This "self-help" book for writers lived up to its description as "not your typical writing book." Lots of good advice. ( )

My first book for the year [2009] is Word Work: surviving and thriving as a writer by Bruce Holland Rogers. The book is a collection of essays in which the author shares some of his writing techniques and philosophy. Rather than giving advice, the author presents some of the common pitfalls and stumbling blocks that writers encounter and then explains how he deals with them and why his techniques work for him. He also explains different techniques that have worked for friends and fellow writers.

The emphasis throughout the book is on the need for self-reflection to identify the issues and for mindful awareness to keep oneself on course. This was an excellent book, filled with helpful information. My only regret is that it's a library book so I couldn't mark it up and I can't keep it at hand. Perhaps it will go on my birthday wishlist!

Definitely 5/5. ( )

ALL WRITERS TAKE NOTE!!!

At each SHU residency, a reading module is offered. The module requires participants to read a selected text prior to the module so that much discussion may be had, and the lecture might actually make sense. :) For the June 2006 residency, the reading module focused on Roger’s book, Word Work, and it really caught my eye. However, due to my course requirements, I couldn’t take this particular module. Yet the book description kept nibbling at my curiosity until I broke down and bought the book regardless. And, as I usually do when I order books, it went promptly to my bookshelf until I decided I was ready to read it.

Truth is, I forgot all about the text until I was corresponding with my mentor, and he mentioned this title as a balm to soothe my current state of anxiety. When I looked up the title on Amazon and realized I already had it on my shelf, I figured it was a SIGN, and sat down to read the sucker right then.

I just finished. And words do not even BEGIN to describe how useful and helpful this book is.

This is not a how-to. And regardless of the label printed on the back cover, it’s not exactly self-help (self-realization may be a better word). And it’s also not focused to writers of a particular genre. This book is meant for any and all kinds of writers, no matter where you are in the stage of the game.

And I mean that: whether you consider writing your job, your passion, or your hobby, or perhaps even a “I’d really like to do this but fill in your blanks here,” you must read this book.

Why? You know all those little things that creep up and tell us we really aren’t writers? You know how you feel when you’re comparing your output to someone who’s much more productive, and feel that if you were a real writer, you’d be just as productive. Or what about those times when you’re so tired of writing you think your eyes are going to bleed? Oh, and the persistent need to keep revising the beginning of your book? The oh-so-compelling urge to procrastinate?

Rogers covers just about every single insecurity in this book: he explains why we have them, and why they aren’t BAD things, necessarily. And he not only discusses the why, but he offers various solutions to our various problems (some of which I found were kinda cheesy, but that’s me), acknowledging all the while that said solutions are NOT one-size-fits-all, and that each project we undertake brings its own set of issues to the plate.

And I should point out this isn’t just a book for writers feeling a lack of self-confidence: Rogers discusses the WRITER’S LIFE: should you quit your day job? How do you deal with a partner who’s also a writer? How do you deal with a partner who isn’t? He discusses how children affect your routine and creativity; he discusses the pros and cons of workshops and various writer’s communities. He discusses just about anything you’d want to examine about the writer’s life, except maybe health and taxes (though he does talk about death, so that relates to health in a tangential way).

If you’re a writer, and if you’ve EVER worked on original fiction, you need to read this book. I can’t stress that enough. Those of us who are writers at our CORE, whether we currently produce fiction or not, not only need to know we’re not alone in our concerns and anxieties and worries, but we also need all the support we can get, because after all: writers generally have a difficult time functioning in the “adult” world, and so much about current society can make us feel guilty for doing what we really WANT to do with our lives.

So read this book. I’m not promising it’s going to make you feel like writing is your calling or anything, but it may lead you to some kind of answers, particularly ones you know you can live with. I know it was very useful for me, and I’m particularly grateful to my mentor for recommending it when he did. And if I were rich, I’d buy all my writer friends (past and present) a copy of this book and make them read it right away. Alas, I’m not rich, so I’m begging you to get it for yourselves instead. :) ( )