Reddit mentions of Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them (P.S.)

Show, don't tell.

Francine Prose put it better than I can in her analysis of Dulse, by Alice Munro.

>Finally, the passage contradicts a form of bad advice often given young writers—namely, that the job of the author is to show, not tell. Needless to say, many great novelists combine "dramatic" showing with long sections of the flat-out authorial narration that is, I guess, what is meant by telling. And the warning against telling leads to a confusion that causes novice writers to think that everything should be acted out—don't tell us a character is happy, show us how she screams "yay" and jumps up and down for joy—when in fact the responsibility of showing should be assumed by the energetic and specific use of language. There are many occasions in literature in which telling is far more effective than showing.

source

This week I finished the first book in the Hyperion series. Solid reading experience was loving all the stories that the travelers were telling. The only thing is now I don't really know if I want to continue the series right away, which is fine maybe I will later. As a stand alone story it isn't the strongest which makes me want to continue because everything in this book is basically background information for the series ahead. I don't really know why I picked it up because I already knew I didn't want to be wrapped up in a long series, but I did and I'm glad I did. But I gotta say I love the exotic planets in this book there is a lot beauty in these words.

Another little note is that this was the longest book I have read on my kindle I have only been using the thing for shorter books because I was still getting used to it. But gotta say I love that damn device.

O.K. on to the book I finished this morning just so I could talk about it at length Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them. Alright I stumbled along this book on amazon and was drawn in by the names of the chapters, take a look inside the book on the amazon page and look at the table of contents. Simple concepts like words and sentences start the thing off and it moves into the bigger concepts of literature later. This really drew me in I thought about how in my high school AP English class we talked about the more "hidden meanings" in the books we were reading and just thinking how I would have never have picked up on that and how much I must miss in literature.

So I bought the book and gotta say I feel like a better reader now, well I haven't read anything since I finished it but still. She goes in detail about the subject of each chapter and looks at lots and lots of examples so be prepared to read lots passages from lots of books....lots. Then she dissects them and brings to light those things I would have missed. After doing this time and time again I feel like I now know what to look for. Really if you want to make your reading comprehension better or feel like you are missing something when it comes to reading I recommend the shit out of this book. Just be ready to learn when you pick it up it isn't dense by any means but you do have to get into a bit of a student mindset to get into it. Also there is a little list at the back of "books to read immediately" I indulged myself and bought three of them in the physical format, I can't wait to read them.

I didn't get this book for the writing insights, not my thing, I do feel that it would have benefited me if I was a writer but I'm sure there are better things to learn from for writers. But as a non-writer I feel like if I started now I would have a better idea of what to do with my words then I would have before I read this book.

It doesn't deal with just one book, but Reading like a Writer tells how to analyze books yourself.

Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them (P.S.) https://www.amazon.com/dp/0060777052/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_b7szDbY7MJ13P

Hmm there's a few ways to go about writing and publishing, and the way you choose is up to you.


I was always told the same thing about my creations, but decided I wanted to take it further, same thing with art. I see natural talent like having a knife, one that separates you from most people. But it's a dull knife, maybe it can take you to a certain point, but it can only cut so much, therefore limiting your potential. You need to sharpen and hone it through learning and practice, or it will be blunt forever. It's not easy or fast, but possible, as long as you have a genuine interest and vision. Cheap metaphor, but that's the concept I'm talking about. Take advantage of it, and you'll go far.


So you can begin by doing it "instinctually", by writing the way you would when at school for a teacher or assignment, by picking up a pencil and just going for it, relying on subconscious experience and inborn talent.


On the other hand, you can go about it more "intellectually" and make it more of a learning process through external sources, the way I prefer. I find this way is more tedious but also stimulating, more interesting, and fun. For example, if you wanted to write a short fiction story, you could begin with the basics of writing in general, then once you've absorbed that information, narrow down your interest.
When it comes to learning new skills, theories, or subjects, my general process is determine why I want to learn it/decide its importance to me -> determine how I will best learn it, (for example, I generally learn things best with reading and visuals) -> find where I can acquire resources, such as through the Internet or library -> begin with the basics -> practice -> go deeper in the subject -> practice more and more -> repeat the last two steps again and again.

When it comes to putting your stuff out there, it can be a complicated and long process, (I can't give any personal experience with that, as I've never considered sending my stuff for publishing or anything), and there's a ton of resources out there for that, books and articles.

Also, learning from the "masters" is important too, of course. Identify what inspires you, who inspires you, and go from there. A book that has helped me with this: http://www.amazon.com/Reading-Like-Writer-Guide-People/dp/0060777052


If you're looking for a more direct method (that costs money), a less common approach to book-selling is getting a booth at a local convention, like Comic Con, where you can sell your book(s). It will likely sell better if you have eye-catching visuals to go with it and maybe even illustrations by a commissioned artist. Also check out your local book store (not Barnes and Noble, a privately owned one), or public library, and see if you can put up cheap copies of your book in there. Not all libraries and businesses do the same thing, so I can't say if yours has this. But all that generally won't come until later, of course. If you're starting, getting feedback from as many people as possible, whether thru an Internet platform or people you know, practicing, and learning are the first steps. In terms of careers, there's editing, writing for comic books, writing for magazines or websites. These jobs will likely take a solid portfolio and education in writing/editing, etc. to get, though, if they're not independent companies.


Since you said not for the mainstream - I'm in my last year of high school, and with my best friend have a monthly printed chapbook (a little independent magazine type thing) that we send around our friend groups, and over time it has spread to many people and all over school. It contains various short stories students (myself included) have submitted. It also contains art from various talented artists in the school. It really is a great way to get many people's work out there to an audience. If you're at a uni or college, you could begin one of those with friends with mutual interests. You could also approach people who may be interested in submitting their work. All of that printing, writing, decision-making, and compiling will likely take your time and some money, but it's worth the gradual acknowledgement from an audience you will get if the magazine/chapbook is truly good and interesting. For example, it could contain student's poetry, short stories, recipes, local concerts, recommendations, reviews of books and films, photography, etc. It could also have a monthly theme that fellow writers and artists could submit their content for. I began the magazine because I wanted to take action, and was not going to just sit around dreaming all day that maybe someone will want to publish me - I can do it myself. Dreams and desires are cool, but I hate it when they just lay there stagnant in my mind. I stepped out of my comfort zone with it - I wasn't used to and don't enjoy initiating contact like that with so many people (whether it was offering them a copy, or asking a writer if they'd like their writing published in it) but I got used to it, and it's been worth it. And getting involved in a writing community, whether online (like /r/writingprompts for example) or writing forums, or in real life by taking a creative writing class, helps too, I think.


When it finally comes time to try and get published, the most unanimous advice authors have given is don't give up. I'm sure you've heard how many times prevalent writers such as J.K. Rowling (12 times) and Dr. Seuss (27 times) were rejected by publishing houses, but they didn't stop.


Also, writing competitions. Look them up, there's plenty of them. Sorry this was so long. I don't know how to write short responses for some topics, it's embarrassing.

Hi Remett, glad you're interested in writing! I'll work on answering your questions as best as I can. Before I get started, just know that there is by no means a set answer for any of the questions you ask. The beauty of writing is everybody figures out their own way to tell their story! Here's what I've learned since studying writing in school and dabbling in long form fiction since graduating in 2014.

• Most writers talk about two styles of developing their story, there are Gardeners and Planners. Most writers fall somewhere in the middle. Gardeners will sit at a blank page and see where their mind takes them, the world will start fleshing itself out as you go. Planners will outline and world build like mad before even writing a single sentence of the actual story. I'd suggest as you start with by coming up with major plot points and then figure out how you want to connect them. When I'm home from work I'll do some digging and see if I can find the old outlining tips I had from one of my creative writing professors that I found very helpful.
  
  
• I like to think of the culture that the town, character, religion, etc. is emulating (eg: Norse, Anglo Saxon, Chinese, etc.) then look up names from said culture. From there I can get a good idea of naming conventions for that culture, or simply take a common name from it that still sounds un-Americanized.
  
  
• You're inevitably going to write in cliches and tropes when you start out writing. Don't worry it happens to everybody. My favorite quote about writing comes from Ira Glass, I've cut away most of the fluff, but the bulk of it says "Nobody tells this to people who are beginners...For the first couple years you make stuff, it's just not that good. It's trying to be good, it has potential, but it's not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you." Here is the whole quote if you're interested. If it reads like crap, don't worry, everybody who starts out writing will have that feeling.
  
  
• I have two tips: Write and Read! And by read, I mean read everything, not just your genre you're interested in. Read everything, read crappy romance novels, read classic literature, read political thrillers. Read everything you possibly, every book has a lesson to teach a writer, even if it's something that you shouldn't do! Every day you write you're getting practice. The best artists aren't born great, they are made great through working at it regularly.
  
  A book I'd also recommend you checking out: "Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them". This book was great for teaching me what to look for in other people's writing when I read books.
  
  Let me know if you have any questions. Happy writing!

The two that always get mentioned are 'Writing Fiction: A guide to Narrative Craft' http://www.amazon.com/Writing-Fiction-Guide-Narrative-Craft/dp/B003IG7P1K/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1313794096&sr=8-2 and 'Reading Like a Writer' http://www.amazon.com/Reading-Like-Writer-Guide-People/dp/0060777052/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1313794216&sr=1-1 .

You may not want to read an entire book to answer this question, but on the off-chance that you do, I'd recommend Francine Prose's "Reading Like a Writer." Sometimes it's easy to get so caught up in the magic of the story--savoring the beauty of a sentence, flipping frantically to find out what happens next--that you forget to look for where the rabbit is hidden! But this book helps you figure out what to look for, if that makes sense.