World Famous Comics: The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life
The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life
By: Julia Cameron Publisher: Tarcher Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Tarcher Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 236 Publication Date: December 27, 1998 Release Date: December 27, 1999
Product Description: Now in paperback, the national bestseller that is breaking down the mythology behind the "writing life."
What if everything we have been taught about learning to write was wrong? In The Right to Write, Julia Cameron's most revolutionary book, the author asserts that conventional writing wisdom would have you believe in a false doctrine that stifles creativity.
With the techniques and anecdotes in The Right to Write, readers learn to make writing a natural, intensely personal part of life. Cameron's instruction and examples include the details of the writing processes she uses to create her own bestselling books. She makes writing a playful and realistic as well as a reflective event. Anyone jumping into the writing life for the first time and those already living it will discover the art of writing is never the same after reading The Right to Write.
Amazon.com Review: Writing, for Julia Cameron, is neither solely vocation nor avocation: it is a way of life. It comes first thing in the morning, while the horses are waiting to be fed; it happens at the kitchen counter, while the onions are sautéing; it takes place on "dates" at café tables shared with likeminded friends; it unfurls in the mind as the '65 pickup "bucks over the rutted dirt roads like a stiff-legged bronco." The more than 40 brief personal essays that make up The Right to Write are an unyielding affirmation of the writing life and a denigration of all that gets in the way: busy schedules, procrastination, insecurity, lack of writing space, a day job--you get the point. Cameron's commonsense advice is liberating to anyone who has felt hampered by making a big deal out of writing (this "tends to make writing difficult. Keeping writing casual tends to keep it possible"), by not having the time to write ("Get aggressive. Steal time"), or the like. If you find a spirit that compares writing to revelation, prayer, and Zen pursuits, that might just attribute misguided communication to Mercury retrograde simpatico, then you will find much to embrace here. And you will never, never again dream of waiting for that commitment-free sabbatical in the south of France to get your writing project under way. --Jane Steinberg
On my yearly reading list There are only a few books that I buy anymore because of personal budget cuts and moving close to a GREAT library. I finally decided to buy this book because every time I went to the library I would check and see if it was on the shelves (and check the book out if it was). This little book has done more to free up the writer in me than anything I ever could have done on my own. I feel like this book has helped me to unlearn a lot of those cold, sterile writing techniques I learned back in high school. Now I am writing with a personality!
Very pragmatic, common sense tips Julia Cameron's book is a valuable tool for anyone interested in exploring their creative potential. Her philosophies reach well past writing into expanding the real and imagined boundaries of life's routines.
"Each day, each life, is a series of choices, and as we use the lens of writing to view our lives, we see our choices." (Julia Cameron "The Right to Write")
"The Right to Write" is briskly organized, with plenty of practical exercises designed to get thwarted creatives (Julia would argue that would include EVERYONE at some point sometime) to demystify writing, and the hyperbolic, foreboding mythology surrounding a writing life.
I was fortunate to attend one of Ms. Cameron's workshops in New York City. Her sincere desire to help writers "metabolize" experience into words on the page exemplifies her own hard-won "learned faith." Thank you Julia.
The Need to Write Julia Cameron believes that everyone is a writer. Her purpose in writing this book, therefore, is to free the writer she believes is in you. I disagree with her assumption. We are not all writers any more than we are all dentists or mathematicians. As a writer and a psychologist myself, this is an important distinction to make because this book eminently describes many of the facets of the writer's personality.
In my experience there are people who think they would like to be writers, but always have some reason why they are not; and there are others who write because they need to do it for themselves. There is something inside of them that they have to get out, and it is best expressed through writing. I believe that this is why several reviewers have felt that this book could not help them. They weren't really writers at all.
If you have the personality of a writer, then this book will tell you a great deal about yourself - your feelings, your struggles, and your thoughts. It will explain the artistic temperament to you and help you to understand your own behaviors and fears. But, if you are not an artist in general, and a writer in particular, then this book is probably not for you.
Offers some great kick-in-the-pants tips I haven't been able to get into Julia's other books. I often feel very uncreative when I try to work through them. But I like this book as it seems to be telling me just what I need to hear right now. The chapter on Bad Writing and The Time Lie were especially helpful in getting me going. I like that the chapters are short and when I'm done I feel like writing. I don't do the activities in the book and instead go straight to the projects I'm working on.
Another good resource with similar tips and inspiration is Heather Seller's books Page by Page and Chapter by Chapter.
Indulge yourself Julia Cameron's work is always engaging and this book is no exception. `The Right to Write' is written with beauty and eloquence and would make the perfect companion for any would be writer who struggles with making a start or trusting in their own abilities to bring their work to completion.
With many years as a published writer, Julia's experience and candour gives the reader insights into her own writing life that are inspiring and profound. She takes the budding writer by the hand, and through carefully selected exercises, guides her to overcome resistance and start producing results. Julia turns the experience into something to be cherished, not feared, and the results can be extremely gratifying. If you are in love with the idea of writing and desire to deepen your relationship even more, then this book is for you. Indulge yourself!
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