Author: Lisa Cron
Series: Wired for Story Book 2
Genre: Non-fiction
Published: 2016
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Pages: 290
Age Group: Teen and up
It’s every novelist’s greatest fear: pouring their blood, sweat, and tears into writing hundreds of pages only to realize that their story has no sense of urgency, no internal logic, and so is a page one rewrite.
The prevailing wisdom in the writing community is that there are just two ways around this problem: pantsing (winging it) and plotting (focusing on the external plot). Story coach Lisa Cron has spent her career discovering why these these methods don’t work and coming up with a powerful alternative, based on the science behind what our brains are wired to crave in every story we read (and it’s not what you think).
In Story Genius Cron takes you, step-by-step, through the creation of a novel from the first glimmer of an idea, to a complete multilayered blueprint—including fully realized scenes—that evolves into a first draft with the authority, richness, and command of a riveting sixth or seventh draft.
I dislike giving negative reviews of free books, but sometimes, unfortunately, it's necessary for an honest review. This book was one of those times. I thought Story Genius would be a good read to learn some tips about how to write a great novel. I was rather disappointed. The book was sprinkled with bad words, and the example storyline woven into the book was really strange, and also included some swear words. There were also many mentions of evolution in the parts where it talked about how our brains are wired. I know that this book is not from a Christian publisher, but I was very much disappointed. I have read a few non-fiction books on topics like this that were not specifically Christian, yet they were still good, so I know it's possible to write a book like this without the negative elements! With that said, I did gain a few pieces of helpful information about the novel-writing process from this book, but in my opinion, the cons outweighed the pros. My rating: 3 out of 10 hearts. ♥♥♥
** I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review**
Sorry for the negative review today, everyone! :( Do any of you have any good recommendations for writing help- type books? I'd love some good suggestions! Thanks for reading, and have a lovely day!
//Emily
Your review was respectable even though it was negative. I think you did a great job, and were brave. :)
ReplyDeleteThe only book I've ever read about the writing process is "2015 Guide to Self-Publishing, Revised Edition" - if that counts. I add that last comment because it doesn't touch on the actual craft of writing - organizing sentences into paragraphs and chapters, creating the most relatable characters or the most compelling plots, etc. It focuses instead on cover designs, hiring editors, keeping manuscripts safe, author websites, social media for authors and determining appropriate prices, among other things. It also has listings for book fairs, self publishing companies, writing conferences, editorial services, etc. I haven't sat down to review it in depth, before, but thinking about it just like that, I think it's a pretty valuable resource for people who want to self-publish their work.
Wow, that got long! Anyway, I would be interested in knowing what the other books that you've read about writing are - those that were good. :)
Thanks, Jordy! :)
DeleteOh, I'll have to check that one out! It sounds really helpful. Thank you for the suggestion! I haven't really read many other books about writing, so that's why I needed some good recommendations. ;)
It's okay to do a negative book review! I understand what you're saying completely as I've read one book on writing that was just very terrible for the same reasons. I wish they would make more wholesome writing books! =)
ReplyDeleteYes, I know... I just hate doing them. :P Yes, I do wish they would make more good ones! Let me know if you ever come across a good one! ;)
DeleteA negative book review is fine! And Nanowrimo actually has a book that you can read and it kind of coaches you through Noevembrr. You can find it on Amazon. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Anika! And thanks for the suggestion! Since I'm probably doing NaNo this year, that sounds really helpful. :)
DeleteNegative book reviews are fine! Now I know which writing book that I probably won't want to pick up :D.
ReplyDeleteI love 'Go Teen Writers' by Stephanie Morrill and Jill Williamson, 'Writing Magic' by Gail Carson Levine, and 'Storyworld First' by Jill Williamson, to name a few :).
~ Savannah
scattered-scribblings.blogspot.com
Thanks, Savannah! Yes, I would not recommend this one. :P
DeleteOoh, thank you for the recommendations! I'm glad there's some good writing books out there. =)
That's disappointing this book wasn't all it could've been, especially because the blurb sounds intriguing! Thanks for sharing honestly, and you have a great day too! :)
ReplyDeleteYes, I was rather disappointed, because you're right- the blurb sounded promising. But oh well. :D Thanks for your encouragement! <3
DeleteThat's too bad that you didn't like this book! It stinks when books you thought would be great didn't turn out to be that way. :( But thanks for sharing your review! :D
ReplyDeleteYes, I was disappointed. It sounded great, but it wasn't really. Anyway, thank you for reading! :)
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