365 QUOTES ON WRITING THAT WILL MAKE YOU A BETTER WRITER is a quotation anthology containing wisdom and much practical advice on the business of writing. Author Jerry Payne structures the book straightforwardly, advocating the one-quote-per-calendar-day structure in order to give the reader opportunities to “reflect” on the meaning of each. Payne adheres to the idea of writing as craft, and evidence of his meticulous approach is everywhere, not least in this insistence on reflection: “Think before you write. Deeply.” To this end, every page ends with a section of blank lines, for the aspiring writer to jot down notes on what the featured quote means to them. (Payne advises e-readers to open a Word document or similar.)
The quotations are drawn from a very wide swath of English literature, ranging from antiquity to the present day. Sylvia Plath rubs shoulders with Cicero; Maya Angelou finds a place alongside Robert Frost. The refreshingly universal take allows for perspectives from various English-speaking cultures, as well as a sprinkling of writers from Spain, Russia, the Francophone sphere, and elsewhere. There is arguably a slight over-representation of writers in the fields of SF/F and speculative fiction, with Douglas Adams and Neil Gaiman getting two entries, and Discworld author Terry Pratchett three, while Ray Bradbury has a total of eight quotations. Mark Twain is mentioned six times. Stephen King is quoted eleven times, and Hemingway gets a whopping twelve entries, which – even given their prolific output – seems to do both of them too much honor, especially when writers like the endlessly quotable Shakespeare, and Dickens, who had so much to say on the issue of good literature, get a single entry each.
One can hardly object too strongly along these lines, however, because there are so many pearls of wisdom here. Generations of writers have expatiated on the issue of writers’ block, good characterization, and the importance of ruthless editing, and it is a worthwhile endeavor for writers to plow through the book discerning such common themes as might exercise them. Payne acknowledges that some themes recur throughout, and in this respect, it might have been useful to include a thematic index. Payne’s own takes on each quote, however, are often less than eye-opening. Attempts at wit tend to fall flat, and T. S. Eliot’s famous quote – “Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go” – is followed by the comment, “You never know until you try, right?”, which is glib and fails to add value, as does the response to Richard Bach’s quote about professional writers being amateurs who didn’t quit. (“That’s it. That’s the difference.”) But as a source of encouragement for faltering authors, the collection offers much diversion.
Jerry Payne’s thoughtfully gathered 365 QUOTES ON WRITING THAT WILL MAKE YOU A BETTER WRITER offers inspiration for the both the struggling and aspirational author.
~Craig Jones for IndieReader