Book: How to Become a Famous Writer Before You’re Dead by Ariel Gore
How to Become a Famous Writer Before You’re Dead: Your Words in Print and Your Name in Lights
by Ariel Gore
Don’t let the long and kind of unorthodox title scare you off; this book is a great resource for aspiring writers. I purchased it probably two years ago and instead of reading it, I just let it sit on my bookshelf where it mocked me day after day. I’m not sure if any of you do that, buy books you really want to read and then never read them, but I wanted this book to change my life. Though I don’t care so much about being a famous writer, I want to be a good writer – the kind that says the sort of things that people relate to and genuinely enjoy reading. So, I had a lot riding on the pages of Ms. Gore’s book and I just never seemed to be ready to take the plunge into the depth of her words.
As time went on, I decided to give it a go. I’d been writing a bit more and was open to doing the work I had to do to make my dream of being a real writer come true. I’m glad I did because there are some really helpful tools inside the covers of this book. Not everything is helpful; she talks a lot about creating a zine as a way to get experience writing and publishing. It’s not a terrible idea, I just don’t know how relevant it is these days. I will admit though, I love indie zines and would probably have one of my own if I had the time.
What was helpful:
1. She interviewed a number of writers about their perspectives on writing, their experiences and their advice to aspiring writers. These interviews alone are worth reading the book. Not to mention that each interview ends with a prompt from the respective authors and they are a great tool for getting started.
2. The invaluable lesson that getting older is actually an asset to your writing life. The older we are, the more we’ve seen and the better able we are to convey that in our writing. What a beautiful thing to hear! It was truly a gift to learn that it is never too late to decide writing will become your life.
3. For those of you who are at the stage in your writing career where you are ready to pimp out your work, this book is a great resource for info on publishing, acquiring an agent, and self-printing/publishing.
I’m pleased that I finally took the plunge and read this book. I know I’ll be referring back to it as I make my way towards a writer’s life. If you’ve read it, I’d love to hear your take on it. If you haven’t read it and decide to, I’d love to hear your thoughts, too!
What was your most poignant take-away from this book?
What could you have done without?
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I’m pinning a lot of my hopes on #2. We have so much more experience now, right? And we’ve spent so much more time practicing!
That was the part of the book that resonated with me most. Some days I still feel like I don’t have near enough experience to be interesting or compelling. So, it’s nice to know that time makes that better. Hopefully.