<i>Spilling Ink: A Young Writer's Handbook</i> (review)
2010; Johns Hopkins University Press; Volume: 63; Issue: 11 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1353/bcc.0.1926
ISSN1558-6766
Autores Tópico(s)Themes in Literature Analysis
ResumoReviewed by: Spilling Ink: A Young Writer's Handbook Karen Coats Mazer, Anne . Spilling Ink: A Young Writer's Handbook; by Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter; illus. by Matt Phelan. Flash Point/Roaring Brook, 2010. 272p. Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-59643-514-8 $17.99 Paper ed. ISBN 978-1-59643-628-2 $9.99 Ad Gr. 5-8. Veteran children's book writers Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter set out to paint a detailed, comprehensive portrait of what a writer's life looks like—from getting started, to staging your stories, to revising, to the more pragmatic details of what makes a writer different from other people. Short segments with bylines are organized into larger chapters arranged by topic and punctuated by Matt Phelan's pencil drawings, and nearly everything involved in the writing process is covered, even though both Mazer and Potter express skepticism about what is taught in schools as the writing process. Unfortunately, their result doesn't match their stated aim, which is to inspire both enthusiastic and reluctant writers; the frequent disconnect between the intellectual content of their chapters and their attempts to be perky and idiosyncratic will be cringingly tolerated by the enthusiastic and possibly disdained as patronizing by the reluctant, if they can be persuaded to persevere through the sometimes dense advice or try out some of the writing "dares," which are ultimately vague and lackluster. What the book does do well, however, is to provide a solid overview of the tools for literary analysis and evaluation. Readers will learn how to analyze the effectiveness of metaphors, narrative voice, setting, plot movement, etc., of the stories they read even if they aren't actually inspired to put pen to paper, which makes the various sections very useful indeed for English and Language Arts curricula. Aspiring writers will find more practical and motivating advice and activities in Gail Carson Levine's Writing Magic: Creating Stories That Fly (BCCB 1/07), but this may still prove informative to budding literary scholars. [End Page 492] Copyright © 2010 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
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