Nonfiction

Becoming a Writer, Staying a Writer: The Artistry, Joy, and Career of Storytelling

Becoming a Writer, Staying a Writer: The Artistry, Joy, and Career of Storytelling

  • Downloads：2489
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-05-17 01:19:12
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：J. Michael Straczynski
  • ISBN：B08JQLZ9NF
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Robin ，

J。 Michael Straczynski Becoming A writer， Staying A Writer， BenBella Books， Inc。 Dallas， TX， copyright @2021 Synthetic Worlds， Ltd。 Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this uncorrected proof for review。Becoming A Writer， Staying A Writer is replete with ideas; some criticisms of various methods used to teach writing; an insight into the life of a writer， with its pinnacles and troughs; and J。 Michael Straczynski’s experiences with which he imparts his knowledge。 I have an overwhelming feel J。 Michael Straczynski Becoming A writer， Staying A Writer， BenBella Books， Inc。 Dallas， TX， copyright @2021 Synthetic Worlds， Ltd。 Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this uncorrected proof for review。Becoming A Writer， Staying A Writer is replete with ideas; some criticisms of various methods used to teach writing; an insight into the life of a writer， with its pinnacles and troughs; and J。 Michael Straczynski’s experiences with which he imparts his knowledge。 I have an overwhelming feeling of appreciation for his zest in equipping writers with thoughtful ideas and tools for meeting the challenges confronting anyone who wants to be a writer and maintain that status。 At the same time， I have some criticisms and see this book as part of a writer’s source of advice， rather than a perfect guide。 Some of the advice appears difficult to follow or lacking in understanding， and although that is inevitable because of writers’ different capacities and requirements， it needs to be noted。 What stands out are some marvellous sections of advice and information that cannot missed。 J。 Michael Straczynski has written from a writer’s world to writers who want to join it， or remain in it， combining entertainment as well as advice in the invitation to learn。J。 Michael Straczynski speaks of writing and rewriting， almost hewing the paragraphs into shape such as the work of a sculptor， as one of the feats a writer must achieve。 He also provides excellent advice on where to end a piece of writing – leave an unfinished sentence so it can be completed at the next writing， beginning the next day’s work smoothly。 Reading this advice， I wondered about the beginning of this book。 It is quite autobiographical， and where the remaining work gives us so much understanding and insight into Straczynski I wonder – is so much material here necessary？ Is he taking over where he left his autobiography？ I wanted to get into the world of writing more directly， so found the first pages unexciting。 Fortunately， I soon became engrossed in those that followed。 Straczynski provides a work that lives， becomes the writer’s world of writing， draws us in。This is not a textbook， lists of advice or notes on how to write， and Straczynski is critical of such limited， almost mechanical， methods of learning to write。 This criticism of other texts， workshops and writing classes is useful， but not definitive。 Some of these features of the world a ‘becoming writer’ inhabits could well be useful。 Where this book helps is in deciding their value though describing the short comings of various learning modes。 However， I believe that there are alternatives that require consideration。 There are many useful texts on scriptwriting， writing short stories or a novel， for example， and The Guardian UK organises seminars for specialist writing， run by published authors， publishers， and scriptwriters。 It would be a pity to reject the available opportunities based on Straczynski’s dismissiveness。 He teaches writing in a university course: so not all such courses are limited。 What becomes apparent throughout the book is that a writer must use the available tools judiciously， critically and with the determination to write。 Straczynski provides the questions writers need to ask about alternative teaching methods and their content。 His method provides many answers on how to fill any void。 Several sections and chapters stand out。 The concepts about characterisation are marvellous。 So， too， are the ideas about using scenes， in books， television or films， effectively。 The advice to remain current， to forgo traditional planning of a text， to reject the old notions that underlie some books on writing was powerfully argued。 Straczynski made not only sense but takes the reader through some fascinating proposals and history to demonstrate how a process might work well in past situations， but be unnecessary， or problematic under new circumstances。 Where there are injunctions about what to do and how to do it， there is an abundance of material to help the writer achieve the aims of this book – become a writer， write， and remain a writer。J。 Michael Straczynski’s Changeling script was nominated for a BAFTA and won the Movies for Grown Ups Award for Best Screenwriter。 However， more important in assessing this book on writing is how he eventually arrived at writing the script from the ‘rough story’ he had in his mind。 The process he undertook to achieve an award-winning script is personal but has universal application。 The story he tells， and advice that permeates throughout that story， is enlightening。 This is how lessons on becoming a writer are put together in this book。 As I noted earlier， the invitation to learn to write through Becoming A Writer， Staying A Writer book is one where advice and entertainment are mixed， making it an enjoyable as well as instructive read。 。。。more

Michael ，

I had the opportunity to read an advance copy of "Becoming a Writer， Staying a Writer" and it has my highest recommendation。 Whether you are a newer writer just starting out， or an established writer in the midst of your career， you will find value in these pages。 I had the opportunity to read an advance copy of "Becoming a Writer， Staying a Writer" and it has my highest recommendation。 Whether you are a newer writer just starting out， or an established writer in the midst of your career， you will find value in these pages。 。。。more

Addison Rizer ，

I’ve never read a writing book geared to the already-begun-but-still-haven’t-quite-“made”-it writers。 A fantastic look into the life and advice of a writer from the inside with examples and anecdotes to back him up。 Highly recommend。 *ARC received via Edel*

Cari ，

I will be reviewing for Booklist！

Jan Schroeder ，

（Based on an Advance Reader's Copy via Edelweiss）This is a writing book that every aspiring & established writer should pick up。 The sub-title pretty much tells you what this book is about。 The author is down to earth with real-world information about the craft and business of writing and how to keep your career fresh， but always calls it back to reminding the reader that they are artists and need to savor the joy of telling stories。 Worth the price just for the exercise in character building an （Based on an Advance Reader's Copy via Edelweiss）This is a writing book that every aspiring & established writer should pick up。 The sub-title pretty much tells you what this book is about。 The author is down to earth with real-world information about the craft and business of writing and how to keep your career fresh， but always calls it back to reminding the reader that they are artists and need to savor the joy of telling stories。 Worth the price just for the exercise in character building and how that creates the story。 。。。more