will_lowder's review against another edition
Turchi slays hard here. Very much looking forward to his other books.
lucaslyra's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
shilo1364's review against another edition
5.0
Fabulous. Thought-provoking. Enlightening. Inspiring. A must-read. An original and inspired take on composing fiction. Deserves at least 6 stars.
Very dense, beautifully written and beautifully formatted, with accompanying puzzles, quotes, and anecdotes. Some gems:
"We live permanently in the recurrence of our own stories, whatever story we tell" - Michael Ondaatje
"To be the victim is, in some ways, to have something to savor, and to heal is to lose the distinction that comes with being wronged." - in reference to Alice Munroe's "Royal Beatings"
"What's to be found in a labyrinth isn't at the end; the power is in the passage, in the darkness and light and in the discoveries we make. When we emerge, we're essentially in the same place, the same external world, where we began - but changed by where we've been."
"We have to go along with a crazy idea, our own, even when we don't remember how we got it, we must go along with this crazy idea all the way, bring it to realization in the teeth of all the doubts and all the rules and all the recriminations, despite everything. We bring this idea to realization in order to bring ourselves to realization." -Thomas Bernhard
"The idea demands fulfillment... Suddenly one's head is full of nothing else, one has become the incarnation of one's idea. And now one begins to reap the benefits of all one's suffering... It all turns out to be useful, and the worst of the horrors are most useful of all." - Thomas Bernhard
"Our deepest pleasures as artists result not only from surmounting but from continuously engaging with the difficulties that represent our greatest ambition."
"The way we see the world is the lens that defines us."
"Precision is not opposed to mystery; precision is necessary to define mystery."
"Simply omitting information doesn't create a sense of mystery or tension. ... if the reader isn't provoked to want to know more, the story has no forward momentum, no sense of urgency."
"Syntax creates meaning. It can provide clarity, but it can also create mystery and tension."
Very dense, beautifully written and beautifully formatted, with accompanying puzzles, quotes, and anecdotes. Some gems:
"We live permanently in the recurrence of our own stories, whatever story we tell" - Michael Ondaatje
"To be the victim is, in some ways, to have something to savor, and to heal is to lose the distinction that comes with being wronged." - in reference to Alice Munroe's "Royal Beatings"
"What's to be found in a labyrinth isn't at the end; the power is in the passage, in the darkness and light and in the discoveries we make. When we emerge, we're essentially in the same place, the same external world, where we began - but changed by where we've been."
"We have to go along with a crazy idea, our own, even when we don't remember how we got it, we must go along with this crazy idea all the way, bring it to realization in the teeth of all the doubts and all the rules and all the recriminations, despite everything. We bring this idea to realization in order to bring ourselves to realization." -Thomas Bernhard
"The idea demands fulfillment... Suddenly one's head is full of nothing else, one has become the incarnation of one's idea. And now one begins to reap the benefits of all one's suffering... It all turns out to be useful, and the worst of the horrors are most useful of all." - Thomas Bernhard
"Our deepest pleasures as artists result not only from surmounting but from continuously engaging with the difficulties that represent our greatest ambition."
"The way we see the world is the lens that defines us."
"Precision is not opposed to mystery; precision is necessary to define mystery."
"Simply omitting information doesn't create a sense of mystery or tension. ... if the reader isn't provoked to want to know more, the story has no forward momentum, no sense of urgency."
"Syntax creates meaning. It can provide clarity, but it can also create mystery and tension."
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