You try to sit down at the same time every day… you turn on your computer and bring up the right file, and then you stare at it for an hour or so.” Distractions come: interior voices, external interruptions, neck-pain. ‘How do you actually do it?’ You sit down, I say. Here Lamott offers three simple but extremely important suggestions.įirst: find consistency. The most directly relevant material shows up in the first three chapters. However, since you’re busy and may not have time to read the whole book, this post will synthesize some highlights. Do I even need to say that this is also relevant for grad students?
Frequently her insights about writing spill over into wry and sometimes painful (but still funny) observations about what it’s like to be human, and how bad we are at it, and how we might come to grips with that reality and learn to accept the kind of person we actually are. Note the subtitle: she’s also offering instructions on life.(And if you’re secretly writing a novel, or maybe a memoir or movie script, there’s a goldmine of good advice here for you.) Some of that wisdom is helpful for grad student types, as well. It’s her writing workshop between paperback covers. She tells us that this book includes everything she knows about writing.Lamott is a really good writer, and Bird by Bird is enjoyable to read.So why should you, a busy grad student, consider reading her book-or at least a blog post about it? Four reasons: She has taught a lot of writing workshops, but mostly she assumes that her readers are writing stories.
Review of Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne LamottĪnne Lamott is not an academic, nor is her book intended for an academic audience.
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