Hereford Eye
April 4th, 2006, 01:58 PM
Ordinarily, this information would belong in the Writer's Wrting Resourcves thread, but I think there is another point to be made. Here is a selection of books - none of which have I read - being offered this month by the Scientific American Book Club:
a. Putting Your Passion Into Print, Arielle Eckstut & Henry Sterry
b. Writing Fiction, The Practical Guide from New York’s Acclaimed Writing School by the Gotham
Writer’s Workshop faculty, edited by Alexander Steele
c. The Elements of Style Illustrated, William Strunk Jr and E.B. White
d. The Weekend Novelist Revised and Updated Edition, Robert J. Ray & Bret Norris
e. A Grammar Book for You and I (…Oops, Me!) , C. Edward Good
f. No Plot? No problem! A Low Stress High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days, Chris Baty
g. Comma Sense, A Fun-Damental Guide to Punctuation, Richard Lederer and John Shore
h. EveryDay TM English Handbook, Leonard Rosen
i. Snoopy’s Guide to the Writing Life, Edited by Barnaby Conrad & Monte Schulz
j. How Not to Write, The Essential Misrules of Grammar, William Safire
Information gleaned from the brochure blurbs.
Holbrook and I need to read a. as it “…will teach you everything from devising a winning plot to landing an agent and publisher…..”
The second, b., is from America’s leading private creative writing school. Since I have never heard of this school, I wonder who they claim as graduates?
c. Well, Strunk & White have been in the style business for a while now but illustrated?
d. Weekend novelist “…will take you through the entire writing process in only 52 weekends.”
e. Grammar Book blurb: “All you need to master writing and speech. It’s a sad fact, but college professors and employers regularly cringe at the lack of writing skills displayed by their students and employees.” Some cringe at the wording of this blurb.
f. No Plot? “…offers tips, tricks, and strategies for pumping out a 50,000 word novel in just 30 days.”
g. Comma Sense author Lederer has always tickled me with his Anguished English series.
h. EveryDayTM offers “…everything you need to write effective letters, memos and reports.”
i. Snoopy’s Guide: “30 of the most popular storytellers, and a very famous dog, offer advice on writing…”
j. How Not to Write – Safire is a wordsmith, for certain, and in this book he is “wickedly witty.”
Since I question the value of these works without having read them, I wonder if any of you have read them and can therefore correct my assumptions about the value of these works.
a. Putting Your Passion Into Print, Arielle Eckstut & Henry Sterry
b. Writing Fiction, The Practical Guide from New York’s Acclaimed Writing School by the Gotham
Writer’s Workshop faculty, edited by Alexander Steele
c. The Elements of Style Illustrated, William Strunk Jr and E.B. White
d. The Weekend Novelist Revised and Updated Edition, Robert J. Ray & Bret Norris
e. A Grammar Book for You and I (…Oops, Me!) , C. Edward Good
f. No Plot? No problem! A Low Stress High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days, Chris Baty
g. Comma Sense, A Fun-Damental Guide to Punctuation, Richard Lederer and John Shore
h. EveryDay TM English Handbook, Leonard Rosen
i. Snoopy’s Guide to the Writing Life, Edited by Barnaby Conrad & Monte Schulz
j. How Not to Write, The Essential Misrules of Grammar, William Safire
Information gleaned from the brochure blurbs.
Holbrook and I need to read a. as it “…will teach you everything from devising a winning plot to landing an agent and publisher…..”
The second, b., is from America’s leading private creative writing school. Since I have never heard of this school, I wonder who they claim as graduates?
c. Well, Strunk & White have been in the style business for a while now but illustrated?
d. Weekend novelist “…will take you through the entire writing process in only 52 weekends.”
e. Grammar Book blurb: “All you need to master writing and speech. It’s a sad fact, but college professors and employers regularly cringe at the lack of writing skills displayed by their students and employees.” Some cringe at the wording of this blurb.
f. No Plot? “…offers tips, tricks, and strategies for pumping out a 50,000 word novel in just 30 days.”
g. Comma Sense author Lederer has always tickled me with his Anguished English series.
h. EveryDayTM offers “…everything you need to write effective letters, memos and reports.”
i. Snoopy’s Guide: “30 of the most popular storytellers, and a very famous dog, offer advice on writing…”
j. How Not to Write – Safire is a wordsmith, for certain, and in this book he is “wickedly witty.”
Since I question the value of these works without having read them, I wonder if any of you have read them and can therefore correct my assumptions about the value of these works.