Into the Book

4

The 101 Habits of Highly Successful Novelists - Andrew McAleer

Recommended
Aspiring authors -- are you wondering how to make writing a pleasure? How to get over writer’s block? Deal with the stress of a blank page? Find an agent? Work with a publisher? All that and more is covered in this practical, fun-to-read book.


From the first tip, “Be Creative and Original,” to the one-hundred-first, “Continue to Learn and Grow,” famous writers share their insights on what makes a novel great and salable. Each tip features advice from various authors, with authors at time giving opposite advice, which makes things interesting. Other times, all the tips are in complete agreement, which is more interesting still.

Full of helpful hints from more than fifty of the most successful fiction writers of our time, The 101 Habits of Highly Successful Novelists is a helpful guide that will walk you through getting your novel from the blank page to the store shelves.

As a secular book, it does require caution. There is PG level language sprinkled throughout, and most of the authors mention secular or outright ungodly content from their novels at one time or another. The references are not graphic, but killing, violence, and sexuality come up in small doses throughout. Writing is at times put ahead of everything else, with some of the authors even suggesting that writing should take precedence over family and friends. Also, more emphasis is put on writing what will sell than what will be righteous.

There are, however, many good things promoted, such as discipline, professionalism, courtesy, and more. And there are portions where authors are cautioned against putting their careers ahead of family.

It is laid out in an organized, easy-to-follow fashion, in chapters that cover various stages of the writing and publishing process. Each chapter is then divided into a number of “habits,” and each habit features sage advice from one or more authors. It’s not a book to speed through for fun, it’s more the kind that should be read slowly, a little at a time and with musings in between.

Like any non-Christian guide, this book must be taken with a grain of salt, but overall it is extremely helpful for beginning, intermediate, or even advanced authors, sharing tips from seasoned pros that will make their job a lot easier.

-Grace
Grace Pennington is a homeschool graduate, a prolific writer, and the oldest of nine kids. She's partial to Charles Dickens, C.S. Lewis, Louisa May Alcott, and Daniel Schwabauer, but will consider almost any book. Most of all, she loves Jesus and desires to live her life for Him.

4 comments:

  1. Great review. Looks like a fantastic read, I'll have to see if the library has a copy. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. :)

    Oh, and regarding this line...

    "More emphasis is put on writing what will sell than what will be righteous."

    ...nice catch. :)

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  2. Thanks Corey! I found the book very helpful, if you read it I hope that you will too. :)

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  3. This looks like a book I'll need to stick on my reading list - thanks for the great review!

    Andrew

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  4. Now you have me wanting to read this book. I have major issues with writer's block and it would be nice to get some advice on the matter. I will have to try to check it out.

    Good review. Aren't they fun to write? :)

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