Starting from Scratch: A Different Kind of Writers' Manual

By Rita Mae Brown

Book Overview

From the bestselling author of Rubyfruit Jungle and Bingo, here is a writers' manual as provocative, frank, and funny as her fiction.

Unlike most writers' guides, this one had as much to do with how writers live as with mastering the tools of their trade. Rita Mae Brown begins with a very personal account of her own career, from her days as a young poet who had written a novel no publisher wanted to take a chance on, right up to her recent adventures as a Hollywood screenwriter. In a sassy style that makes her outspoken advice as entertaining as it is useful, she provides straight talk about paying the rent while maintaining the energy to write; and dealing with agents, publishers, critics, and the publicity circus; about pursuing journalisim, academia, or screen-writing; and about rejecting the Hemingway myth of the hard-living, hard-drinking genius.

In addition Brown, a former teacher or writing, offers a serious examination of the writer's tool--language, plotting, characters, symbolism--plus exercises to sharpen the ear for dialogue, and a fascinating, annoted reading list of important works from the seventh century to the late twentieth.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 055334630X
• ISBN13: 9780553346305
• Release Date: March 1989
• Publisher: Bantam
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.67 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.6" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

Thumbs up for Brown's Literary Conservatory & reading list!

My favorite part of this book is the author's suggested path of study in her Literary Conservatory chapter, which presents a four-year writer's curriculum (nothing like this was offered at any university at the time this book was published in the mid-1980's). To help writers study their craft, accompanying the writer's curriculum is a huge suggested reading list, meant to be read in order (from the oldest works of antiquity to newer works up until about 1980). I'd love to see the author expand on her idea of the Literary Conservatory and write a sequel to this book. It'd make a great independent study option for those who are unable to enroll in a formal college literary writing program, but who would still like to pursue a formal course of study designed just for hopeful would-be authors.

No one can tell you how to write............

With the exception of a few of the reviews on this page regarding "Starting from Scratch" there seems to be an error in judgment when it comes to writting advice. No one can tell or show you how to write. What is written in this book are one persons oppions and advice to help people start thinking on there own. My advice is to read some of Rita Mae Brown's other works to understand her as an author first. Then if you like her works read this book. One thing to understand about writting is that writting is a reflection of yourself. Whether on a conscious or subconscious level. No matter what though don't buy a book with the idea that it will teach you to write; you have to allow yourself to be able to write. Others can only give you knowledge.

Starting from Scratch

"If you can tolerate my temperament you'll probably enjoy the writer's manual". In Starting From Scratch, author Rita Mae Brown includes tons of personal information and a lot of valuable writing advice. From early childhood Brown had a desire to be a writer. "It never occurred to me to be anything else". Brown's manual opens with a summary of here early years and a basic beginning to her writing career. Brown includes discussion of her struggles as a writer. She includes sleep tactics, proper eating instructions and a few pages denouncing drinking and drugs of any form. "It should be obvious to you that you must learn Latin". Brown discusses the importance and impact Latin has had on evolving our language. Brown gives brief summaries of her income from her writing career, she adds input on writing magazine articles, non-fiction, short stories, play productions and screenplays. Brown closes with an 18 page reading list. "This is prepared from a writer's point of view". I was pleased with the approach Brown took throughout her book. She had a clear avenue of thought, but absolutely no sequential order. Brown shares a lot of personal information, and many insightful points about the writing profession. An interesting book and enjoyable read. Definitely a different kind of writers manual.

What? You don't have this book?

Starting From Scratch will have you laughing and crying your way to the end. This is how it really is; from publishers to editors to rejections to how to pay the rent. Rita Mae Brown writes one of the best books on the writing life I've ever come across.

A good beginning place for the beginning writer.

This is an excellent writer's manual in many ways--I particularly enjoyed the emphasis on reading classics for "what works," the reasoning behind why a writer should know Latin, among others--even while it is totally inappropriate in others--things such as the unrealistic expectations based on Brown's own successes and her failure to understand genres, especially science fiction, fantasy and mystery. Still, the annotated reading list in the back is amazing for the simple fact that you have a hard time imagining that one person could read all of it, and yet it challenges you to give it a go. (This "review" originally appeared in First Impressions Installment One [http://www.owt.com/users/gcox/fi.contents.html].)