Steering the Craft

Starred review from June 22, 2015
This is not a book for beginners, warns Le Guin (Cheek by Jowl), but it would be churlish to deny the benefits of this thoughtful, concise volume to anyone serious about becoming a writer. Originally written in 1998 and based on Le Guin’s workshop of the same name, the book has been revised by her based on reader feedback and on the vast changes that have occurred in publishing over the years. But some issues remain constant, and Le Guin explores them in a familiar, breezy style that is admirably direct, and as entertaining as it is enlightening. The topics she examines include the sound and rhythm of language in writing; the need to understand the rules of grammar, if only to break them; point of view and narrative voice; and the judicious use of adjective, adverbs, and verbs. In essence, Le Guin reveals the art of craft and the craft of art. Each chapter ends with writing exercises that can be attempted in groups or alone. To borrow Le Guin’s nautical imagery, this book is a star by which to set one’s course. Agent: Ginger Clark, Curtis Brown.

June 15, 2015
Practical writing advice from an acclaimed storyteller. Prolific writer Le Guin (The Unreal and the Real: Selected Stories Volume One: Where on Earth, 2012, etc.)-author of more than 60 books of fiction, poetry, drama, and translation and winner of the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, among other awards-brings her experience as a writing workshop leader to this revision of her 1998 publication. In 10 chapters, the author considers basic writing topics, such as sound, rhythm, grammar, syntax, parts of speech (especially verbs, adverbs, and adjectives), and point of view. Each chapter contains examples from literature: an excerpt from Austen's Mansfield Park demonstrates the author's "vivid and versatile" syntax; a "glaringly bright scene" from Dickens' Little Dorrit shows the power of a "single word...repeated like a hammer blow." In addition, Le Guin has created short exercises "to clarify and intensify" awareness and hone technique. One exercise, "Am I Saramago," (alluding to the Portuguese novelist who uses no punctuation), asks readers to write a 150-350-word narrative with no commas, periods, or paragraph breaks. A four-part exercise on point of view calls for writing a 200-350-word narrative and retelling it from the point of view of participants, a detached narrator, an observer-narrator, and an involved author. Le Guin guides readers in evaluating their work by themselves and in giving and responding to peer critiques. "While being critiqued," she advises, "make notes of what people say about your story, even if the comments seem stupid. They may make sense later." The book's title emphasizes the author's belief that writing is essentially a craft that can be learned, practiced, and improved through attention and self-discipline. "Forced to weigh your words," she writes, "you find out which are the Styrofoam and which are the heavy gold." A succinct, clear, and encouraging companion for aspiring writers.

COPYRIGHT(2015) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from July 1, 2015

With this book, notable author Le Guin (A Wizard of Earthsea; The Left Hand of Darkness) updates her guide of the same title published in 1998. In the second sentence, she reminds us that this is "not a book for beginners" and remains true to that statement throughout. The first chapter will delight those familiar with her lyrical prose; "The Sound of Your Writing" focuses on the "forward movement, pace, and rhythm" of sentences and includes an exercise called "Being Gorgeous." This opening sets the tone for the rest of the slim volume. Le Guin explains points of craft with incredible lucidity and proceeds to use those examples or exercises (or both) to further embolden her points. The strengths, in addition to the initial section, include "Verbs: Person and Tense" and "Point of View and Voice," but identifying standouts is a challenge because Le Guin is so consistent. Her examples come most often from literature--Virginia Woolf, Rudyard Kipling, Mark Twain, Alice Walker, Zora Neale Hurston--and occasionally from sf and fantasy, e.g., Molly Gloss, J.R.R. Tolkien. All are on point. VERDICT A must-read for intermediate and advanced writers of fiction and memoir. [See Prepub Alert, 3/16/15.]--Paul Stenis, Pepperdine Univ. Lib., Malibu, CA

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 1, 2016

Le Guin (A Wizard of Earthsea; The Left Hand of Darkness) explains points of craft in this must-read guide for intermediate to advanced writers. Her examples come from literature--writings by Virginia Woolf, Mark Twain, Alice Walker, Zora Neale Hurston--and occasionally from sf and fantasy, e.g., J.R.R. Tolkien's writings. (LJ 7/15)

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2015

Since the 1960s, Le Guin has written perceptive fantasy-plus that's won her all the expected honors (e.g., the Hugo, the Nebula), as well as the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. Her smartly named Steering the Craft: Exercises and Discussions on Story Writing for the Lone Navigator or the Mutinous Crew has been an enduringly popular source for aspiring writers since its 1998 publication. Now newbies can rejoice, for the guide has been completely rewritten.

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2015

With this book, notable author Le Guin (A Wizard of Earthsea; The Left Hand of Darkness) updates her guide of the same title published in 1998. In the second sentence, she reminds us that this is "not a book for beginners" and remains true to that statement throughout. The first chapter will delight those familiar with her lyrical prose; "The Sound of Your Writing" focuses on the "forward movement, pace, and rhythm" of sentences and includes an exercise called "Being Gorgeous." This opening sets the tone for the rest of the slim volume. Le Guin explains points of craft with incredible lucidity and proceeds to use those examples or exercises (or both) to further embolden her points. The strengths, in addition to the initial section, include "Verbs: Person and Tense" and "Point of View and Voice," but identifying standouts is a challenge because Le Guin is so consistent. Her examples come most often from literature--Virginia Woolf, Rudyard Kipling, Mark Twain, Alice Walker, Zora Neale Hurston--and occasionally from sf and fantasy, e.g., Molly Gloss, J.R.R. Tolkien. All are on point. VERDICT A must-read for intermediate and advanced writers of fiction and memoir. [See Prepub Alert, 3/16/15.]--Paul Stenis, Pepperdine Univ. Lib., Malibu, CA

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 2016

Le Guin (A Wizard of Earthsea; The Left Hand of Darkness) explains points of craft in this must-read guide for intermediate to advanced writers. Her examples come from literature--writings by Virginia Woolf, Mark Twain, Alice Walker, Zora Neale Hurston--and occasionally from sf and fantasy, e.g., J.R.R. Tolkien's writings. (LJ 7/15)

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.