Take Joy
TAKE JOY: A BOOK FOR WRITERS
The Writer Books
ISBN# 0-87116-194-X softcover
Published for adults.
Republished with 10,000 more words from Writer’s Digest Books
TAKE JOY is filled with 40 years of my insights, rants, jokes, and pleasure in the writing trade. Some of the essays began as speeches, some as articles, some as journal entries, some as moments of inspiration. I hope all of them help writers–old, new, and in-between. Actually, I tried selling the idea of this book about ten years ago to The Writer Press, and at that point what they really wanted was a more how-to approach, an update of my Guide to Writing Books for Children. But I wanted to write this one. Stalemate. Then the new editor came in, and he loved the idea, so TAKE JOY was born.
After selling a quick 5,000 copies (the entire printing), The Writer decided to go out of the book business, so I resold the book to Writer’s Digest, added ten thousand more words along the way, and they republished it, though without noting it was enlarged and updated. I thought it should have been named TAKE JOY TAKE TWO but nobody except me loved that idea. Sigh.
Around the Web:
What reviewers have said:
- “The book is filled with personal anecdotes that progress naturally into advice for prospective writers. Unlike many books “for writers,” which focus narrowly on the details of craft, Take Joy is a text for readers who wish to know more about the process of creation, for fans of this particular author, and, of course, for those who value the advice of an established master of the field for their own work, in terms of craft, and in terms of motivation, experience, and the sheer satisfaction of telling a tale.” — Endicott Studio
- ” In eleven short chapters, she defines the elements of good writing, the roadblocks that every writer will undoubtedly confront along the way to a achieving a good piece of writing, and offers support, encouragement, and wisdom for overcoming these obstacles. . . She writes that she has a sign above her desk that reads, “Value the process, not the product” (p. 168). I think I may make this a motto in my English 110 class. I build a lot of revision into my syllabus and students are always puzzled at the need for three revisions for each paper. If they would only leave my class with Yolen’s motto, I would be content that I did my job as a writing teacher.” –Joy Miller, writing teacher