If you are a writer, this book belongs on your desktop alongside On Writing by Stephen King, The Art of Fiction by John Gardner, and Becoming a Writer by Dorothea Brande. If there is an aspiring writer in your life, this book would be a much-appreciated (and quite possibly, a much-needed) gift.
"Randall Silvis is an author's author. Those who write for a living (or aspire to do so) could hardly do better than to study his significant body of work, which has been critically acclaimed and recognized throughout the world." ~BookReporter
Ten Easy Steps to Becoming a Writer
New release: February 2024Paperback: $16.39
The Art, Craft, Business, and Teaching of Creative WritingEvery year, thousands of aspiring writers are duped by how-to-write books and MFA Creative Writing programs into sacrificing time and money in pursuit of the secret path to bestsellerdom. Ten Easy Steps to Becoming a Writer was written as an antidote to those false promises. Bestselling author Randall Silvis pulls no punches in his assessment of creative writing programs, the American educational system in general, and the publishing industry.
This is not some slim volume of writing tips; this is 350+ pages of insights and advice based on a successful writer's personal experience. In a series of essays chronicling his forty years as a critically acclaimed writer, Silvis explores a wide range of topics, including:
- Why Write
- Ten Easy Steps to Becoming a Writer
- Ten Writer's Rules Begging to be Broken
- A Writer's Life
- Profit and Loss
- When Less is More
- The Writer's Obligation
- Act Like a Professional Writer Now
- Financial Planning for Adjuncts
- A Writer's Education
- Reading, Writing, & Teaching Fiction
- And much more.
“Randall Silvis seems to have an innate understanding of writing that marks him as a true original, and, to my mind, a true visionary. He is this country’s most pitch-perfect stylist, and one of a few writers of his generation who will make a difference.” ~William Allen, founder and director emeritus of the Ohio State University Creative Writing Program
“Randall Silvis is a masterful storyteller.” ~The New York Times Book Review
“Randall Silvis is a masterful storyteller.” ~The New York Times Book Review
Additional works by Randall Silvis:
The Ryan DeMarco Mystery Series
The literary and emotionally propulsive Ryan DeMarco Mystery novels, including Hammett Prize Nominee Two Days Gone, plus Walking the Bones, A Long Way Down, No Woods so Dark as These, and When All Light Fails. "Hard-edged and smartly plotted...DeMarco is an interesting character: not just your typical ex-cop-with-a-past, but rather a vividly realized, robust, and abundantly human character." ~Booklist
The Deepest Black
A crime novel unlike any you've ever read―based on true events. Where does the line blur between fact and fiction? Author Randall Silvis is looking for a story―any story to follow up the books of The Ryan DeMarco Mystery Series that catapulted him to success. But when a stranger tips him off about a series of murders in a small Pennsylvania town, Silvis finds himself embroiled in a world of corruption that shatters his sense of reality. A profoundly thoughtful, unsettling read.
From the Mirror
The first installment of what is to be a four-part autobiography, this book contains more than three hundred brief reflections and observations, none longer than a single typed page, on creative writing, fatherhood, academia, politicians, introversion, the afterlife, solitude, romantic love, and more. A must-read for lovers of life, literature, and the pursuit of happiness.About the Author
Randall Silvis is
the multi-genre author of two dozen books, including critically acclaimed novels, short story collections, and works of creative nonfiction. He is a past winner of the prestigious Drue Heinz Literature Prize, and his work has been published in more than a hundred editions in several languages. Learn more at RandallSilvis.com, and be sure to follow Randall online:
