Hey, fellow writers and friends!

Just so you all know, you don't have to buy this or anything. I just want to share this, because this book really gives the best "Real-world writing advice, minus all the lectures".

Quick story how I got my hands on this book. Where I worked at, many customers often asked me what my future plans in life was since they found out I just graduated high school. I wanted to be an author, so my obvious major is creative writing. I honestly didn't expect a male regular customer to buy this book for me. I was amazed! A stranger is kind enough to give me a book about real-world writing advices! That was honestly one turning point in my writing life. 

 

This Is Not a Writing Manual

Notes for the Young Writer in the Real World

Kerri Majors

 

Genre: Writing Reference

 

*** Description in the back of the book ***

You're an aspiring writer. Maybe you've just discovered your love of words and dream of being a novelist someday. Maybe you've been filling notebooks with science fiction stories since middle school. Maybe you're comtemplating a degree in English, but you don't know what the heck you're going to do with it. The last thing you need is another preachy writing manual telling you how you should write.

This book isn't a writing manual. It is a series of candid and irrelevent essays on the writing life, from a writer who's lived it. Kerri Majors shares stories from her own life that offer insights on the realities all writers face: developing a writing voice, finding a "real job" (and yes, you do need to find one), taking criticism, getting published, and dealing with rejection.

Don't have enough time to write? Learn how to plan your days to fit it all in. Not sure how your guilty pleasures and bad habits translate into literature? Kerri explains how watching television and eavesdropping can actually help your writing. Nervous about submitting your first piece? Learn from Kerri's own roller coaster journey to find an agent and get published. This Is Not a Writing Manual is the writing memoir for young writers who want to use their talents in the real world.

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"When I was a writing teacher, I met many talented, passionate young writers who wondered how to moved forward. I sincerely wish I'd had Kerri Major's This Is Not a Writing Manual to help them. Never prescriptive, always honest, this book is a genuine resource that grapples with the real work of writing---finding courage, finding time, and finding a way." ---Blythe Woolston, author of Black Helicopters and The Freak Observer

"A personal and invigorating memoir of the creative life, This Is Not a Writing Manual offers wisdom, camaraderie, and inspiration for newbies and veterans alike." ---John Cusick, agent at Greenhouse Literary, managing fiction editor at Armchair/Shotgun, and author of Girl Parts and Cherry Money Baby.

 

Table of Contents

 

Introduction

 

Part 1: The Writing Process 

Drafting: Buy a Planner

Writing Without Writing

Eavesdropping

Feedback

Revision

Watch Your Soap Operas

My First Big Mistake

Come At It From The Side

Leave Your Ego At The Door

Play With Your Words

 

Part 2: The Writing Life

Advice

The Creative Writing Major

Find Yourself An Audience

Bosom Writing Buddies

Workshops and Writers' Groups 

How Good Am I?

Or, The World Is Not A Meritocracy After All

It Should Be Difficult

In Fact, Sometimes It Will Downright

But! "You Are Rare and Wonderous!"

 

Part 3: Looking Ahead: Supporting Yourself, Getting Published, and not Getting Published

Is It A Hobby Or A Job?

Sorry, But Yes, You Do Have To "Get A Real Job"

Those Who Can't Do, Teach

Hating Your Best Friend

Hating Yourself

Writing For Pleasure

Getting Published, Big Time and Small Time

Published Writing Is A Team Effort

Readers Are The Best Friends

A Writer Will Never Meet

 

Appendix (Not The One You Had Out When You Were 10)

Bibliography

 

About the Author

 

Kerri Majors is the Editor and Founder of YARN, the Young Adult Review Network (www.yareview.net), an online literary journal of YA short stories, essays, and poetry, which won an Innovations in Reading Prize from the National Book Foundation. Kerri's short stories and essays have appeared in journals such as Guernica and Poets and Writers. She is a graduate of U.C. Berkeley, has an MFA from Columbia, and now lives in Massachusetts with her husband, Mike, and their daughter. You can find out more about her at www.kerrimajors.com.