I love the subtitle: A history of thinking on paper (my emphasis). I do think there’s much to be said for writing on paper, and there is no paucity of research showing the benefits of analogue over the digital approach.
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Reviews
Review: Oulipo and Modern Thought (Update)
If your interest in the Oulipo goes beyond simply trying out their techniques, and you wish to learn about the context in which it was conceived and the developments in went through, you will find this book very useful.
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Quick looks: Triggered Literature PLUS an extract from my new version of Macbeth
in Bookshelf, Quick looks, Reviews
A very timely publication. The first section is replete with anecdotes about trigger warnings and similar. Some of these are, in my opinion, ill-informed (such as the charges levelled against Jane Austen) while others are ridiculous (like the rewriting of parts of the Noddy books).
Read MoreReview of Fantasy: Realms of Imagination
The shelves in libraries or bookshops labelled Science Fiction and Fantasy interest me only for the former, not the latter. Games like Dungeons and Dragons have never appealed to me, and much as I like maps and strange lands, the works of Tolkien leave me cold.
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Review: The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper
Who would have thought that a material as commonplace as paper could have such a rich history and profound effect on our lives?
Read MoreReview: Once upon a prime
As someone who had little in the way of mathematical prowess at school, I initially opened Prime with some trepidation.
Read MoreReview: Solutions for Writers
Just about every sentence contains a gem of advice. For example, Stein writes…
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The path to St Peter’s Church — photo by Terry Freedman
Second-hand bookshops #1
Two bookshops reviewed! “Although the place gives the impression of haphazardness, what with armchairs and stools all over the place, it is anything but.”
Read MoreReview: How words get good
This title charts what we might call the journey of a book, from the earliest shape of a story, through to cover design and blurb writing
Read MoreReview: A Little History of Music
A broad sweep like this will inevitably overlook some aspects, and the lightness of tone might not appeal to academics – but…
Read MoreReview: The Notebook
I love the subtitle: A history of thinking on paper (my emphasis). I do think there’s much to be said for writing on paper, and there is no paucity of research showing the benefits of analogue over the digital approach.
Read MoreQuick looks: Once Upon A Prime
in Quick looks, Reviews
I recently received this book, and I’m enjoying it very much. It looks at the (usually hidden) existence of maths in literary works.
Read MoreQuick looks: Solutions for Writers
in Quick looks, Reviews
This is packed with useful information. I’m especially looking forward to reading the the sections called How to Show Instead of Tell, and Using the Techniques of Fiction to Enhance Nonfiction.
Read MoreQuick looks: The Notebook
in Quick looks, Reviews
This comes out on 2nd November. It has a very readable style, and interestingly the footnotes are in a different font from, and bigger than, the main text.
Read MoreSentence models for creative writing -- full review
Perhaps I’m judging by my own standards here, but I think a big mistake you could make with this book is to try to ‘get into it’. You can’t, because it hasn’t really been designed to be readable as such. It’s more of a source of reference material and ideas.
Read MoreQuick look: Retroland, by Peter Kemp
in Bookshelf, Quick looks, Reviews
This book arrived recently, and I’m very much enjoying reading it. It’s a kind of guided tour or survey of the types of fiction that have appeared in the last fifty years (mainly).
Read MoreReview: Sentence models for creative writing By Christopher Youles
Most books on creative writing tend to be less technical, at least in appearance, than ‘Sentence models’.
Read MoreReview: The Written World and the Unwritten World: Collected Non-fiction, by Italo Calvino
Some of the essay topics may be a little dated – the failure of the Italian novel being one – but such is the clarity and variety of his work that the actual subject matter starts to feel immaterial.
Read MoreMy 6 word review of Lolita, plus commentary, updated with comments
Why I can’t read Lolita, but am reading Nabokov’s short stories.
Read MoreReview: The Writer's Journey
Where do authors’ ideas come from? Even Stephen King finds that a difficult question to answer. One possible answer might be ‘Everything they see on their travels’, because as Roland Barthes once suggested, writers are never truly on holiday…
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