★★★★★ 5
Unfortunately yet another one to add on the pile of writing books!
Format: Paperback
I say 'unfortunately another good book on writing' since I have been reading many books on the topic and each time I think I have read it all by now, pfff, but then another one like this comes along. But hey, it is fun to read about writing and especially if you get something useful and new out of it. Always worth the money.
Why the accolades for this book?
All the information on characters, plot, details etc, how they work and why they are important, is not new. You find them in many reading books, especially from Reader's and Writer's Digest series. I would especially recommend the books on plot and structure by James Scott Bell.
Yet this book Wired For Story is not redundant, since it is unique in both the focus on the familiar subjects like what story is, the importance of details, details versus generics, how events affect a character etc. The approach of using brain science shows in a compelling way why all the stuff in the book (and for that matter, the classic theory on writing) is there for a reason, since it has evolved out of how we humans seem to perceive a story. Interesting though, a lot of rules like 'write about what you know' are shown to be myths.
Of course, in the end it is you as a reader that has to decide what works for you, but you will find new things here and that is always good.
If you are thinking about writing a story, this book can give you a very sharp focus on what to think about before you start. Or, like me, when you have a draft, and you want to get to the 'real story' behind it to come forward, this work gives you a very transparent way to get better clues as to what stays and what has to go.
It is also entertaining and easy to read, so, all I can say is, yet again a book on writing you cannot afford to miss!
I just added some extra information: I loved the humor and wisdom of the writer. She has worked for years reading manuscripts and she does know her stuff, and I liked her tone, which was both realistic but also fun! How many times have you read a reference work and actually had to laugh? But this book was also profound on many story issues. Many common writing rules are, as I said before, shown to be myths and more importantly, why this is so. I have read for instance so often that you should have some sensory info on every page, but, as I thought myself and I am not the only one: although this makes things more lively, it should only be there if the story would dictate it! The book has many more things like these.
I have compiled a collection of notes I took from all the many many books on writing so I measure new books on writing in how much text I copied and pasted to look at again and this book has given me lots, so 5 stars and I hope we will see more of this author again!
I also recommend the book by James Scott Bell on plot and structure which you can find here
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Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2012
