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A review by andib
Never Say You Can't Survive: How to Get Through Hard Times by Making Up Stories by Charlie Jane Anders
5.0
I've read a lot of books on writing...a lot...and this is definitely one of my favorites. This one doesn't give you a huge heavy "start to finish" process on novel-writing, nor tell you that the Thing To Do Is Write Every Day Preferably At the Same Time and in the Same Location (which sounds helpful, but doesn't work for lots of people, including me). This book isn't your run-of-the-mill writing advice book, and its unique perspective (and when is Anders' perspective not unique?) makes it a must-read for all writers, "aspiring" or perspiring or however you may be.
First, as the title implies, the purpose of the guidance here is not to help you produce the Great Novel or Get Published, but to help us feel that writing is our refuge, our comfort, our stalwart friend and protector against the dark forces currently filling the world. Coming at writing from that perspective relieves a lot of the pressure to perform great work and gives us permission to simply write because we love it. That may mean the act of writing itself, or it may mean the creation of worlds (definitely my preference), and as Anders points out, world-creation isn't the purview only of SF and fantasy writers, but of all writers. She encourages us to own our worlds, love them, revel in them, rather than constantly analyze them and fear the result. This was amazingly freeing for an overly-thinky and self-critical writer like myself.
But it isn't all freeform "write for joy alone" sort of advice--it's also guidance in building your skills and discovering your own way into your best story creation. That's the best quality of this book, I think: The author doesn't prescribe a method or pile chapter upon chapter of The Best Way upon us, but constantly helps us figure out ways to figure out our own ways of doing things. It's a refreshing take that I think writers have needed for decades--not only permission but hearty cheering and bolstering support to find our path into the written word.
Each chapter is a quick nugget bursting with passionate enthusiasm, encouragement, examples, and more--even some writing exercises here and there if you're so inclined--making the book a super-quick read. But I read it over a period of months, one chapter here, and other there, so that I could really absorb and savor each lesson. It turns out that I didn't need "advice" so much as encouragement and the excitement of a fellow writer cheering me on. I'll return to this book again and again in the future.
First, as the title implies, the purpose of the guidance here is not to help you produce the Great Novel or Get Published, but to help us feel that writing is our refuge, our comfort, our stalwart friend and protector against the dark forces currently filling the world. Coming at writing from that perspective relieves a lot of the pressure to perform great work and gives us permission to simply write because we love it. That may mean the act of writing itself, or it may mean the creation of worlds (definitely my preference), and as Anders points out, world-creation isn't the purview only of SF and fantasy writers, but of all writers. She encourages us to own our worlds, love them, revel in them, rather than constantly analyze them and fear the result. This was amazingly freeing for an overly-thinky and self-critical writer like myself.
But it isn't all freeform "write for joy alone" sort of advice--it's also guidance in building your skills and discovering your own way into your best story creation. That's the best quality of this book, I think: The author doesn't prescribe a method or pile chapter upon chapter of The Best Way upon us, but constantly helps us figure out ways to figure out our own ways of doing things. It's a refreshing take that I think writers have needed for decades--not only permission but hearty cheering and bolstering support to find our path into the written word.
Each chapter is a quick nugget bursting with passionate enthusiasm, encouragement, examples, and more--even some writing exercises here and there if you're so inclined--making the book a super-quick read. But I read it over a period of months, one chapter here, and other there, so that I could really absorb and savor each lesson. It turns out that I didn't need "advice" so much as encouragement and the excitement of a fellow writer cheering me on. I'll return to this book again and again in the future.