advice is really applicable to every part of life.

The book combines writing advice with personal experience and stories. It is funny, heartwarming, and wise.

The point of the book is to take things one step at a time, and not get overwhelmed looking at the entire project. It covers the basics of a story like plot, characters, and setting, as well as things that not every authors likes to talk about-- like the fact that EVERYONE writes terrible first drafts of their stories!

The book is broken into four parts:

1) "Writing"-- This is where all the basics are covered, from the first chapter "Getting Started" to the last of the section "How Do You Know When You're Done?" It has exercises and techniques to improve almost all aspects of your writing.

2) "The Writing Frame of Mind"-- This really focuses on the emotions of writing a book, including your inner critic and jealousy. Every writer has tough moments, every PERSON has tough moments, and Lamott faces those emotions with humor and makes you feel like you aren't alone.

3) "Help Along the Way"--This section covers things like writing groups and people to critique you stories, as well as the ever scary writer's block.

4) "Publication, and Other Reasons to Write"-- Lamott is a firm believer that publication is not the only reason to write, and I wholeheartedly agree. If selling your work is your only motivation, your writing will lack a lot fo the passion that makes stories great!

I'm a dork, and read it with a highlighter to track all my favorite pieces of advice!

Definitely start this book right away!

Answer 3

It's Anne Lamott's manifesto about the writing life. She summarizes the kinds of things she tells her writing students during a semester. Things like: you may dream about getting published and think that it will change your life - but it won't. You have to write for something more than just that.

Answer 4

No.