Write Away
One Novelist's Approach to Fiction and the Writing Life

7/4/17 ... I posted my comments to my author blog ... [URL not allowed] ... and marked the book to re-read again ... there is always something important to remember, or a new perspective to learn 6/23/17 ... reading again ... bringing back to mind the wonderful advice Elizabeth offe......more

I love reading Elizabeth George's novels. They are, as she calls them, literary mysteries. And they are masterfully plotted. But also contain a lot of scene-setting verbiage that I regularly skip. These passages often seem to take me away from, rather than closer to, the dramatic tension of the curr......more

A Beginner’s How-To on Writing George, Elizabeth. (2004) Write Away. New York: Harper Collins. There are a lot of how-to books on writing out there. If you haven’t read any, this one is a reasonable place to start. It’s easy to read, encouraging in tone, covers most of the basics, and has plenty of ex......more

I wrote copious notes from this book for use in my own writing development. Halfway through, I rushed out and bought one of Elizabeth George's novels ('Careless in Red' published after this novel) because I wanted to read it in parallel, in order to experience her craft in action. For she definitely......more

I find hope and encouragement in Elizabeth George's assertion that writing can be taught. For me, this means that writing is something I can learn, and can continue to improve as long as I put work into it. Elizabeth George's philosophy states that a writer will be published if they possess three qu......more