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fouad87's review against another edition
3.0
هناك دائمًا شيءٌ يجمع كل مجموعة من البشر ببعضهم البعض، بغض النظر عن كونهم في الحقيقة جنسًا واحدًا، وبغض النظر عن كون هذا الجنس جنس قبيح سيء متشاحن ويكاد -لو استطاع- أن يبيد الأرض. الموسيقيون تجمعهم النوت الموسيقية. الأطباء يجمعهم الفضول تجاه الجسد البشري. العلماء يجمعهم الفضول بشكل عام. المهندسون تجمعهم طريقة تفكير مختلفة. لكن في النهاية يوجد شيء يجمع كل مجموعة من البشر.
ذلك ما دفعني لقراءة كتاب راي بردابيري (الزِّن في فن الكتابة). حين يكتب راي برادبيري كتابًا مثل هذا، فأنت تعلم أنك ستقرأ لكاتب ربما هو الأشهر في مجال القصص القصيرة في العالم بشكل عام وفي مجال الخيال العلمي بشكل خاص، وتعلم أنك ستتعلم شيئًا جديدًا لم تعرفه من قبل. فتقرأه لتعرف ما الذي يجمع بينك وبين راي برادبيري، لأن كلاكما يكتب.
منظور برادبيري للكتابة هو شيء فريد بحق، لا يوجد أشخاصٌ كُثُر ينظرون للكتابة بهذه النظرة. هو يراها لذة، متعة، مغامرة، سعادة، نشوة، لعبة. في الوقت الذي يراها كثيرون مشقة وتعاسة وألمًا وكأنهم يكتبون بدمهم عوضًا عن الحبر. والحق أنني كنت سعيدًا وأنا أقرأ عن شيءٍ أحب فعله جدًا من هذا المنظور الممتع الذي يستبدل الألم بالنشوة. وذلك ما يجعل الكتابة شيئًا أريد فعله يوميًا ولا أريد الهرب منه.
لكن في المقابل أنا شخصٌ أبعد ما يكون عن الاهتمام براي برادبيري وعالمه الخيالي وقصصه القصيرة عن الفضاء والمريخ والمستقبل، .. إلخ. تجربتي الوحيدة مع برادبيري كانت روايته الأشهر (451 فهرنهايت) لكن لم أحبها أو ربما لم تنصفها الترجمة الصادرة عن دار الساقي. لذلك لم أشعر بالاهتمام في أغلب أجزاء الكتاب، لأنني لا أهتم لحياة برادبيري وقصته مع الكتابة ونجاحاته وعثراته وكل ذلك. كما لم تعجبني أبدًا أبدًا قصائده التي ترجمها محمد الضبع، قصائد بلا روح وبلا معنى وبلا أثر.
في النهاية عرفت ما يجمع الكتاب، على الأقل ما يجمعني أنا وبرادبيري، أن الكتابة هي أسطوانة الأوكسجين التي تمدنا بالهواء تحت الماء. نحن نغرق والكتابة هي ما نتنفس بها. لا يهمنا إن كانت جيدة أم رديئة، طويلة أم قصيرة، كئيبة أم سعيدة، واقعية أم خيالية، لا يهمنا طالما تمدنا الكتابة بالهواء الذي نحتاجه.
ذلك ما دفعني لقراءة كتاب راي بردابيري (الزِّن في فن الكتابة). حين يكتب راي برادبيري كتابًا مثل هذا، فأنت تعلم أنك ستقرأ لكاتب ربما هو الأشهر في مجال القصص القصيرة في العالم بشكل عام وفي مجال الخيال العلمي بشكل خاص، وتعلم أنك ستتعلم شيئًا جديدًا لم تعرفه من قبل. فتقرأه لتعرف ما الذي يجمع بينك وبين راي برادبيري، لأن كلاكما يكتب.
منظور برادبيري للكتابة هو شيء فريد بحق، لا يوجد أشخاصٌ كُثُر ينظرون للكتابة بهذه النظرة. هو يراها لذة، متعة، مغامرة، سعادة، نشوة، لعبة. في الوقت الذي يراها كثيرون مشقة وتعاسة وألمًا وكأنهم يكتبون بدمهم عوضًا عن الحبر. والحق أنني كنت سعيدًا وأنا أقرأ عن شيءٍ أحب فعله جدًا من هذا المنظور الممتع الذي يستبدل الألم بالنشوة. وذلك ما يجعل الكتابة شيئًا أريد فعله يوميًا ولا أريد الهرب منه.
لكن في المقابل أنا شخصٌ أبعد ما يكون عن الاهتمام براي برادبيري وعالمه الخيالي وقصصه القصيرة عن الفضاء والمريخ والمستقبل، .. إلخ. تجربتي الوحيدة مع برادبيري كانت روايته الأشهر (451 فهرنهايت) لكن لم أحبها أو ربما لم تنصفها الترجمة الصادرة عن دار الساقي. لذلك لم أشعر بالاهتمام في أغلب أجزاء الكتاب، لأنني لا أهتم لحياة برادبيري وقصته مع الكتابة ونجاحاته وعثراته وكل ذلك. كما لم تعجبني أبدًا أبدًا قصائده التي ترجمها محمد الضبع، قصائد بلا روح وبلا معنى وبلا أثر.
في النهاية عرفت ما يجمع الكتاب، على الأقل ما يجمعني أنا وبرادبيري، أن الكتابة هي أسطوانة الأوكسجين التي تمدنا بالهواء تحت الماء. نحن نغرق والكتابة هي ما نتنفس بها. لا يهمنا إن كانت جيدة أم رديئة، طويلة أم قصيرة، كئيبة أم سعيدة، واقعية أم خيالية، لا يهمنا طالما تمدنا الكتابة بالهواء الذي نحتاجه.
devontrevarrowflaherty's review against another edition
4.0
My goal this year (among many other goals) is to read a writing book once every two months. So, six total. Not doing terribly when I finished the third, Ray Bradbury’s Zen in the Art of Writing in June. (Actually, that’s completely on track. I am completely not on track with most of my other reading goals.) I started this one while at the writing conference in May and then dragged it out a little bit, though the main drag-out was in the reviewing. For some reason, I have been super slow with reviews this summer.
As I mentioned, this is the third writing book I’ve read this year, and also the third “writing classic.” After Stephen King’s On Writing and Ann Lamott’s Bird By Bird, I don’t know what I was expecting. It seems to me that one of the things the writing classics have in common is their uniqueness. I’m sure you can find lots of writing books that are the same ol’, but King’s, Lamott’s, and Bradbury’s all have such fresh voices and different approaches to the art of writing, to the teaching of it, and to the writing about it. Bradbury’s Zen is not really a cohesive book, so much as a group of previously-published essays composed over the many years in the nineteenth century that he was prolific. Bradbury is very, very excited about writing, and his approach is much more emotional than technical, more dealing with the heart and fire of the author than her grammar or even technique.
While he wrote a lot and in various genres and forms, Bradbury is known for his science fiction that has crossed over into the classics genre. You may recognize these titles: Fahrenheit 451, Dandelion Wine, The Martian Chronicles, and The Illustrated Man (and others), not to mention short stories like “The Veldt” and “There Will Come Soft Rains,” any of which you might have had to read in high school. Overall, he wrote more than 600 short stories and a number of essays, and he had a lot to say about his world and the world of the possible futures. His strong opinions extended to writing and Zen not only reveals those opinions, but also some interesting insight into his writing process and what happened behind the scenes to inspire and produce his famous works.
I haven’t read that much Bradbury, but I am a fan of The Martian Chronicles and “The Veldt” has stuck with me my whole life. Not that you have to be a fan to enjoy and/or learn from this book. And don’t even think about sticking your nose up in the air about it (or about Stephen King’s writing book) just because he’s written speculative fiction. The point is 1) he’s written well and 2) he’s been there. A lot. I found Zen to be a good read, worth it for a writer at any point in their career (though it would be good to know these things early on). It is, at times, uneven, which makes sense because it is a compilation of essays written over decades. There is even an instance or two where he contradicts his own advice, but it’s forgivable because we have all done that and people (and their opinions) change. I felt I could have done without the poetry at the end. The point is that writers should write like they mean it, should enjoy it, should seize the day and live to the fullest and embrace the present. He’s one of those writers (they are legion) who believe that stories write themselves, if only the author will get out of the way of the characters. At least he has an explanation: the subconscious built on the memories of your youth.
So dive in, one essay at a time, and absorb Bradbury’s enthusiasm. If you’re a writer, you’ll probably enjoy his rather poetic language, his zeal, his wisdom, his glimpses into the life of one of the century’s most famous writers. I know that I did.
QUOTES:
“The list [of distractions] is endless and crushing if we do not creatively oppose it” (pxiv).
“These are the children of the gods. They knew fun in their work” (p3).
“This afternoon, burn down the house. Tomorrow, pour cold critical water upon the simmering coals. Time enough to think and cut and rewrite tomorrow. But today—explode—fly apart—disintegrate!” (p7).
“I was learning that my characters would do my work for me, if I let them alone…” (p19).
“What the Subconscious [is] to every other man, in its creative aspects becomes, for writers, The Muse” (p33).
“You say you don’t understand Dylan Thomas? Yes, but your ganglion does, and your secret wits, and all your unborn children. Read him, as you can read a horse with your eyes, set free and charging over an endless green meadow on a windy day” (p37).
“Trains and boxcars and the smell of coal and fire are not ugly to children. Ugliness is a concept that we happen on later and become self-conscious about” (p82).
“I ask for no happy endings. I ask only for proper endings based on proper assessments of energy contained and given detonation” (p118).
“We never sit anything out. / We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. / The trick is, knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out” (p120).
“Quantity gives experience. From experience alone can quality come” (p145).
“Plot is no more than footprints left in the snow after your characters have run by on their way to incredible destinations” (p152).
***REVIEW WRITTEN FOR THE STARVING ARTIST BLOG***
As I mentioned, this is the third writing book I’ve read this year, and also the third “writing classic.” After Stephen King’s On Writing and Ann Lamott’s Bird By Bird, I don’t know what I was expecting. It seems to me that one of the things the writing classics have in common is their uniqueness. I’m sure you can find lots of writing books that are the same ol’, but King’s, Lamott’s, and Bradbury’s all have such fresh voices and different approaches to the art of writing, to the teaching of it, and to the writing about it. Bradbury’s Zen is not really a cohesive book, so much as a group of previously-published essays composed over the many years in the nineteenth century that he was prolific. Bradbury is very, very excited about writing, and his approach is much more emotional than technical, more dealing with the heart and fire of the author than her grammar or even technique.
While he wrote a lot and in various genres and forms, Bradbury is known for his science fiction that has crossed over into the classics genre. You may recognize these titles: Fahrenheit 451, Dandelion Wine, The Martian Chronicles, and The Illustrated Man (and others), not to mention short stories like “The Veldt” and “There Will Come Soft Rains,” any of which you might have had to read in high school. Overall, he wrote more than 600 short stories and a number of essays, and he had a lot to say about his world and the world of the possible futures. His strong opinions extended to writing and Zen not only reveals those opinions, but also some interesting insight into his writing process and what happened behind the scenes to inspire and produce his famous works.
I haven’t read that much Bradbury, but I am a fan of The Martian Chronicles and “The Veldt” has stuck with me my whole life. Not that you have to be a fan to enjoy and/or learn from this book. And don’t even think about sticking your nose up in the air about it (or about Stephen King’s writing book) just because he’s written speculative fiction. The point is 1) he’s written well and 2) he’s been there. A lot. I found Zen to be a good read, worth it for a writer at any point in their career (though it would be good to know these things early on). It is, at times, uneven, which makes sense because it is a compilation of essays written over decades. There is even an instance or two where he contradicts his own advice, but it’s forgivable because we have all done that and people (and their opinions) change. I felt I could have done without the poetry at the end. The point is that writers should write like they mean it, should enjoy it, should seize the day and live to the fullest and embrace the present. He’s one of those writers (they are legion) who believe that stories write themselves, if only the author will get out of the way of the characters. At least he has an explanation: the subconscious built on the memories of your youth.
So dive in, one essay at a time, and absorb Bradbury’s enthusiasm. If you’re a writer, you’ll probably enjoy his rather poetic language, his zeal, his wisdom, his glimpses into the life of one of the century’s most famous writers. I know that I did.
QUOTES:
“The list [of distractions] is endless and crushing if we do not creatively oppose it” (pxiv).
“These are the children of the gods. They knew fun in their work” (p3).
“This afternoon, burn down the house. Tomorrow, pour cold critical water upon the simmering coals. Time enough to think and cut and rewrite tomorrow. But today—explode—fly apart—disintegrate!” (p7).
“I was learning that my characters would do my work for me, if I let them alone…” (p19).
“What the Subconscious [is] to every other man, in its creative aspects becomes, for writers, The Muse” (p33).
“You say you don’t understand Dylan Thomas? Yes, but your ganglion does, and your secret wits, and all your unborn children. Read him, as you can read a horse with your eyes, set free and charging over an endless green meadow on a windy day” (p37).
“Trains and boxcars and the smell of coal and fire are not ugly to children. Ugliness is a concept that we happen on later and become self-conscious about” (p82).
“I ask for no happy endings. I ask only for proper endings based on proper assessments of energy contained and given detonation” (p118).
“We never sit anything out. / We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. / The trick is, knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out” (p120).
“Quantity gives experience. From experience alone can quality come” (p145).
“Plot is no more than footprints left in the snow after your characters have run by on their way to incredible destinations” (p152).
***REVIEW WRITTEN FOR THE STARVING ARTIST BLOG***
speranta's review against another edition
4.0
Bradbury revives the soul somehow. It's like he gives permission to every adult to be childish again - to explore and ask and play, while he still insists on being consistent to get results in any art form.
"Doing is being.
To have done is not enough.
To stuff yourself with doing — that’s the game.
To name yourself each hour by what’s done,
To tabulate your time at sunset’s gun
And find yourself in acts
You could not know before the facts."
"Doing is being.
To have done is not enough.
To stuff yourself with doing — that’s the game.
To name yourself each hour by what’s done,
To tabulate your time at sunset’s gun
And find yourself in acts
You could not know before the facts."
joanaff17's review against another edition
3.0
Quem corre por gosto não cansa, e ler sobre escrita é algo que nunca me cansa de todo. Desta vez, decidi ler sobre escrita na perspectiva de um dos grandes autores do século XX/XXI. Ray Bradbury é talvez mais conhecido pelo seu Fahrenheit 451, um clássico daqueles bem clássicos e que todos devem ler.
Não sou particularmente fã de Bradbury, mas reconhecendo o seu peso no cânone da literatura ocidental, achei que uma conversa com ele sobre escrita seria, no mínimo, válida e útil.
No entanto, este livro será particularmente interessante para aqueles que são verdadeiramente fãs do autor. Eu explico.
A visão de Bradbury sobre a escrita é que escrever sobre o que se conhece resulta, e no seu caso, tem resultado bem. Faz todo o sentido. Para Bradbury, se nos sentarmos frente a uma folha em branco e uma caneta na mão e formos pensando no que já vivemos e escrevendo tópicos (uma espécie de "escreve a primeira palavra que te vem à cabeça"), acabaremos com uma listinha de palavras que, ainda que possam parecer estranhas ao início, são na verdade uma manifestação de histórias por contar que trazemos no subconsciente sem saber.
Esta ideia é muito engraçada e interessante. Se eu pensar em "cão", depois de pensar um pouco sobre por que motivo o meu cérebro de lembrou desta palavra, posso acabar a desenvolver uma história que tem partes reais baseadas nos anos que tive com a minha cadela Mitzi. E destas pequenas listas podem surgir histórias muito, muito interessantes que, depois de tanto esperarem dentro da nossa cabeça, saem em catadupa quando lhes damos atenção. Sei que isto funciona porque já me aconteceu. Bradbury simplesmente descobriu e verbalizou isto. Muito interessante mesmo.
Por outro lado, sendo este o grande tema do livro, 97% do tempo estamos a ler sobre a vida de Bradbury, à medida que ele explica como chegou a este livro ou àquela ou aqueloutra história da sua autoria. E é por isso que Zen in the Art of Writing será um gostinho para quem é fã, e um pouco aborrecido para quem apenas queria ler sobre escrita, e não sobre o autor. A lição que eu procurava, o que aprendi, resume-se ao que escrevi acima.
No último capítulo, no entanto, o autor foi mais ao encontro do que eu procurava e deixa-nos algumas páginas mais dedicadas à escrita propriamente dita, de uma forma geral. Gostei muito deste capítulo porque reúne conceitos importantes e interessantes sobre escrever e que, para mim, fazem todo o sentido e reflectem a minha forma de pensar sobre a arte de escrever. Conto voltar a estas páginas de vez em quando, para me reorganizar enquanto escritora.
Não sou particularmente fã de Bradbury, mas reconhecendo o seu peso no cânone da literatura ocidental, achei que uma conversa com ele sobre escrita seria, no mínimo, válida e útil.
No entanto, este livro será particularmente interessante para aqueles que são verdadeiramente fãs do autor. Eu explico.
A visão de Bradbury sobre a escrita é que escrever sobre o que se conhece resulta, e no seu caso, tem resultado bem. Faz todo o sentido. Para Bradbury, se nos sentarmos frente a uma folha em branco e uma caneta na mão e formos pensando no que já vivemos e escrevendo tópicos (uma espécie de "escreve a primeira palavra que te vem à cabeça"), acabaremos com uma listinha de palavras que, ainda que possam parecer estranhas ao início, são na verdade uma manifestação de histórias por contar que trazemos no subconsciente sem saber.
Esta ideia é muito engraçada e interessante. Se eu pensar em "cão", depois de pensar um pouco sobre por que motivo o meu cérebro de lembrou desta palavra, posso acabar a desenvolver uma história que tem partes reais baseadas nos anos que tive com a minha cadela Mitzi. E destas pequenas listas podem surgir histórias muito, muito interessantes que, depois de tanto esperarem dentro da nossa cabeça, saem em catadupa quando lhes damos atenção. Sei que isto funciona porque já me aconteceu. Bradbury simplesmente descobriu e verbalizou isto. Muito interessante mesmo.
Por outro lado, sendo este o grande tema do livro, 97% do tempo estamos a ler sobre a vida de Bradbury, à medida que ele explica como chegou a este livro ou àquela ou aqueloutra história da sua autoria. E é por isso que Zen in the Art of Writing será um gostinho para quem é fã, e um pouco aborrecido para quem apenas queria ler sobre escrita, e não sobre o autor. A lição que eu procurava, o que aprendi, resume-se ao que escrevi acima.
No último capítulo, no entanto, o autor foi mais ao encontro do que eu procurava e deixa-nos algumas páginas mais dedicadas à escrita propriamente dita, de uma forma geral. Gostei muito deste capítulo porque reúne conceitos importantes e interessantes sobre escrever e que, para mim, fazem todo o sentido e reflectem a minha forma de pensar sobre a arte de escrever. Conto voltar a estas páginas de vez em quando, para me reorganizar enquanto escritora.
dreamwritten's review against another edition
Read maybe about half at some point last year (or the year before?) and it was okay. Couldn't get through much more, though. I appreciated the passionate tone, but it wasn't very relatable to my experiences as a writer.
sofia_brizio's review against another edition
challenging
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
4.5
mrodgerson's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
3.5
chaosetc's review against another edition
5.0
I needed a bit of a pep talk, and this book delivered, especially in chapter 12. I'm not a writer but I do work in a creative field.