Nelson, Victoria: On Writer's Block
On Writer's Block: A New Approach to Creativity
Writer: Victoria Nelson
Genre: Writing
Pages: 191
For those of you absolutely tired of seeing all these reviews on procrastination and writer's block, REJOICE!! For this is the last book in my pile of research. And while you're rejoicing, if you're seeking to beat the snot out of whatever source it was that gave me this idea of talking about procrastination and writer's block for my teaching module, look no further, because this book was it.
Rather, not the WHOLE book, but an excerpted section entitled "The Master-Slave Relationship." At my January residency, I took an Advanced Reading Module, but instead of a book, the esteemed Mike Arnzen gave us a selection of essays to read on the writing life, and Nelson's essay hit home. The essay, particularly at that time, was such a perfect portrait of my writer's block that the author might as well have included my picture in the essay.
I wasn't the only one in the class who felt that way, of course, which speaks to the readability of Nelson's exposition. Nelson tackles the topic of writer's block with an objective eye and absolute frankness. Rather than speak in absolutes that can cast judgment on the writer, she examines each and every kind of situation that can spark writer's block and what a writer should or should not do about it. She's very focused on the individual, stressing that it's up to the individual writer to know themselves and make the decision that's best for them, based on listening to their intuition (rather than their ego). She also points out that with rare exception, the all-authority, must-do attitude in regards to the act of creative writing rarely produces good writing, and usually leads to MORE block.
It's really a good book, one I'm glad to have finished my research on. This is a title I think anyone with the desire to write should have in their collection, no matter if they're at the starting line, along the middle, or a consummate professional. This book is helpful without resorting to New Age-ism or sentimentality or psychological mush to explain the topic. Oh, Nelson uses metaphors and some psychological terminology, but after reading The Midnight Disease, this book is like a freaking beach read, which is really, really awesome.
The only BAD thing about this book is that it's no longer in print, which is a bloody shame. To get your hands on it, you're going to have to scour the used books venue. My favorite is abebooks.com (the link takes you to THIS specific book, because--you know--I'm persuasive like that).
My Rating
Must Have: Duh. This was, beyond a doubt, one of the most useful and interesting books out of my research, and if you're a writer, you need this in your library. Period.