Dear Writer

by Carmel Bird

Many people wanting to write do not know where to begin.

Carmel Bird, author of three books of fiction, has taught writing to a wide audience and understands the difficulties facing the new writer.

Dear Writer, a collection of letters to an aspiring author, speaks on the one hand about writer's block, about plots, about publishers, and on the other hand, about the nature of fiction, offering the inspiration required for writing.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Australia

135 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

Reviews

[Dion Yulianto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Buku lain ttg bagaimana menjadi penulis, tp lebih disempitkan lagi menjadi bagaimana menjadi penulis cerpen yang baik. bahasan dan contohnya menarik, penerjemahnya juga hebat, hanya saja materinya terlalu dikit. Satu tema hanya dibahas antara 2-3 halaman sehingga banyak hal lain yang belum terjelaskan. Bagusnya adalah penulis mampu menyoroti gimana emosi kita saat menulis, diantaranya mengapa begini dan mengapa begitu, mengapa judul itu penting dan mengapa kita harus menghindari menggunakan terlalu banyak kata keterangan dan kata sifat.
sering kali, tanpa saya sadari, saya akan mengangguk2 setuju dengan uraian dan pendapat si penulis. Buku ini cocok dibaca oleh mereka yang lagi macet di tengah2 proyek penggarapan novel or cerpennya. Sip

[Owen Townend · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had never come across Carmel Bird prior to reading this book. I find there is a certain foolishness in taking advice from writers who are not widely known.

Nevertheless there is a lot of truth to this book. It sold me on its epistolary style and I found most of the advice quite reasonable, such as the importance of using only the most effective adjectives for a sentence or reconsidering curious secondary characters as the protagonist of the plot.

One thing I could not get on board with though was Bird's aversion to 'word processors' . While I agree handwriting and typewriters are just as effective means of getting words down, Bird's luddite attitude severely dates the book.

Then again I do wonder what she would think to this age where most people jot down ideas into their phones. That would possibly be a step too far for her.

This aside, Bird obviously knows what she is talking about and genuinely loves the craft. I recommend this book to anyone who prefers practical writing advice over the spiritual and who has a fondness for letter-writing.

[Shane · Rating 3 out of 5]

This charming, quirky and sometimes magical book for beginners unfolds as a series of letters from a fictional character called Virginia – not Woolf, but a professional manuscript assessor. However, Carmel Bird quotes Virginia Woolf (among others; especially Nabokov, Christopher Koch and Anaïs Nin). The epistolary format evokes a sense of intimacy not common in guides like this. In fact, over the years since I bought it I’ve hardly used it at all, partly because I could never find what I sought, despite the index; Virginia’s distinctive voice would distract me from mere technical queries. I’d sooner open one of Bird’s novels for inspiration. (And why aspire to be a writer when there’s a surplus? I need help to analyse what I’ve already created; not motivation.)

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit basic. I found Appendix II to be the most useful and interesting part of the whole book.

[Shanna Daniella Tiffin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of great advice about fiction writing and practices to improve your writing. Reading this book also made me feel more motivated and grew my desire to write more.

[Redi Aryanto · Rating 5 out of 5]

cool

[Novella Dwisri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cara Mrs. Carmel memberikan tips menulis dalam buku ini menarik sekali. Ia tidak menggunakan susunan paragraf baku, tetapi menggunakan susunan paragraf dengan gaya menulis surat kepada begitu. Caranya ini membantu kita memahami dunia fiksi, bagaimana bisa dikatakan penulis jika tidak menulis dengan tekun (?) Kalimat tiap awal bab yang berisi 22 bab ini berisi kutipan inspiratif dan penyemangat untuk pembaca yang juga jadi penulis bila baru pertama kali mencoba menulis fiksi, meski di setiap bab bertebaran kutipan, hal itu mengganggu penasaran kita untuk membaca hingga tamat. Kalimat-kalimat bagus yang memancing motivasi pembaca untuk tekun menulis. Menyenangkan membacanya.

[Femmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book with useful advice for writers, but I prefer more practical, technical books like Characters and Viewpoints by Orson Scott Card.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally published in 1988, some of the information is dated such as the talk of typewriters and the 'new' word processors. Plus, the publishing world is different 24 years later. Those couple of points aside, quite a bit of the writing advice is timeless and it was an enjoyable read.

[Lutfi Retno · Rating 3 out of 5]

Isinya tentang tips menulis cerita fiksi. Di edisi bahasa Indonesia judulnya "Menulis dengan Emosi"

Sebelum baca aku ngarep bisa dapet cara menulis supaya menyentuh, sayang isinya nggak kaya gitu.

[Cheyenne Blue · Rating 1 out of 5]

An op shop find (50c). A how-to-write book, presented as a series of letters to the wanna-be author. A good read, however there's nothing terribly new about this. To be fair, it was written in 1988.

[Winston Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent.

[Neens West · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of the best books on fiction writing i've ever come across!

[Jessica Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy reading for the budding writer. Every chapter is in letter form, short, and to the point.

[Alison Stegert]

Another Lifeline Bookfest find!

[Henny Sari · Rating 4 out of 5]

suka banget dengan isi buku ini. soal EMOSI-nya itu. cucok!