A glimse into the only non-fiction work of Evanovich's, with tips and throughts on the craft of writing fiction.
One of the biggest assets that a fiction writer has is the plethora of books available dedicated to the craft of writing. It seems as though, at some point, every big-name writer (and some not-so-big) decides to pen something on how they write. Of course, what every would-be novelist really wants to know is “how can I do that?”
For this reason, I will be reviewing books like this one from time to time. After all, you know I’m going to read them anyway! I might as well share what I learn from them…
This book, How I Write, by Janet Evanovich, is a compact little read, weighing in at 231 breezy pages. But it’s not the word count that makes this book easy to read, it’s the simplicity by which it was written. I think it would be safe to say that I read this entire book in one sitting (read: soaking) and it took me close to an hour. Don’t be too impressed though, I’ve been training my speedy eyes since I was in grade school.
With chapter headings like: Creating Series Characters (which is where money usually comes in), Showing vs. telling, Writing Sex scenes, Finding the Right Point of View, Cliffhangers, the Publishing Process, A Re-writing Checklist, $$$ (I like that one too!), Self-Discipline, and A Day in the Life of a Writer, this book has more than enough information to assist a writer just starting out, or even someone interested in writing genre-bending novels like the Stephanie Plum series that Evanovich is known for.
Sadly, there weren’t any tips or hints in How I Write as to how to become a bestselling author, but knowledge can be gained indirectly with this book, through inspiration as opposed to insider-trading.
Personally, I fell in love with the parts of this book where Evanovich's humor shined through like a lighthouse beam in heavy fog. While not telling the reader how Janet thinks they should write, she allows a good deal of insight into how she writes and why she writes. Janet also goes into why she changed genre's midway through her writing career (I didn’t know she used to write romance novels!)
Overall, this book was an interesting little look into the mind of a writer, cheez-doodles (you’ll have to read the book to get that one) and all!
About Janet Evanovich:
- She is the author or twelve romance novels, re-released since her name has become recognizable.
- She is the author of one non-fiction book (this one, How I Write)
- She is the author 15 fictional books in the Plum series, 2 books in the Metro Series, and 6 books in the Full Series.
