Why Write?: A Master Class on the Art of Writing and Why it Matters

by Mark Edmundson

Overview

From one of America's great professors, author of Why Teach? and Why Read?—an inspiring exploration of the importance of writing well, for creators, educators, students, and anyone who writes.

Why write when it sometimes feels that so few people really read—read as if their lives might be changed by what they're reading? Why write, when the world wants to be informed, not enlightened; to be entertained, not inspired? Writing is backbreaking, mindbreaking, lonely work. So why?

Because writing, as celebrated professor Mark Edmundson explains, is one of the greatest human goods. Real writing can do what critic R. P. Blackmur said it could: add to the stock of available reality. Writing teaches us to think; it can bring our minds to birth. And once we're at home with words, there are few more pleasurable human activities than writing. Because this is something he believes everyone ought to know, Edmundson offers us Why Write?, essential reading—both practical and inspiring—for anyone who yearns to be a writer, anyone who simply needs to know how to get an idea across, and anyone in between—in short, everyone.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781632863058
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	08/30/2016
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	932,984
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Mark Edmundson teaches at the University of Virginia, where he is university professor. A prizewinning scholar, he is also the author of Why Teach?, Why Read?, Teacher, The Death of Sigmund Freud, and The Fine Wisdom and Perfect Teachings of the Kings of Rock and Roll. His writing has appeared in such publications as the New Republic, the New York Times Magazine, the Chronicle of Higher Education, the Nation, the American Scholar, Raritan, and Harper's. He lives in Batesville, Virginia.

Table of Contents

Why Write? ix

Getting Started

To Catch a Dream 3

To Do It Every Day 15

The New Writer

To Have Written 29

To Get the Girl / To Get the Guy 39

To Make Some Money 47

To Get Even 56

To Strengthen the Mind 66

To Grow 76

To Fail 83

To Change the World 91

Hitting Your Stride: Perils and Pleasures / Pleasures and Perils

Perils and Pleasures

To Drink 103

To Get Reviewed 112

To Learn to Be Alone 121

To Read as a Writer 128

To Do Something 137

To Hold Your Peace 146

Pleasures and Perils

To Learn Something 155

To Stay Sane 162

To See What Happens Next 170

To Find Your Medium 179

To Skip Writing the Great American Novel 188

To Find Beauty and Truth 195

The Writer's Wisdom

To Mine a Fresh Experience 205

To Beat the Clock (A Little) 209

To Stop Revising 216

To Remember 224

To Get Better as You Get Older 234

To Draw a Constellation 241

To Have the Last Word 252

Editorial Reviews

05/23/2016
In a book that reads like lectures notes for a meandering college course, Edmundson (Why Teach?), a professor at the University of Virginia, attempts to answer the question of why, in an era of diminishing readership and an increasing number of entertainment options, one might choose to become a writer. Organized around different answers such as “to get even” and “to grow,” the book is filled with anecdotes about canonical writers, along with personal stories from the author’s writing and teaching career. Edmundson is adept at finding quotes and telling tales from the English romantic poets, Greek philosophers, and American transcendentalists, but his examples rarely stray outside Europe and North America. The book has a penchant for broad pronouncements about the literary canon—“Is it possible to be a writer in America and not have dropped all the way into Melville or Dickinson, the prophet Whitman or Emerson”—and the habits of “real writers” and who they may be. Though the prose is easy to read, chatty, and sometimes amusing, the book’s unexamined Western-centric perspective may leave some readers feeling that Edmundson’s message doesn’t apply to them. Agent: Sam Stoloff, Goldin Literary Agency. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

[An] in-depth analysis of the positivity of literary pursuits . . . This informative and entertaining read will delight those interested in the writing process.” —Library Journal

“[WHY WRITE?] is filled with anecdotes about canonical writers, along with personal stories from the author's writing and teaching career. Edmundson is adept at finding quotes and telling tales from the English romantic poets, Greek philosophers, and American transcendentalists.” —Publishers Weekly

“[Edmundson's] especially good on the importance of a writer finding his/her voice and he offers plenty of encouragement. This book is very much a pep talk. The author is an optimistic, enthusiastic cheerleader on the sideline, encouraging us to sit down and try.” —Kirkus

“Why Write? ponders why so many people try their hand at something that can be so time consuming and contain so many pitfalls, and Edmundson offers satisfying answers for readers and writers alike.” —Shelf Awareness

“The latest in Edmundson's continuing noble effort to defend intellectual seriousness against triviality.” —Gerald Graff, author of CLUELESS IN ACADEME

“So much more than a how-to book, Why Write? is Professor Edmundson's lifelong meditation on the meaning of writing and existence.” —David Clemens, Founder and Coordinator, Monterey Peninsula College Great Books Program

“In the guise of a manual or handbook for writers, Mark Edmundson has written an impassioned argument for the writing life.” —Morris Dickstein, author of DANCING IN THE DARK

“A high stakes venture, in which getting it right on the page is a way of bringing yourself back to life.” —Laura Kipnis, author of AGAINST LOVE

“A marvelous handbook on how to write well, with penetrating commentary on good writers from Plato to John Grisham.” —J. Hillis Miller, author of ON LITERATURE

“Edmundson is a genial and inspiring guide to the mysteries and very real practicalities of writing. The tone and fluency of this book are an education.” —Adam Phillips, author of MISSING OUT

“A warm, generous book about how to live—and even, in its wise last chapters, about how to grow old.” —Michael Gorra, author of PORTRAIT OF A NOVEL

“Full of wit, sage advice, and a well-honed passion for the art of writing, which in Edmundson's view looks much like the art of living well. Just the right companion for readers and writers.” —David Mikics, author of SLOW READING IN A HURRIED AGE

From the Publisher

06/01/2016
The wisdom of dedicating one's career to professional writing is often questioned, and Edmundson (English, Univ. of Virginia; Why Read?) intends to dissuade such arguments quickly with his latest work, an in-depth analysis of the positivity of literary pursuits. Chapters contain insightful passages on the art of writing from masters such as Emily Dickinson. This is not a how-to guide but instead a how-to embrace and develop the ability to compose well. A note of caution to the beginning writer: the life of an author has its perils, and Edmundson shares examples of these frequently; even Walt Whitman and John Keats faced criticism from peers, editors, and the media. Thankfully, the reviews are not always negative, and favorable feedback can be rewarding. In closing, Edmundson encourages aspiring writers to find equal satisfaction in discovering their way to words. VERDICT This informative and entertaining read will delight those interested in the writing process from an academic perspective.—Angela Forret, Clive P.L., IA

Library Journal

2016-05-18
Do we really need another book on writing? Maybe. Edmundson (English/Univ. of Virginia; Self and Soul: A Defense of Ideals, 2015, etc.) previously published Why Teach? and Why Read? His latest is as much about reading as writing. He covers some "lightly drawn" autobiographical material and a little how-to (he's especially good on the importance of a writer finding his/her voice), and he offers plenty of encouragement. This book is very much a pep talk. The author is an optimistic, enthusiastic cheerleader on the sideline, encouraging us to sit down and try. Along the way, he enlists as co-cheerers other writers, mostly the older, usual suspects: Shelley, Byron, Austen, Melville, Joyce. But he also manages to recruit Roth and Kerouac and others. Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections "rang the bell," while David Foster Wallace's Infinite Jest "slammed down the hammer." Edmundson warns budding authors: it's lonely, it's hard, and it can be depressing, but it's "one of the best acts a human being can turn his hand to." It brings pleasure and its own rewards, and it can be a "spiritual discipline" like meditation or even prayer. The author tends to get repetitive during the course of the book, repeating some version of the idea that "writing is about writing." Publication isn't the goal; writing is: "writing is thinking; thinking is writing." Try writing a memoir; it's the "genre of our moment." Writers must read (a lot) and be willing to revise (a lot). In this and other areas, Edmundson sounds like Stephen King. Even though his own books have been fairly well-received, he's pretty harsh on book reviewers. Those critics who are wannabe writers will sometimes "clasp your book in their hands, embrace it, and then slap you across the face." This has been done better by others, but it's never a bad thing to encourage reading and writing.

Kirkus Reviews