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A review by briannadasilva
From Where You Dream: The Process of Writing Fiction by Robert Olen Butler
slow-paced
2.75
I was really underwhelmed by this book, but it's probably a case of mismatch. It wasn't for me. There are several reasons for this.
Firstly, the book is highly intended for literary writers. I am not one. I am a genre writer. In the eternal battle between literary writers and genre writers, books like this highlight the tension and differences between us. The author here acts somewhat condescendingly towards the kinds of fiction I care about. On the other hand, someone like myself – an author of fantasy, sci-fi, and horror – finds his kind of fiction largely pretentious and uninteresting. *shrug* To each their own.
Given I am not the target audience, much of his advice didn't land because it literally doesn't apply to the kinds of books I write. And the things that did apply just felt obvious to me, while he portrays them as profound. For example, he spends a long time emphasizing that the hero in a story must have some sort of "desire." And I'm sitting here like, yes???? Is that not a basic storytelling principle???
And of course the main lesson of the book is that your fiction should come from that "white-hot center," the place of feelings and intuition, rather than your rational mind. I couldn't possibly disagree more, at least when it comes to the kinds of stories I write, a.k.a. the kinds that actually sell, something he admits by his own words: Genre/entertainment books sell, while literary/artistic works largely do not.
The white-hot center, as he describes it, is definitely very important for inspiration and discovery. You need to be connected with your intuition in order to come up with ideas that resonate on a deeper level. That I definitely agree with. But it's absurd to me that this must be in contradiction with using your rational mind. You can use both, and if you're writing stories with the intent of making it a career, you absolutely must use both.
Storytelling can be – and in my mind should be – both art and craft. Art requires that white-hot center of feelings and intuition. Craft requires the intellect and craft. These need not contradict each other.
The other thing about the book that causes me to remove stars is that you really only have to read the first third of it or so. The rest is just transcripts from his classrooms where he shares exercises from his students applying his lessons. Perhaps one or two of these examples would help to illustrate his points, but overall this section of the book is just not necessary and should have been removed, or at least significantly edited down.
Firstly, the book is highly intended for literary writers. I am not one. I am a genre writer. In the eternal battle between literary writers and genre writers, books like this highlight the tension and differences between us. The author here acts somewhat condescendingly towards the kinds of fiction I care about. On the other hand, someone like myself – an author of fantasy, sci-fi, and horror – finds his kind of fiction largely pretentious and uninteresting. *shrug* To each their own.
Given I am not the target audience, much of his advice didn't land because it literally doesn't apply to the kinds of books I write. And the things that did apply just felt obvious to me, while he portrays them as profound. For example, he spends a long time emphasizing that the hero in a story must have some sort of "desire." And I'm sitting here like, yes???? Is that not a basic storytelling principle???
And of course the main lesson of the book is that your fiction should come from that "white-hot center," the place of feelings and intuition, rather than your rational mind. I couldn't possibly disagree more, at least when it comes to the kinds of stories I write, a.k.a. the kinds that actually sell, something he admits by his own words: Genre/entertainment books sell, while literary/artistic works largely do not.
The white-hot center, as he describes it, is definitely very important for inspiration and discovery. You need to be connected with your intuition in order to come up with ideas that resonate on a deeper level. That I definitely agree with. But it's absurd to me that this must be in contradiction with using your rational mind. You can use both, and if you're writing stories with the intent of making it a career, you absolutely must use both.
Storytelling can be – and in my mind should be – both art and craft. Art requires that white-hot center of feelings and intuition. Craft requires the intellect and craft. These need not contradict each other.
The other thing about the book that causes me to remove stars is that you really only have to read the first third of it or so. The rest is just transcripts from his classrooms where he shares exercises from his students applying his lessons. Perhaps one or two of these examples would help to illustrate his points, but overall this section of the book is just not necessary and should have been removed, or at least significantly edited down.