I love following friends on Goodreads who have similar tastes in books to mine. It's always fascinating to see different people's perspectives on books you've read, to see if they love the same ones you do, and if they were as disappointed as the ones which let you down. The potential downside? When it seems as if EVERYONE has read a book that you hadn't even considered, or just haven't gotten to yet. You know what I mean... It's not that I hadn't considered reading Colum McCann's Letters to a Y...

Letters to a Young Writer: Some Practical and Philosophical Advice"Why do we tell stories? Why do we have a deep need to tell one another that which is real and invented both? Why do we need to lean across the table, or the fireside, or the fabulously intertwined wires of the Internet, and whisper “Listen”? We do it because we’re sick of reality and we need to create what isn’t yet there."Colum McCann - Letters To A Young Writer***********************************************Cesar, my 20-year-old...

5 💎 💎 💎 💎 💎Why would someone who is not a writer want to read a book of letters of advice to young writers? I read it to find out after GR friends were bestowing stars and praise all over the pages though I've never read the author's other work (soon to be remedied).My takeaway is that much of the wisdom contained in this small chest of jewels (no cubic zirconia or paste to be found) can be applied to many life circumstances, including but not limited to, how to be a better, more appreciative re...

This book is inspiring and liberating. I feel like Colum McCann cut my puppet strings and gave my writing free will. There were many times when a passage jumped out at me as if the author were speaking directly to me. I’m going to try to limit my quotes and not quote half of the book. This one quote made me feel like he was pointing his finger at me. ”A writer is not someone who thinks obsessively about writing, or talks about it, or plans it, or dissects it, or even reveres it: a writer is t...

"A lot can be taken from you— even your life—but not your stories about that life. So, this, then, is a word, not without love and respect, to a young writer: write"In the author’s note of Underworld, Don DeLillo while remarking the ‘moment’ that made the novel for him, casually mentions the archaic meaning of ‘inspire’, which is to breathe life into. Let that hang in the air for a moment. To inspire something is to breathe life into it. To inflate the very liveliness into the unlively. That’s w...

Why would someone like me -- a middle aged non writer with no aspirations to become a writer -- read and love Calum McCann's Letters to a Young Writer:-Because when the publisher sent me an advance copy, I thought "why not", having previously loved McCann's fiction.-Because it's beautifully written from beginning to end -- so many delicious sentences and passages worth highlighting and revisiting.-Because while McCann purports to provide advice to young writers, he does much more -- his advice i...

Not a writer, nor do I have plans of becoming one, but this is McCann, the author who has never let me down. Would read anything he wrote. Thought to pick up some insights on his writing and I feel as if that was accomplished. Much of this advice to young writers could be applied to life as well, and certainly to readers. Considers punctuation a necessity, for those of us decrying the non use of quotation marks in recent fiction. Tells them to research and read, read and read. Loved that, got th...

Outstanding advice for those who want to write, and for current writers who want to fine tune their writing. I've read a few books who would have benefited greatly from the advice in Theis book. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I am not a writer, I am a reader. First and foremost, a reader. Since I learned to read, it has been an important part of my life, it has enriched my life, and, I truly believe, it has made me a better person.So trust me when I say that I wish it could be mandatory for every aspiring author to read this book. On behalf of readers everywhere, thank you, Mr. McCann, for understanding us.

Time for a quick reread! •••*5 star advice, folks!*Letters to a Young Writer is a quick read with brief, bold chapters and a voice so upbeat you can just about dance to it. It offers a multitude of helpful suggestions and persuades writers not to recreate what they already know, but to write toward what they want to know; to look outward, rather than in. "All writing is imagination. It creates out of dust. Even what they choose to call nonfiction."This guide will not make a writer out of you,

Five zillion stars!Dear Mr. McCann,Could you adopt me? I know that's an unusual request coming from a 60-something woman, but I just had to ask. I know you have a family, but I won’t be noisy and interrupt the routine. I’ll try hard to keep my mouth shut. You’ll be batting around story ideas in your head and won’t even know I’m there. I have it all planned. We'll all be at the dinner table and I’ll ask you to pass the pepper and then you'll just start reciting your book. The meal-time poetry I n...

5 stars is just not enough. I am not a writer but, I did not hesitate in the least to accept a digital review copy of this book when it was offered. If I were asked to name my favorite contemporary writers, Colum McCann would without a doubt be on that list. I knew that this would be beautifully written and it was. This book was so meaningful to me even though I read this purely from the perspective of a an avid reader. It will change how I read a book from here on in. Whether it's a book I love...

It's on a blue moon I read non-fiction and even rarer that I'll pick up a writing or publishing how-to manual or self-help book. I'm trying to read a novel per week and not fall down the rabbit hole of non-fiction. Every day I'm not at the office, I'm writing, at McClain's Coffeehouse in Fullerton, mixing with students who are also working, or others who need to get out of the house and have a cigarette or bite to eat. A young writer friend of mine named Bryan Klose was handed a copy of Letters

My favorite part of Goodreads in December is seeing all of the year end reviews and getting ideas about what to read in the following year and beyond. My goodreads friend Ellie included Colum McCann's Letters to a Young Writer as one of her favorites in her year end review this year. Intrigued and seeing that my library had a copy, I decided to go ahead and read McCann's inspirational advice before the year came to a close. A MFA instructor at Hunter College and author of a number of fiction boo...

What a marvelous book of writing advice!Colum McCann is a celebrated novelist who also teaches creative writing at Hunter College in New York. In this delightful and impassioned book, he composed a series of letters to a young writer on different subjects, such as characters, dialogue, grammar, punctuation, structure, editing and finding an agent. McCann's advice is stern but also kind, impassioned but also critical. This is the kind of book that I will add to my beloved Writers on Writing shelf...

I need a new category/shelf: Books That Make Me Cry Because I Think The Author Sees Into My Soul.I've been reading this slowly these past few weeks, just a short essay or two in the morning before turning to work on my novel-in-progress. It's served as a devotional, an inspiration, a kick in the ass, a point of focus, permission, forgiveness, scolding, hope. I think it will remain on the coffee table beside my morning writing spot, and I'll return to the beginning and keep rereading through to t...

I'm a reader, not a writer, nor do I have any aspirations to write. Yet, when I was offered a copy of this book from Netgalley, I jumped at the chance, simply because I loved McCann's book, Thirteen Ways of Looking. I read this as an avid reader, one who loves the written word, and it offered me a peek into the world of writing. It's often hard for me to articulate why some books speak to me and others don't...that indefinable (to me) quality...and this book helped me to see just what those qual...

This is a great book! I am so grateful to the reviewers at Goodreads (thanks Esil) for their excitement in reviewing this one.I highlighted so much it's almost useless (thank goodness for the different colors of highlighters on the Kindle; at least, it will make my reread easier). This is a book to be savored and reread. The advice to writers is not specifically about craft but about attitude, coping, and challenging oneself. It's about how to find and deal with various subject matters, how to f...

Colum McCann is a great writer, no doubt about it in my mind, but what I didn’t know until picking up this book is that he is a well-respected instructor and mentor, teaching a writing class for some of the smartest young writers in America, chosen from a pool of many, some of whom have gone on to receive prestigious book awards.Do not expect a writing manual. Far from it. Expect simple, practical and mindful wisdom, tips for the novice writer and encouragement to be adventurous and ‘break the r...

I was hesitant about reading this book because I am a reader not a writer but it was so full of the joy of books that it was just plain wonderful. He writes no nonsense advice to novice writers that can be applied to any real life job. He also includes lots of quotes from other authors that are so insightful and helpful not only to writing but reading as well. My favorite was by Oscar Wilde, "The one duty we owe to history is to rewrite it." How great is that? His first piece of advice is to wri...