Walter Dean Myers is an author of mostly
of books for children and
young adults. That is the primary
audience for Just Write: Here’s How!
Myers makes no bones about it. Writing is
hard work. Myers, and he believes most
other successful writers, has a process that helps he prepare for, write, and
complete books. A writer needs to love
the process of writing if he hopes to complete books and have them be of good
quality.
Having said that, Just Write is not a highly technical book. Myers’ process if fairly
straightforward. He uses a simple
outline to get started (actually two: one for fiction and
one for nonfiction). He fleshes these out into more detailed
outlines.
Preparation is important to Meyers. Partly this is the hard work of putting
together a good outline and developing an understanding of your main character. He also advocates plenty of research. Writers, especially when they are young,
write about things they haven’t experienced personally, and research will serve
both as a personal education and a source of authenticity for the book.
Don’t skimp on preparation and don’t shy
away for rewriting. Myers considers
rewriting important. He welcomes input
from his editor that will make his books better.
Many examples come from Myers’
experience. He especially draws upon his
unexpectedly pleasant success co-writing Kick
with Ross Workman, a teenager at the time they collaborated. The process of working on Kick and other books provides
illustrations for the points he makes.
He holds up Workman as an example of someone with the attitude, work
ethic, an especially interest in the process of writing that leads to success
as a writer. Workman had the diligence
and humility to learn, deal with feedback, and follow his book through to the
end.
Workman also experienced the kind of
crisis of confidence that Myers thinks is typical. A young writer will need to face this crisis
and find the courage to continue and improve his work.
Myers’ style in this book is informal,
conversational and direct. It is also
personal. He writes about how he came to
be a writer and how it has affected his life.
He writes with a purpose, and that broader purpose to connect to and
help kids has led him to speak to kids in trouble both to understand and to
encourage them. Though written for
youth, it may be a good place to start for budding writers of any age.
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