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corita's review
4.0
There were some good ideas, interesting strategies, and valuable insights; however, 5,000 words an hour doesn't seem practical or even desirable to me. I tried some of his strategies, but they weren't all for me. Hats off to Fox, I'm impressed that he can do this. The book is worth a read, and using his ideas, I did improve my word count, but aiming for 5,000 or even 4,000, I lost quality of writing and story flow. I did learn my limits. I'm the tortoise not the hare.
jjigae's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
An excellent practical guide to improving the craft and productivity of writing. It’s easily digestible and has exercises to grow your toolbox. Highly recommend!
novelgal's review
3.0
IThis short book is part of Chris Fox’s Write Faster, Write Smarter series. It is easy reading for both beginner and advanced writers who want to streamline their work and improve their speed. It begins with and builds on some solid production guidelines. The idea of mini-sprints that build to longer sprints on a daily basis is not new, but a good base for productive writers. The idea of tracking is not new, either, but the suggested form is a useful guide to keep you engaged in the process. Preparing your space, taking breaks from it to keep you fresh, and handling burnout are all excellent topics that the author discusses realistically.
As a personal aside, I probably will not be able to reach the quotas they mention because I am not yet comfortable with using voice recognition to speak my book aloud during the first draft. Although I outline my books, part of my first draft process includes thinking as I write, and stopping to look up information so that the basics are there in their correct form.
One of the questions that occurs to me is how long it would take me to adjust to using voice-to-text in my draft process. After all, I started out using handwritten first drafts, then typewritten, and now computer-typed. Voice-recognition draft creation is just the next step in the writer's education, another tool for the writer to use to speed and hopefully improve his work. It's a matter of where a writer wants to put their energy.
As a personal aside, I probably will not be able to reach the quotas they mention because I am not yet comfortable with using voice recognition to speak my book aloud during the first draft. Although I outline my books, part of my first draft process includes thinking as I write, and stopping to look up information so that the basics are there in their correct form.
One of the questions that occurs to me is how long it would take me to adjust to using voice-to-text in my draft process. After all, I started out using handwritten first drafts, then typewritten, and now computer-typed. Voice-recognition draft creation is just the next step in the writer's education, another tool for the writer to use to speed and hopefully improve his work. It's a matter of where a writer wants to put their energy.
leacherry's review
4.0
A very interesting take that will help you write faster and better to get that dream manuscript out as soon as you can. Listen, take notes and find your pace that will ensure your first draft be done before you even know it.
jwillis81's review
5.0
This book is packed with excellent advice on how to increase your writing output. It's full of helpful tips and exercises you can work on to make your writing process more efficient. I've been practicing these techniques myself (particularly keeping track of my writing sprints) and have noticed a significant improvement to my writing speed as a result.
timdams007's review
2.0
This tiny book contains some nuggets of useful tips and tricks. However, they are overshadowed by lots of repetition (otherwise this book would barely contain more than 5k words I presume) , including several attempts to make you install the author's app (which is a) only for Apple and b) only really has an added value if you chuck out 3$ for the premium version ).
morgangiesbrecht's review
4.0
Overall, I enjoyed this book. Fox lists out several beneficial techniques and tactics to become more efficient and productive in your writing habits. Some I was already familiar with, others were new to me. I’d recommend this to writers looking to see an increase in their word output.
The biggest takeaway for me was the power of voice dictation. I’m really not a fan of “talking my ideas,” but it’s true I can talk faster than I can write, so I’ll be trying to utilize that feature more in my writing.
A cautionary word: there are about a dozen mild swear words used. Also I don’t endorse everything the writer said particularly in terms of mindset, but with discretion, it’s still a beneficial read.
The biggest takeaway for me was the power of voice dictation. I’m really not a fan of “talking my ideas,” but it’s true I can talk faster than I can write, so I’ll be trying to utilize that feature more in my writing.
A cautionary word: there are about a dozen mild swear words used. Also I don’t endorse everything the writer said particularly in terms of mindset, but with discretion, it’s still a beneficial read.
petealdin's review against another edition
4.0
A simple and practical book on writing mentality and process. I'm indebted to the author for this advice.
jameyanne's review against another edition
4.0
I will reserve final judgment on this book until I actually try the technique suggested (which I'm planning to). I will say that I liked reading this book because it was short and sweet, got to the point without waxing on about the writer's own life (I'm looking at you Stephen King), and gave clear, actionable steps towards improving your writing productivity.