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renee_reads_books's review against another edition
4.0
A good book on the writing life -- for writers, by one of the most important writers.
pattireadsalot's review
4.0
I'm always intrigued by prolific writers. Joyce Carol Oates is also prominently featured on Eric's YouTube channel, The Lonesome Reader (you should check it out- he reviews mostly literary fiction). The woman is clearly brilliant at crafting a sentence. "The artist, perhaps more than most people, inhabits failure, degrees of failure and accommodation and compromise; but the terms of his failure are generally secret. It seems reasonable to believe that failure may be truth, or at any rate a negotiable fact, while success is a temporary illusion of some intoxicating sort, a bubble soon to be pricked, a flower whose petals will quickly drop." Basically, do the honest work and don't get fixated on any particular fleeting success.
She notes many examples of writers throughout the ages that experienced different reactions to success and failure. She uses James Joyce as an example, with his brother Stanislaus observing that Joyce seemed almost protected by the unpopularity of his work and that "inflexibility firmly rooted in failure" allowed him to actually accomplish a great deal.
I struggled to understand many of her literary references, but sped through this rather quickly due to the beauty and conviction of her prose. I have We Were The Mulvaneys upstairs and hope to get to it later this year. I've heard more talk of Ray Bradbury's Zen in the Art of Writing and Stephen King's On Writing, but I thought this made a great addition into my books on writers, and was a lovely glimpse into the inspiring dedication of a beloved favorite.
She notes many examples of writers throughout the ages that experienced different reactions to success and failure. She uses James Joyce as an example, with his brother Stanislaus observing that Joyce seemed almost protected by the unpopularity of his work and that "inflexibility firmly rooted in failure" allowed him to actually accomplish a great deal.
I struggled to understand many of her literary references, but sped through this rather quickly due to the beauty and conviction of her prose. I have We Were The Mulvaneys upstairs and hope to get to it later this year. I've heard more talk of Ray Bradbury's Zen in the Art of Writing and Stephen King's On Writing, but I thought this made a great addition into my books on writers, and was a lovely glimpse into the inspiring dedication of a beloved favorite.
bowierowie's review
5.0
This is a must read for any writer! Smart, funny, insightful, and empathetic to all of us who prefer to live in and create other worlds.
pattydsf's review
3.0
“I have to tell is the writer’s first thoughts; the second thought is How do I tell it? From our reading, we discover how various the solutions to these questions are; how stamped with an individual’s personality. For it’s at the junction of private vision and the wish to create a communal, public vision that art and craft merge.” p. 126
I have not read anything by Oates in at least a decade. I liked what I have read, but I am overwhelmed by the volume of her writing. When a new Oates book comes out, I usually think about reading it, but there are other authors who I have never read. This book crossed my path and I decided it was time to read Oates again.
I did not know that Oates is an atheist. So, to be honest, I thought these essays were about faith in God. However, it is very clear in the first short essay that Oates’ faith is in art not God. She writes, “I believe that art is the highest expression of the human spirit.” p. 1. Once I had read that, I knew this book would not be about religious faith.
Maybe because I started with the wrong assumption, I found myself slogging through this book. The writing is excellent, but Oates is writing for those who might want to write themselves. Except for book reviews and my personal journal, I have no desire to put pen to paper. So much of what she says did not interest me.
I don’t know why I kept reading, but when I go to the essay titled “Reading as a Writer,” I knew that I had found something of interest. Even though I don’t want to write, I am fascinated by why people read. Reading what Oates feels is important for writers to read, gave me insights to the act of reading. That essay made this book worthwhile.
Although this was not my favorite read, I do feel there are people who would want to pick this up. Those who aspire to write should read some of the essays, especially the one mentioned above.
I have not read anything by Oates in at least a decade. I liked what I have read, but I am overwhelmed by the volume of her writing. When a new Oates book comes out, I usually think about reading it, but there are other authors who I have never read. This book crossed my path and I decided it was time to read Oates again.
I did not know that Oates is an atheist. So, to be honest, I thought these essays were about faith in God. However, it is very clear in the first short essay that Oates’ faith is in art not God. She writes, “I believe that art is the highest expression of the human spirit.” p. 1. Once I had read that, I knew this book would not be about religious faith.
Maybe because I started with the wrong assumption, I found myself slogging through this book. The writing is excellent, but Oates is writing for those who might want to write themselves. Except for book reviews and my personal journal, I have no desire to put pen to paper. So much of what she says did not interest me.
I don’t know why I kept reading, but when I go to the essay titled “Reading as a Writer,” I knew that I had found something of interest. Even though I don’t want to write, I am fascinated by why people read. Reading what Oates feels is important for writers to read, gave me insights to the act of reading. That essay made this book worthwhile.
Although this was not my favorite read, I do feel there are people who would want to pick this up. Those who aspire to write should read some of the essays, especially the one mentioned above.
mjohnson42's review
2.0
I'm finding this not as interesting as I'd hoped, though I think it's because most of the book is geared towards writing fiction, whereas I write poetry.
daywim's review
Really unenjoyable, seemed pretentious most of the time and didn't flow well. Unfortunate to be my first book by JCO I picked up.
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