I started reading Ray Bradbury in the early 1960s. Dan Chaon–no slouch as a writer today–wrote Bradbury in the 1980s, sending him some of his stories. Bradbury offered practical advice and boosted Chaon’s hopes of becoming a writer.
FAHRENHEIT 451 had a big impact on me. So did The Martian Chronicles and DANDELION WINE. In Zen in the Art of Writing, Bradbury takes the reader through his writing process and points out key elements in being creative.
There’s plenty here to ponder and reflect upon. Reading a great writer sharing his writing wisdom is spectacular! GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
INTRODUCTION by Dan Chan — xi
PREFACE –1
THE JOY OF WRITING — 7
RUN FAST, STAND STILL, OR, THE THING AT THE TOP OF THE STAIRS, OR, NEW GHOSTS FROM OLD MINDS — 13
HOW TO KEEP AND FEED A MUSE — 27
DRUNK, AND IN CHARGE OF A BICYCLE — 41
INVESTING DIMES: FAHRENHEIT 451 — 57
JUST THIS SIDE OF BYZANTIUM: DANDELION WINE — 65
THE LONG ROAD TO MARS — 73
ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS– 79
THE SECRET MIND — 89
SHOOTING HAIKU IN A BARREL — 99
ZEN IN THE ART OF WRITING — 109
… ON CREATIVITY — 123
Acknowledgements — 137
Read this one more than 35 years ago and don’t remember a darned thing except that I liked it. I have a hard time remembering things from 35 minutes ago, let alone 35 years.
Jerry, this new edition might be worth rereading. Bradbury shares plenty of stories about how he wrote his wonderful stories and novels.
Thanks for mentioning this one, George. I put it on hold. I like Bradbury too, including his early mystery short stories. As a kid, I liked THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES and SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES.
Jeff, I’m a big fan of DARK CARNIVAL, OCTOBER COUNTRY, R IS FOR ROCKET, AND S IS FOR SPACE.
I tend to think of Bradbury as Sturgeon and water, but there are worse things to be. I certainly went through R, S, and THE OCTOBER COUNTRY before I was 10yo, and my father’s copy of THE ILLUSTRATED MAN (he picked a big armload of SFBC editions at a tag sale) the next year
He picked them up, that is…part of the slow rebuild of his home library after the 1967 Fairbanks/Cheena River flood in Alaska destroyed nearly everything in their/our (3yo me) house.
I like the EC Comics adaptations!
Bob, I have enjoyed the EC Comics adaptations, too!
Typo on Chaon’s name on second reference, btw.