From Publishers Weekly
"Work is its own cure. You have to like it better than being loved," writes novelist and poet Marge Piercy in the poem that prefaces her and novelist Ira Wood's (The Kitchen Man) guide for careerist writers, So You Want to Write: How to Master the Craft of Writing Fiction and the Personal Narrative. "This book is a product of workshops we have given for many years," write the authors, and those not lucky enough to have participated in the workshops can now benefit from their no-nonsense wisdom. Eschewing the current trend in process-based writing classes and guides, Piercy and Wood urge writers to read critically and often; to ask themselves specific, exacting questions about their characters and plots; to complete the book's writing exercises; to do research in order to make a piece of writing believable; to participate in some kind of community of writers; and numerous other practical steps. Readers will appreciate the hardcore approach of these two dedicated writers. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Best-selling writer Piercy and her husband, novelist/publisher Wood, have been coteaching writers' workshops for about ten years. In an attempt to reach a larger audience, they have reproduced their master course in this useful manual. Advising against how-to books even their own the two authors encourage would-be writers to read as much as possible (included is a list of recommended books), as reading plays the key role in the process of learning how to write. The authors go on to discuss character, plot, dialog, and some of the nuts and bolts of the publishing industry. They also discuss how much writers can expect to earn, what those rejection letters from publishers really mean, and seven things to remember when the writing becomes intensely personal. The exercises at chapter ends are short and to the point, just enough to get the juices flowing. Because of the clear writing style and the authors' reputations, this book, although joining an already saturated market, is worth the shelf space. Recommended for public libraries. Lisa J. Cihlar, Monroe P.L., WI Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Here's a must-have for wouldbe writers: a howto book written by a popular novelist and a successful publisher. In 1996, the authors, who have been teaching popular writing classes for a decade or so, formed Leapfrog Press. They have also written a novel and a play together, while Piercy's own work remains highly respected. This fine book is a distillation of the wisdom they have accumulated and dispensed over the years. They start at the beginning with beginnings (story openings) and move smoothly through character building, the importance of dialogue and plot, and how to craft compelling narrative passages. The focus here is on technique rather than business, so readers seeking tips on finding a publisher or conducting contract negotiations should look elsewhere. Piercy and Wood have a more fundamental audience in mind: anyone who has a good story to tell but isn't quite sure how to tell it. Put this on the shelf right beside Strunk and White. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Booklist, June 1 & 15, 2001
"Here is a must-have for would-be writers ... Put this on the shelf right beside Strunk and White."


The Tampa Tribune, June 17, 2001
"A good primer for new writers; a fine reference book for any writer."


Library Journal, July 1, 2001
"The exercises get the juices flowing. This book, although joining an already saturated market is worth the shelf space."


Book Description
For over ten years, Marge Piercy and Ira Wood have been teaching two popular master classes in the crafting of fiction and memoirs. They attract students nationwide who have failed to improve their work in courses concentrating on the 'process' of writing, encouraging their potential but failing to supply them with the tools. Never before available in any form, So You Want To Write: Uses talks, exercises, anecdotes and examples proven in the classroom, to address:
• How to begin a piece by seducing your reader,
• How to create characters that embody the infinite contradictions of human behavior,
• How to master the elements of plotting fiction,
• How to create a strategy for telling the story of your life,
• How to avoid sounding like a 'victim,'
• How to learn to read critically, like a professional writer,
• How to realistically approach publishing. Drawing on over seventy years of combined writing experience, other chapters include:
• The overlooked powers of dialogue,
• Creating descriptions that move readers emotionally,
• FAQ's about agents, rejections, submitting work effectively, how much writers really earn,
• Overcoming shame and the difficulties of writing about loved ones. Written to be enjoyed as well as used, So You Want to Write is the book for those who want to go beyond 'journaling' and 'writing as therapy,' to break through and publish their work.


From the Publisher
The complete workshop of fiction and memoir craft, written by a best-selling author and a publisher, for writers who want to break through and sell publish work.


From the Back Cover
"SO YOU WANT TO WRITE is a lively, informative, and down-to-earth guide for anyone who's ever thought of writing and publishing a novel, story, or personal memoir. It answers all the questions you may have--as well as some you didn't think of." (Alison Lurie)


About the Author
Marge Piercy is the author of 15 volumes of poetry and 15 novels, including the best sellers Gone To Soldiers and The Longings of Women. William Morrow will be publishing her upcoming memoir, Sleeping With Cats. Ira Wood is the author of three novels, a publisher, and a writing teacher whose classes address writers' feelings of hopelessness and overcoming the inner censor. Together, in 1998, they co-wrote the critically acclaimed novel Storm Tide.


Excerpted from So You Want To Write by Marge Piercy, Ira Wood. Copyright © 2001. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved
Readers often bristle when writers present themselves as victims. Having been deeply hurt, offended, wrongfully treated, it's difficult to avoid conveying self-pity. It's harder still to be even-handed, to see different sides of an event or relationship. Often a person had no hand whatsoever in causing their misfortune. So how are they to write about it? There are some techniques worth mentioning. One is humor. We can catch readers off-guard if we can make them laugh at situations that, treated in a more straight-forward way, might seem self serving or self-pitying. In one of our classes a woman presented a piece that, in the hands of a less skilled writer, might have sounded like your typical my-husband-left-me-for-a-younger-woman story. Except that she compared her husband's new wife to a white lab rat and kept the metaphor alive (including references to her leafy, vegetarian diet; her quick, nervous movements) until the class was in stitches. Writers who take on the holocaust have every reason to portray themselves as victims, yet in the hands of a brilliant memoirist like Primo Levi, a story may be as much about the complex social hierarchy of all the prisoners around him, and thus become even deeper in its implications. It is difficult to remember that in any horrible situation, there are other things going on at the same time as the horror. People like and dislike each other; power struggles develop; petty resentments do not disappear. Writing about these other aspects will not dissipate the horror but might make more real. The Diary of Anne Frank is especially moving because no one in hiding is a helpless lamb, but an individual with recognizable and sometimes quite selfish human needs. In attempting to avoid writing as a victim, making the decision to allow a situation to unfold in a scene rather than merely reporting it permits your readers to participate in the situation and make up their own minds about its implications. Stating, "My father was an irresponsible drunk" might be less effective than writing a scene in which a father comes home singing on Christmas eve with an armful of pies and then, drunk as a lord, falls down the stairs, crushing the special dessert. It's well to remember that as a child we may have been miserable, but we didn't always think of ourselves as victims while the situation was unfolding. We were sometimes focused on those pies.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Over the past ten years Marge Piercy and Ira Wood have taught two popular workshops nationwide, one in fiction, another on the memoir. In print for the first time, this collection of essays and exercises by a best selling writer and a publisher, all tested over time, addresses those areas of craft that are crucial to success but too often neglected: beginnings, plot, deep characteriztion, and dialog as well as real-world approaches to getting published.

FROM THE CRITICS

Booklist

Here is a must-have for would-be writers ... [and] anyone who has a good story to tell but isn't quite sure how to tell it. Put this on the shelf right beside Strunk and White.

Tampa Tribune

The authors conduct well-known writing seminars...They address plot, character development, dialogue and all the other elements of successful writing. They also go into work habits, overcoming the "inner censor" and dealing with publishers. A good primer for new writers; a fine reference book for any writer.

Publishers Weekly

"Work is its own cure. You have to like it better than being loved," writes novelist and poet Marge Piercy in the poem that prefaces her and novelist Ira Wood's (The Kitchen Man) guide for careerist writers, So You Want to Write: How to Master the Craft of Writing Fiction and the Personal Narrative. "This book is a product of workshops we have given for many years," write the authors, and those not lucky enough to have participated in the workshops can now benefit from their no-nonsense wisdom. Eschewing the current trend in process-based writing classes and guides, Piercy and Wood urge writers to read critically and often; to ask themselves specific, exacting questions about their characters and plots; to complete the book's writing exercises; to do research in order to make a piece of writing believable; to participate in some kind of community of writers; and numerous other practical steps. Readers will appreciate the hardcore approach of these two dedicated writers. (Aug.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Best-selling writer Piercy and her husband, novelist/publisher Wood, have been coteaching writers' workshops for about ten years. In an attempt to reach a larger audience, they have reproduced their master course in this useful manual. Advising against how-to books even their own the two authors encourage would-be writers to read as much as possible (included is a list of recommended books), as reading plays the key role in the process of learning how to write. The authors go on to discuss character, plot, dialog, and some of the nuts and bolts of the publishing industry. They also discuss how much writers can expect to earn, what those rejection letters from publishers really mean, and seven things to remember when the writing becomes intensely personal. The exercises at chapter ends are short and to the point, just enough to get the juices flowing. Because of the clear writing style and the authors' reputations, this book, although joining an already saturated market, is worth the shelf space. Recommended for public libraries. Lisa J. Cihlar, Monroe P.L., WI Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING