... the failure to relax a particular tension can lead to madness.

That's probably my favorite line in this short little book about writing. Ray Bradbury put together a few essays about how he writes. He came across kind of nerdy, but hey, he did write The Illustrative Man, one of my favorite science fiction books. I could have done without the poems that ended the book but I read them too. This was my second reading and he said the same thing the second time around... word for word. Funny that. ( )

Ray (I cannot, after reading this, be so unfeeling and impersonal as to call him Bradbury) does not sit you down and spoon-feed you the elements of style. But then, that's what books like "The Elements of Style" are for.

In an age when everyone seems to have a novel in their drawer, and when (as a direct consequence of the drawer situation) everybody who's published maybe half a book once feels qualified to tell you how to and how not to write, it is actually refreshing to bump into a book that does something else altogether: make you want to write.

There is little talk about techniques (although there are a few invaluable practical pointers). What there is a lot of is the passion, exhuberance, childlike joy of a man who tells stories because it is what makes him feel alive, real, sane. Ray calls this "zest, gusto", and he is right in saying that too many writers nowadays are so busy agonising over the right way of saying something and making money in the process that they have forgotten what these words mean - they are doing the best job in the world, and have lost the ability/innocence to enjoy it.

In conclusion. If you're looking to be taken by the hand along the mysterious, mystical avenue where writers "find their ideas", this is not the book for you - nor is any other real book in the real world, so good luck to you. If, on the other hand, you're looking for a friend, a mentor, a teacher whose wise, entertaining, inspiring words will make your fingers itch for a keyboard/typewriter/H.B. pencil/you name it, then get this. ( )

ZEN IN THE ART OF WRITING

Bradbury’s essays on creativity are a series of pep talks for writers. Few of us will have his talent but we all can learn from his insightful advice.

One of Bradbury’s tips: “You will have to write …. a lot of material before you are comfortable… You might as well start now and get the necessary work done.”

He wrote at least a thousand words everyday from the age of twelve. His advice is to write from your passion; write with zest. He kept a list of possible story titles and in time most of these memory prompts turned into published stories.

Zen in the Art of Writing--Essays on Creativity by Ray Bradbury @1989 is a wonderfully inspiring book that aspiring writers need to read, not just once, but often. His enthusiasm leaps off the page and catches you. His practical tips and advice help immediately. Get this book, read it. It’s great. ( )

This book puts the reader in the head of a great writer. Bradbury explains his sources of inspiration and talks about formative events in his life that have led him to become such a prolific and popular writer. He explains how to find, feed and keep one's Muse. Included are glimpses into his personal life, and influences that were acting on him while he penned some of his better-known works. I love the analogy he gives of the capture of a story as a dog who approaches and bites him while he simply describes the process. The dog eventually leaves as the story draws to a close. It's such a visceral image of how his stories present themselves.

This is a curious but very interesting book which came as something of a surprise. Those of you familiar with Ray Bradbury's work will probably know him for his novels and short stories, often with a science fiction theme.
In this book Ray talks of the creative process. The book is actually a collection of essays written over a period of over twenty years. Though he describes creativity directed at the process of writing, the lessons and ideas have a much broader relevance.

Ray reveals some how-to’s including the simple idea of capturing key words to describe ideas in a notebook. He describes how sometimes these key words have lay dormant in his notebook, even for decades, before they have been the spark for a story, almost as if as keys they waited for him to realise the ideas they represented.

For me however the main feature revealed is the immense passion associated with creativity. The book exudes this passion through the use of sometimes exquisite language which captures the essence of a life of creative change.
“I have not so much thought my way through life, as done things and found out what it was and who I was after doing it.”
On later realising why he chose particular names for characters in a story, he writes "What a sly thing my subconscious was to name them thus. And not to tell me,"

On ideas he writes "I'd thought that you could beat, pummel and thrash an idea into existence. Under such treatment, of course any decent idea folds up its paws, turns on its back, fixes its eyes on eternity and dies."

This isn't the usual management fare at all, but I offer it as something to read that captures something of the true magic of creativity. Enjoy the feeling as new neurons are sparked into life by its messages and style of approach. ( )