Reviews: Books About Writing – The Writing Tree

by Helen Kenwright

I read a lot of books about writing, because you never know where you might get a good tip or idea to improve your practice and craft. But this was one of the first I read, and it had a huge impact on how I approach and think about my writing.

Gail Sher is a writer, psychotherapist, teacher and a Zen Buddhist, and One Continuous Mistake involves all of these aspects. She introduces us to four noble truths, in the Buddhist tradition, of writing, namely:

1. Writers write
2. Writing is a process
3. You don’t know what you’re writing will be until the end of the process.
4. If writing is your practice, the only way to fail is not to write.
Gail Sher: One Continuous Mistake. Four Noble Truths for Writers. P5. Compass, 1999.

Continue reading →

Lights, Camera, Fiction! by Alfie Thompson

reviewed by Susi Liarte

In this post I’m going to write about why I love this book, what it offers (and what it doesn’t) and how it can help writers among the many other writing books out there. I haven’t read any of the author’s other books, but I know she has published one called Writing for the Reader which I’m interested in checking out next.

Lights, Camera, Fiction! packs a lot into a slim, 250 page volume. Its tagline is “A movie lover’s guide to writing a novel”. The book approaches the subject by analysing several well-known films and picking out different aspects such as character and plot in order to showcase what they do well, and how this can work for novels as well as screenwriting. The core structure pairs one film for each topic as follows, but references and examples to other films are scattered throughout. Continue reading →

The Writing Tree

Category: Reviews: Books About Writing

Book Recommendation: One Continuous Mistake. Four Noble Truths for Writers

by Helen Kenwright

Review: Lights, Camera, Fiction!

Lights, Camera, Fiction! by Alfie Thompson

reviewed by Susi Liarte