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deservingporcupine's review
5.0
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book as it was released, chapter by chapter on Tor. I usually don’t love writing advice (I’ve tried to get through Bird by Bird at least three times), but this one was written so specifically for this moment it felt comforting and joyful, even as the world feels like neither of those things. This is a book for anyone who loves stories, whether you write them or not.
saucy_bookdragon's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
Uplifting and filled with writing advice that emphasizes the love of writing with no right or wrong methods. It helped make me feel a little better about my own writing and I’m definitely going to incorporate some of what Anders suggests into my own writing, particularly listening more to my inner reader than my inner critic.
_clack's review
3.0
I don’t have the same sense of humor as the author 😭 got me interested in creative writing tho
maddy_walock's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
tacanderson's review
4.0
I had heard good things about this book (forget where) and had enjoyed some of Anders' works of fiction so decided to get it. The book is a collection of posts originally published on Tor.com, when I found this out, I instantly lowered my expectations. In the past I've not enjoyed books that are a collection of essays or blog posts. But the book quickly reset my expectations. Besides providing a lot of inspiration (which was the point and premise of the book), Anders provides a lot of very practical tips and advice to aspiring writers. I ended up taking quite a few notes, especially in the later chapters.
ckcombsdotcom's review
5.0
So good. I’m working on my first novel. Not my first writing but the first long piece. All through this book, I’ve found inspiration and excellent ideas that I was able to use right away on my WiP.
Besides being of great practice use, this series of essays is great fun to read.
Besides being of great practice use, this series of essays is great fun to read.
vigil's review
“And after watching approximately 10,000 hours of the CW, I've started to notice just how ruthlessly efficient the scenes in a typical episode of The Vampire Diaries or Arrow are. Each episode is juggling a dozen subplots, so every scene needs to carry its own weight and move at least one subplot forward, if not several. Characters on the CW enter each scene with an axe to grind, or a problem they need to solve, or often the need to murder each other. They interact, and something shifts in their dynamic, often heightening their conflict (if it's the middle of an episode), and then each scene ends with some kind of knife twist-_-or neck twist, if it's Vampire Diaries.
If you want to see how to strip a scene down to just its bones, then watching the CW provides a masterclass.”
LMAOOO absolutely not.