Anne Lamott

Bird by Bird is the bible of writing guides - a wry, honest, down-to-earth book that has never stopped selling since it was first published in the United States in the 1990s. Bestselling novelist and memoirist Anne Lamott distils what she's learned over years of trial and error. Beautifully written, wise and immensely helpful, this is the book for all serious writers and writers-to-be.

Instructions on Writing and Life

Bird by Bird

Sadie Hoffman

writing can be a pretty desperate endeavor, because it is about some of our deepest needs: our need to be visible, to be heard, our need to make sense of our lives, to wake up and grow and belong. 

you don’t have to see where you’re going, you don’t have to see your destination or everything you will pass along the way. you just have to see two or three feet ahead of you.

A step-by-step guide to writing and managing the writer's life covers each portion of a written project, addresses such concerns as writer's block and getting published, and offers awareness and survival tips. Reprint. Tour.

Some Instructions on Writing and Life

Matt Stein

Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor, the enemy of the people. It will keep you cramped and insane your whole life, and it is the main obstacle between you and a shitty first draft. I think perfectionism is based on the obsessive belief that if you run carefully enough, hitting each stepping-stone just right, you won’t have to die. The truth is that you will die anyway and that a lot of people who aren’t even looking at their feet are going to do a whole lot better than you, and have a lot more fun while they’re doing it.

Natalie Sprite

'One of the most powerful wellsprings of creative energy fulfilment seems to be falling in love with something - your dream, your image of the future." 'One outstanding accomplishment, and self- -E. Paul Torrance

Niall Williams history of the rain (Women shrinking )

She pulls in her narrow shoulders and presses her knees togethe and she actually seems to go in a little. Iam sorry for upsetting he

JT Helms

You get your intuition back when you make space for it, when you stop the chattering of the rational mind. The rational mind doesn't nourish you. You assume that it gives you the truth, because the rational mind is the golden calf that this culture worships, but this is not true. Rationality squeezes out much that is rich and juicy and fascinating.

lisa gray

Monicap

There was some useful writing advice, some not-so-useful advice.

Erin Darlyn

Bird by Bird started off really well for me. The language Anne uses is engaging and descriptive. She uses narrative to teach and her stories made me want to keep reading. I was thoroughly enjoying the book at first, and appreciated some of the golden nuggets scattered throughout.

One of the passages I especially loved was this:

 “…for some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet or excite you. Books help us understand who we are and how we are to behave. They show us what community and friendship mean; they show us how to live and die. They are full of all the things that you don’t get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. And quality of attention: we may notice amazing details during the course of a day but we rarely let ourselves stop and really pay attention. An author makes you notice, makes you pay attention, and this is a great gift. My gratitude for good writing is unbounded; I’m grateful for it the way I’m grateful for the ocean.”

Later, though, it started to feel more muddy and I started feeling like I was having to slog through it. It lost some interest for me and started to sound more jaded and troubled. I found myself feeling like I had to force myself to keep reading. Though I did finish it, I will admit that I read through the last chapters more hurriedly than I had the first ones. 

I routinely take a star off of my ratings for the presence of strong language in books (it's just not my thing), so do note that without that, my rating for this book would have been 3 stars.

Worthwhile read for writers. It's funny and real.

Laura Hilliger

An essential volume for generations of writers young and old, Bird by Bird is a modern classic. This twenty-fifth anniversary edition will continue to spark creative minds for years to come. For a quarter century, more than a million readers—scribes and scribblers of all ages and abilities—have been inspired by Anne Lamott’s hilarious, big-hearted, homespun advice. Advice that begins with the simple words of wisdom passed down from Anne’s father—also a writer—in the iconic passage that gives the book its title: “Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he’d had three months to write. It was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother’s shoulder, and said, ‘Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.’”

Part memoir, part guide to life as an author. This authentic and lively book runs the gamut of emotions from heart-wrenching to belly-laughter-inducing. While some of the author’s tips aren’t applicable for the modern digital era or for certain genres of publishing (literary fiction vs kid lit & YA), there is so much wisdom that any writer can benefit from.

Liz Griffin

Keven Wang

“Becoming a writer is about becoming conscious “

This is now my favorite book on writing. I like the description of mental battles going on in a mind of a writer.

Fabio Bracht

Cheio de bons conselhos para quem tem interesse por escrita ou por enxergar a vida pelos olhos de um escritor.

Rachel Kanyid

Read for a class, and it was interesting.

Becky A

This was basically a lovely book, and I was absolutely the wrong reader for it. Lamott's approach to writing is so directly opposite my own that I was frustrated and it hit my rather immature "don't tell me what to do!" instinct. If the idea of writing about your own experiences, or of sitting with characters and not doing anything, and never considering plot or what those characters should do, sounds appealing to you, then this will likely ring more true for you than it did for me. But me? I like plotting. Plot pieces come to me first, and character last, and it just made me feel like Lamott wouldn't consider me a Real Writer. (To be clear, she does not say that anywhere in the book. But as a genre writer it's very hard to not feel slighted by more literary approaches.)

Also: there was a surprising amount of visiting the Special Olympics/cancer wards/retirement homes/etc and using people who were sick or dying or disabled for inspiration porn, which really grossed me out.

That said, the voice is fun and vivid, and there are certainly nuggets in here I appreciated. Shitty rough drafts, and the titular "bird by bird" anecdote in particular. It's probably a solid, inspiring, helpful book for people who aren't me.

Belle

Interesting to read but I thought I'd learn about writing better which I didn't, really.

Gisela Ayala 

Probably one of the better books on writing that I've read!

Katie Chua

Read this slowly, savoring each chapter. Some good advice, moments that made me laugh, thanks Anne Lamott!

Kyle S

Well written, it's a wonderful journey through the life of a professional writer and creative writing teacher. A lot of her advice feels like advice to her past self and not general writing advice, which is fine because writing is a subjective craft on both the creator and viewer ends. I can't say this book is a must read for aspiring writers out there, but it definitely is a fun and introspective look into the mind of a lifelong writer.

Thea Lizabeth

Wry writing tips from a true master, filled with hilarious patter, poignant moments, and a treasure trove of good advice. 

I learned a lot about writing "shitty first drafts" and denouncing perfectionism (one of my major hindrances). 

She writes, "Perfectionism is a mean, frozen form of idealism, while messes are the artist's true friend."

baelgia

It's hard for me to tell which parts of a book will end up sticking because every other beautifully written and or insightful sentence gives me pause. The past two days I've been thinking a lot about "You wouldn't be a writer if reading hadn't enriched your soul more than other pursuits" and "Annie? I really don't think you have that kind of time." I've also adopted the technique of reading yesterday's writing before starting on today's, and I'll be attempting to write about my childhood next, which I've failed to do about twenty times already.

But what I'm really carrying into gdocs, into my staredowns with blank pages, is this sprightly warmth. Somewhere between cringing at the thought of a beyond shitty first draft I've shared recently and laughing at Lamott's hysterical 4PM phone call on publication day, I've learned — and this is something I'm sure to keep learning — why. It's really simple.

To quote one of my favorite pieces of writing: "Volleyball is fun. Every time I forget that, it comes back to remind me."

James Bedford

This was ok - amusing in places but i didn’t take very much away from it. I felt like at times it was trying a little too hard to be random/amusing, which was a touch off putting. 

I found the first couple of chapters most interesting, where Anne Lamott spoke about her life & childhood and growing up with a writer for a father. Longed for more insight into this more so than the contents of the book.

Erin Noel

It's like reading a heart-to-heart with a mad woman who's crazy about you and your passion for writing.

Katelyn Caillouet

Wow, I loved this book. I'm not a writer by trade, but do have to do some light copywriting for the web. Anne had me laughing out loud. Her advice was very practical and honest. I'll probably read this again next time I want to take a crack at NaNo WriMo!

Wynn Netherland

I picked up this book expecting to learn something about writing, which I certainly did. More importantly, I came away with a broader perspective and a deeper interest in the people in my life. With so much of her philosophy of life laid bare, there's much to disagree with, but more to be challenged and entertained by in the process.

Mircea Tara

JacQueline Roe

This book was hilarious, irreverent, poignant, & sharp. It mirrored back to me my reasons for writing and living. I’m grateful to the author for writing it.

Jeremy Anderberg

“To be engrossed by something outside ourselves is a powerful antidote for the rational mind, the mind that so frequently has its head up its own ass.”

I’ve been writing in some form for the better part of two decades. As a teenager, I eagerly dove in to the early 2000s internet universe of Live Journal and Blogger; I kept a halfway regular blog through college. Then a couple years into my working life I started in at Art of Manliness, where I’ve been writing ever since.

Given all those words that have come out of me, you’d think I’d have read some about writing. And you’d be very wrong.

Sure, I always pay attention to writing style and structure in the books I love, but I’ve consumed surprisingly little in the way of actual writing advice. For me (every writer operates differently), the words just sort of flow out and I don’t spend too much time on the construction itself. This is, perhaps, a terrible mistake.

Anyways . . . I figured it was about time to dig in to Lamott’s classic title, which I thoroughly enjoyed taking in at a slow and steady clip of just about a chapter per day.

I’ve read the now-famous bird anecdote numerous times before, and I figured she’d expand on that a bit, given the title of the book. But that’s not the case — that short quote is all there is in the way of avian advice. Just an FYI.

The beginning and the end contained my favorite chapters, in which Anne expressed — in terms that were halfway poetic and halfway funny and irreverent — why the act of writing is so meaningful for those of us who do it. The middle bits, which got a little more detailed into the specifics of writing fiction and publishing your work, didn’t pull me in as much. But the bookends were like balm for this writer’s soul, and reinforced my desire to keep at the craft:

“What your giving can do is to help your readers be braver, be better than they are, be open to the world again.” 

And:

“you figure out that the real payoff is the writing itself, that a day when you have gotten your work done is a good day, that total dedication is the point.” 

Which brought to mind one of my favorite lines from Thoreau:

“As is too common with writers, I got only labor for my pains. However, in this case my pains were their own reward.”

I could keep going for far too long with quotable quotes, but I’ll resist. For the writers out there, Bird by Bird is an essential text.

Rachel Peterson

Honest and idealistic in equal and adequate parts. I learned a lot about the writing process from her perspective, and most of all came out the other end of this book with a clearer idea of why art is worthwhile, which I would argue is really the thesis.

Sara Gaspar Farinha

Este é um livro impossível de descrever, e de resumir, pela miríade de temas que aborda e pelos significados que cada um de nós pode retirar dele.(...)

Ver opinião completa aqui: http://sarinhafarinha.wordpress.com/2...

Nathan Griffin

First 5-star book of the year. Sure, it's written towards people that want to write. But really it's applicable to any endeavor, long or short, you want to undertake. Through honesty and humor, Lamott gives advice that feels like a friend sharing an experience rather than a seasoned writer in a ivory tower handing over privileged wisdom.

Bird by Bird Instructions on Writing and Life

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