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On Writing: Advice for Those Who Write to Publish
Presents a practical guide to good writing and reading for the talented but inexperienced writer seeking to publish
- GenresWritingNonfiction
227 pages, Hardcover
First published December 31, 1990
2 people are currently reading
158 people want to read
About the author
George V. Higgins
75 books261 followersGeorge Vincent Higgins was a United States author, lawyer, newspaper columnist, and college professor. He is best known for his bestselling crime novels.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
October 26, 2011
I bought this on a whim from a thrift store, with no idea who the author was, but it turned out to be really entertaining. The info is hopelessly outdated (references are made to typewriters, mailing hard-copy manuscripts to publishers one at a time, and then-famous writers who have not stood the test of time) but Higgins's voice is brusque and bracing. The effect at times is that of some cross between a drill sergeant and a hardboiled noir detective yelling at you to quit yer bellyachin' and get writin'. But, uh, in a way that's more fun than that sounds. The voice is also a strange combination of formal and chatty - he uses sometimes arch language and convoluted, lawyerly sentence structure (he's a former lawyer), but then the narration also has an armchair feel, with Higgins shooting the breeze about his own work, shit-talking or praising other writers, and making curmudgeonly jokes about the profession.
He also inserts excerpts of work by other successful writers, and some of them are practically worth hunting down the book for alone, especially this one piece about Joe DiMaggio by Gay Talese. Most of the excerpts are WAY too long though, and it's jarring to switch back and forth from Higgins's narration to an entire short story by someone else and then back to Higgins again. And of course some of the examples he holds up as ideals are a style of writing that is no longer in vogue.
He also inserts excerpts of work by other successful writers, and some of them are practically worth hunting down the book for alone, especially this one piece about Joe DiMaggio by Gay Talese. Most of the excerpts are WAY too long though, and it's jarring to switch back and forth from Higgins's narration to an entire short story by someone else and then back to Higgins again. And of course some of the examples he holds up as ideals are a style of writing that is no longer in vogue.
February 11, 2022
This is an edited excerpt from my review posted on The Writer’s Place.
There is no such thing as too many books on writing—or more specifically, on being a writer. And after a certain point, when you’re standing in front of a real or virtual selection of books on the craft, you might ask yourself, Do I really need another one? If one of your choices happens to be On Writing: Advice For Those Who Write To Publish by George V. Higgins, then the answer is yes.
That being said, I have to admit that at times I found it hard going, if only because he occasionally sounded more like a college professor than a fellow writer. And then comes a priceless bit of no sugar-coating prose: “The secret remains that there is no secret. The way to determine whether you have talent is to rummage through your files and see if you have written anything; if you have, and quite a lot, then the chances are you have the talent to write more.”
Or how about this one—definitely worth re-reading when you have received yet another rejection and are wondering if you should just give up: “Nobody asked any one of us to become a writer. No one will care if you don’t become one. No one but you, that is.”
The book is chockful of excerpts and examples from other authors, in some cases showcasing the works of several to highlight how, although their styles differ, they still achieve their goal. Then there are the places where he covers the practical, business side of writing. One of my favorite sections is this one: “the student [of writing] must accomplish, if only intermittently, the suspension of his firm and justified disbelief that he will ever get his work published… It is hard, as one prepares the self-addressed, stamped, return envelope, to maintain one’s confidence that it will never be put to use, but that is exactly what must be done.”
Nowadays we rarely use snail mail, but the feeling when we hit “send” for our email query is the same, only we await not a return envelope but a return email saying “Thanks, but no thanks,” or worse, no response at all.
Even though I took copious notes before returning On Writing to the library, it’s not enough. So now I am forced to buy either a used paperback or spring for the hardcover version because I know there is lots more to learn about style, technique and craft than I can remember.
I wish George was still around so we could chat a bit about the frustrations and joys, disappointments and satisfactions that this career choice can bring us. And if we're not happy with the way things are going, well, the truth is that it's our own fault since no one asked us to be a writer in the first place!
There is no such thing as too many books on writing—or more specifically, on being a writer. And after a certain point, when you’re standing in front of a real or virtual selection of books on the craft, you might ask yourself, Do I really need another one? If one of your choices happens to be On Writing: Advice For Those Who Write To Publish by George V. Higgins, then the answer is yes.
That being said, I have to admit that at times I found it hard going, if only because he occasionally sounded more like a college professor than a fellow writer. And then comes a priceless bit of no sugar-coating prose: “The secret remains that there is no secret. The way to determine whether you have talent is to rummage through your files and see if you have written anything; if you have, and quite a lot, then the chances are you have the talent to write more.”
Or how about this one—definitely worth re-reading when you have received yet another rejection and are wondering if you should just give up: “Nobody asked any one of us to become a writer. No one will care if you don’t become one. No one but you, that is.”
The book is chockful of excerpts and examples from other authors, in some cases showcasing the works of several to highlight how, although their styles differ, they still achieve their goal. Then there are the places where he covers the practical, business side of writing. One of my favorite sections is this one: “the student [of writing] must accomplish, if only intermittently, the suspension of his firm and justified disbelief that he will ever get his work published… It is hard, as one prepares the self-addressed, stamped, return envelope, to maintain one’s confidence that it will never be put to use, but that is exactly what must be done.”
Nowadays we rarely use snail mail, but the feeling when we hit “send” for our email query is the same, only we await not a return envelope but a return email saying “Thanks, but no thanks,” or worse, no response at all.
Even though I took copious notes before returning On Writing to the library, it’s not enough. So now I am forced to buy either a used paperback or spring for the hardcover version because I know there is lots more to learn about style, technique and craft than I can remember.
I wish George was still around so we could chat a bit about the frustrations and joys, disappointments and satisfactions that this career choice can bring us. And if we're not happy with the way things are going, well, the truth is that it's our own fault since no one asked us to be a writer in the first place!
January 31, 2024
Beautifully written, acerbic, and entertaining, this is more a work of literary criticism than a book on writing itself. Higgins does give significant time to what makes good dialogue, which is to be hoped for as he is masterful at it, but on the whole gives little time to craft. He gives plenty of discouragent to would-be writers, at times weilding such preposterous arguments (all the successful writers he knows are ambidextrous, so if you aren't you might consider giving up) that make you wonder how much of his advice is being delivered with a smirk. There are lots of interesting opinions on 20th century literature, examinations of exemplars, and a dash of helpful practical advice.
September 16, 2017
Harold Bloom said somewhere that somebody else said somewhere else that every book reminds you of another. (Maybe Bloom himself said this, but I don't think so.) While reading this little, rather enjoyable book that also masquerades as a John O'Hara lovefest, I was reminded of another book about writing that said that a mystery/thriller novel should have the crime, the main character and the main conflicts all in the first few pages. And then, while I was thinking this, Higgins (the writer of crime novels himself, though for some reason he disputes this) very casually, off-handedly, writes that someone else said the same thing in some other book.
I mention all this because my most complete WIP is detective fiction, and the main crime, the major thrust of the novel, is laid at the foot of my protagonist in Chapter 8, page 50 or so. I'm happy to say that this is no longer the case, and that I'm both horrified and relieved to have fixed this, and that I've actually known for quite some time now that the book needed to start with what had been Chapter 8, which is now Chapter 1; it's just that it's taken me over 20 years and 37 edits to have the guts to cut the first three chapters entirely, and then to act like the writer version of Tom Cruise in Minority Report, playing the shell game with my chapters like he did with images on the screen, re-arranging some and deleting others.
This book gave me the sudden insight, or the sudden courage, to do this, and I will be forever grateful for that. That's the use of books like this: to motivate you to do what you know you need to do as a writer. To embolden you. That's why writers read writer blogs, join writers websites--all a waste of time for the writer, who should be writing, but perhaps necessary for some writers to embolden them to either murder dozens or hundreds of pages of their writing, to murder some characters they've known for over 20 years, and to "murder your little darlings," a phrase every writer has read a million times.
About On Writing itself, written in 1990, long before Stephen King borrowed the same title, I don't have too much to say, except that it is most helpful when you can glean something from it, and less helpful if you're looking for The Answer from the book itself. It makes clear that writing is hard and that you're better off not doing it, if you can. But that if you can't help it, you'd better do it, or you'll drive yourself crazy. (These are both true.) Higgins is pretty clear about the mediocre sales of his own stuff, which is why, he says, he teaches writing (as of 1990) at a university. He wouldn't, he says, if his stuff sold better. So the book is honest. It is clear that he loves John O'Hara, despite him saying that it isn't so, perhaps to hide the bias; he protests too much, because it is perfectly fine for a book about writing to speak of who the writer thinks is a good writer. King certainly does this in his own same-titled book. Higgins and King go out of their way to criticize some writers, too; between the two, King is more known for this and does it much more frequently. His swipes at Stephanie Meyers, J.K. Rowling and (a long time ago) William Peter Blatty, the author of The Exorcist, are still memorable. (I've never read the first two, and Blatty's writing, though a little stiff at times, isn't as deplorable as King says, IMO.)
There are some generous selections here, some so long you wonder if there was a page requirement for the book from the publisher. There are some good short stories in there, from the likes of O'Hara, which are mostly dialogue and spare narration, a style Higgins himself used. The one O'Hara wrote about a selfish man sabotaging his relationship is so good you actually want to reach through the pages and choke the character to make him shut up. (I'll probably write a short story of my own generated from this, because there's a fundamental flaw in the character and outlook I think needs to be addressed.)
Anyway, this book is good. Higgins himself comes across as amusing but surprisingly long-winded, as his sentences are longer than you would think possible from someone known for taut dialogue. (But then mine are too. I'm constantly cutting them down in edits, which I would surely do here if I had the temerity to edit my book reviews.) He is amusing and very knowledgeable about writers and writing, though I can't say that any one thing he writes struck me as genius advice that made me see the light and led to a string of bestsellers. But you'll probably glean something from it, as I did.
I mention all this because my most complete WIP is detective fiction, and the main crime, the major thrust of the novel, is laid at the foot of my protagonist in Chapter 8, page 50 or so. I'm happy to say that this is no longer the case, and that I'm both horrified and relieved to have fixed this, and that I've actually known for quite some time now that the book needed to start with what had been Chapter 8, which is now Chapter 1; it's just that it's taken me over 20 years and 37 edits to have the guts to cut the first three chapters entirely, and then to act like the writer version of Tom Cruise in Minority Report, playing the shell game with my chapters like he did with images on the screen, re-arranging some and deleting others.
This book gave me the sudden insight, or the sudden courage, to do this, and I will be forever grateful for that. That's the use of books like this: to motivate you to do what you know you need to do as a writer. To embolden you. That's why writers read writer blogs, join writers websites--all a waste of time for the writer, who should be writing, but perhaps necessary for some writers to embolden them to either murder dozens or hundreds of pages of their writing, to murder some characters they've known for over 20 years, and to "murder your little darlings," a phrase every writer has read a million times.
About On Writing itself, written in 1990, long before Stephen King borrowed the same title, I don't have too much to say, except that it is most helpful when you can glean something from it, and less helpful if you're looking for The Answer from the book itself. It makes clear that writing is hard and that you're better off not doing it, if you can. But that if you can't help it, you'd better do it, or you'll drive yourself crazy. (These are both true.) Higgins is pretty clear about the mediocre sales of his own stuff, which is why, he says, he teaches writing (as of 1990) at a university. He wouldn't, he says, if his stuff sold better. So the book is honest. It is clear that he loves John O'Hara, despite him saying that it isn't so, perhaps to hide the bias; he protests too much, because it is perfectly fine for a book about writing to speak of who the writer thinks is a good writer. King certainly does this in his own same-titled book. Higgins and King go out of their way to criticize some writers, too; between the two, King is more known for this and does it much more frequently. His swipes at Stephanie Meyers, J.K. Rowling and (a long time ago) William Peter Blatty, the author of The Exorcist, are still memorable. (I've never read the first two, and Blatty's writing, though a little stiff at times, isn't as deplorable as King says, IMO.)
There are some generous selections here, some so long you wonder if there was a page requirement for the book from the publisher. There are some good short stories in there, from the likes of O'Hara, which are mostly dialogue and spare narration, a style Higgins himself used. The one O'Hara wrote about a selfish man sabotaging his relationship is so good you actually want to reach through the pages and choke the character to make him shut up. (I'll probably write a short story of my own generated from this, because there's a fundamental flaw in the character and outlook I think needs to be addressed.)
Anyway, this book is good. Higgins himself comes across as amusing but surprisingly long-winded, as his sentences are longer than you would think possible from someone known for taut dialogue. (But then mine are too. I'm constantly cutting them down in edits, which I would surely do here if I had the temerity to edit my book reviews.) He is amusing and very knowledgeable about writers and writing, though I can't say that any one thing he writes struck me as genius advice that made me see the light and led to a string of bestsellers. But you'll probably glean something from it, as I did.
October 9, 2023
Some great insight, wisdom, and advice on writing to be found here. Higgins was clearly a guy who put in his 10,000 hours, so he has a lot of valuable things to say. Even if you probably already know them (e.g. thoughts like "writers are people who have a compulsion to write and have no choice" is a common opinion), it's worth a reminder. It's all good enough to make this book a worthwhile read if you consider yourself a writer. Some of the publishing advice feels dated unfortunately, and I wish he went into the mechanics of writing more instead of the publishing aspect, because his thoughts on writing were far more interesting. But when it's good it's good.
October 21, 2017
Summary
This is a guide to writing which includes many samples of other writers that this author uses to discuss, compare and contrast different pieces of writing. It is both informal and chatty in parts and not in others.
The examples are interesting but sometimes a little too long (like reading a book within a book), so it was tough to get through.
It was not quite what I was expecting, I thought it was more direct writing advice, but this is suited to
writers who would enjoy looking at samples and different kinds of writing.
June 24, 2021
This was a marvelous resource, but I thought Higgins' examples of good writing ran too long. His advice is solid, though, and stands the test of time. I especially appreciated his pointers on dialogue, whether to use colloquial dialect that makes for difficult reading, or to hone your dialogue so that readers don't get discouraged.
Fun, instructive, but I didn't take notes, which I'm sure means something, although I can't tell you exactly what.
Fun, instructive, but I didn't take notes, which I'm sure means something, although I can't tell you exactly what.
January 8, 2023
Feels a bit dated, and there are quoted passages that are far too long, but I still loved the magisterial holding forth on all things writing related.
October 9, 2013
A fairly pragmatic approach to what any writer faces in creating works of fiction, and then finding an editor to support his or her work, followed by the publishing. It seems, according to Higgins, that no matter what aspect of writing you are approaching: from creation to final publishing and then readership, you are hitting insurmountable walls...and I think he was reporting from the front, and honestly. I've constantly read that "Friends of Eddie Coyle" was his first work...and it shot through the publishing charts. He naysays that and points out he had been writing for 20 years before that book was published...and then books after "Coyle" weren't published. It's rare any author has an easy ride of it, throughout a career.
After reading this book, I want to seek out John O'Hara on writing (and he's dead in the water these days.) I also want to think more about the balance in a story and it's truth.
After reading this book, I want to seek out John O'Hara on writing (and he's dead in the water these days.) I also want to think more about the balance in a story and it's truth.
November 29, 2011
A big disappointment to say the least. I am a fan of Mr. Higgins novels, but this was not even close to his best performance. If you're looking for an alternative, try Stephen King's "On Writing" which is not only entertaining, but very insightful. Half of this book was filled with excerpts from other novels/stories which Mr. Higgins found good examples of writing. Nothing wrong with that, but when you spend ten plus pages copied directly from other works, where is his contribution? In my opinion, you're better off reading other novels in a genre that interests you than taking tips from this book, you'll get more out of it.
April 21, 2013
Just read Higgins's 1990 book 'On Writing'. Out of print so got it second hand through Amazon. Quite heavy going, but some interesting advice for writers. One depressing fact: he had 16 years of rejections before he was successful with 'The Friends of Eddie Coyle'.
Very dry humor. eg. "There is only one form of stimulation that enables a publisher to achieve orgasm: that provided by the New York Times bestseller list..."
Very dry humor. eg. "There is only one form of stimulation that enables a publisher to achieve orgasm: that provided by the New York Times bestseller list..."
December 12, 2007
A useful book worth reading, though, frankly, not as good as I'd hoped it would be. [update: I must of had a touch of the cholic when I wrote the above. Beware of snap judgments. This is a fine book. Get it. Read it. Live it.]
June 30, 2010
The advice was great. Most of the included writing examples, however, were wayyyyyy too long.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews