Writing Down the Bones

Fülszöveg

Hundreds of books are around that tell how to avoid bad writing.
Here is one that tells how to create good writing. What a pleasant
surprise.
The secret of creativity, Natalie Goldberg makes clear, is to
subtract rules for writing, not add them. It's a process of "unedu-
cation" rather than education. Most people are baffled at how to
teach this, since teaching and "uneducation" appear contradictory.
But Natalie's experience in Zen meditation, which is essentially
a subtractive process, has provided her insights.
Proof that she knows what she's talking about is abundant in
her own sentences. They flow with speed and grace and accuracy
and simplicity. It looks easy to a reader, but experienced writers
know it is the hardest writing of all. It's the simple style of a Zen
archer who looks like he's not even aiming, yet sends arrow after
arrow to the bull's-eye time after time.
—Robert Pirsig, author of
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
It would be wonderfully... Tovább

Fülszöveg

Hundreds of books are around that tell how to avoid bad writing.
Here is one that tells how to create good writing. What a pleasant
surprise.
The secret of creativity, Natalie Goldberg makes clear, is to
subtract rules for writing, not add them. It's a process of "unedu-
cation" rather than education. Most people are baffled at how to
teach this, since teaching and "uneducation" appear contradictory.
But Natalie's experience in Zen meditation, which is essentially
a subtractive process, has provided her insights.
Proof that she knows what she's talking about is abundant in
her own sentences. They flow with speed and grace and accuracy
and simplicity. It looks easy to a reader, but experienced writers
know it is the hardest writing of all. It's the simple style of a Zen
archer who looks like he's not even aiming, yet sends arrow after
arrow to the bull's-eye time after time.
—Robert Pirsig, author of
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
It would be wonderfully efficient and clever of us writers to have
to learn our lessons only once; failing that, a copy of Writing
Down the Bones on a table nearby could save a lot of grief. It
could even save your life. A fine poet and prose writer, Natalie
Goldberg has found a new voice. It is simply the best aid and
comfort around today.
—Judith Guest, author of Ordinary People
Natalie Goldberg is a writer, poet, and
teacher. Currently working on a novel,
she lives in Taos, New Mexico. She is
available to teach workshops using
the methods outlined in this book. Vissza