Recent Reads: Wild Mind by Natalie Goldberg
What the book's about: Once again, the subtitle of Wild Mind - Living the Writer's Life - is an accurate description of it. The book blends stories from Natalie's life with practical advice as well as exercises to try in your own writing life.
Why I read this book: I read this book as part of an online writing class I took this winter called Story 101, taught by Elora Rameriz.
My favorite quotes from the book:
- "Most of the time when we write, we mix up the editor and creator."
- "Style requires digesting who we are."
- "Writing is the act of discovery. If I knew everything ahead of time, why bother writing?"
- "The only failure in writing is when you stop doing it. Then you fail yourself."
- "We spend a lot of time holding up the white castles of our parents or society. These have nothing to do with ourselves or with the truth. Holding them up is a great burden."
- "Stress is an ignorant state. It believes that everything is an emergency."
Thumbs up or thumbs down? Thumbs up.
Who I'd recommend this book for: Anyone who wants to be a better writer. I'd recommend savoring this book, reading it a little at a time in order to allow ample time to play with the writing exercises found throughout it.
