The Truth about Writing

by Michael Allen

Here at last is a book which tells writers how to survive and prosper while struggling to make sense of the mad worlds of publishing, theatre, television, and film. Such a book is urgently needed, because writing can seriously damage your health – not to mention your relationships, your bank account, and your career prospects.

The early chapters help you to clarify your ideas about what you hope to achieve as a writer – money, fame, or literary reputation; they also provide a realistic assessment of your chances of achieving those aims.

Subsequent chapters provide a detailed explanation of how the modern publishing industry works, and explain the crucial role of emotion for writers of both fiction and drama.

The latter part of the book offers practical advice on how to find the time and energy to pursue your writing career, and provides help on how to market your work in the digital age.

Michael Allen can draw on fifty years of experience as a writer and publisher. He is the author of numerous novels and short stories (some written under pen-names) which have variously been published in hardback, paperback, and ebook editions in the UK, USA, France and Denmark. He has also had work successfully produced on stage, television, and radio. He is a former director of two publishing companies.

The experts’ views:

‘Thoroughly enjoyed the book – made me laugh in parts. Most of it needed saying, and I say much of it frequently!’ Sheila Nugent, editor of Peninsular

‘Loved the book. It’s going to help a lot of writers to think clearly about their craft and what they expect to accomplish.’ Tim Bete, Director, Erma Bombeck’s Writer’s Workshop

Genres: Writing

195 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author holds a myopic view of books and writing, disdaining anything which isn't lowbrow. This note grinds away persistently underneath the text, constantly irritating. He has staked out his little enclave of interesting books and defends it, never aware that he is confusing anything elevated and challenging with pretentiousness. Somehow if one likes Stephen King or James Patterson this precludes a love of Tolstoy or Vollmann. Or so the author implies. What saves the book (and confuses the reader) is the obvious intelligence of the author and his ability to write well, the stuff of the very books he derides. Despite it all, Michael Allen is an interesting writer. I just wish he saw a little more.

[Elruin Elmsroot · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book amplifies the negative aspect of a writing life.
That's it’s key selling element.
I would say, it’s a moderately good book, even though not all of it’s facts are correct.
The reason for 3 star is: the book was going well till mid-point, then the author lost his pen, he finished all his negative rants, finished telling the core theme of the book.
He has nothing new to say. Thus, he added a lot of filler chapters and dumped them like garbage on the readers.
Hence, this book deserves 3 star, in my perspective.

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most authors who write a book and publish it expect the book to make them an instant success (regardless of whether they go with a publisher or not). A couple years ago, most authors strived for a traditional publisher, and this book gives an excellent inside look into the publishing industry. My research, discussions with traditionally published authors, and meeting agents and publishers support what Michael Allen says in this book. So if you are looking for a deeper look into the publishing industry (like what publishers want, why publishing is not going to always make authors successful, how they handle submissions), this book does a wonderful job of explaining it.

I self-publish, so my leaning is more toward the part of the book that took a look at what writers want, if they'll get it, emotion, finding time and energy to write, selling in the digital world, and the components of success. Again, this is stuff that has played out to be true when I've talked with self-published authors and did my research. Sadly, most authors who go into self-publishing focus way too much on selling a book instead of writing an emotionally satisfying book for those who read it. Self-publishing is seen (by most) as a get-rich-quick scheme. The reality is that it's not that, and it shouldn't be that. Michael Allen gets down to the nitty gritty of what a lot of authors are motivated by (money, fame, and literary acclaim) and why it's not as easy to get these things as they think. I think instead of believing they will be the next million-book-selling sensation, authors would do well to take what Michael Allen says to heart. It's not as easy as they assume, and a real, solid fanbase is best established with one reader at a time, which is done when authors focus on providing an emotionally satisfying read for the reader. I also liked his tips on finding energy and time to write.

This book wasn't only a great resource as a writer, but I thoroughly enjoyed Michael Allen's sense of humor. This book is definitely worth reading if you're an author.

[Quentin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has a couple of 5* reviews already, and I'm going to follow the same line.
For a writer, this is a terrifying book. It tells the truth about the way the publishing business works in a thoroughly concise manner. There are no frills, nothing to soften the blows. Read this as an unpublished or aspiring writer and you may well be tempted to take up something more rewarding instead. As a published writer, albeit an obscure one, I find it encapsulates a great deal of what I already knew or suspected about the shambolic business that is publishing.
It doesn't do any harm that this book is also laugh-out-loud funny.
As both Fat Tony and Homer Simpson commented at various times; 'It's funny because it's true.'
This book is funny, true, and deeply disheartening. You may read it at your peril, but it will at least give you a laugh. On the other hand, I may just have a seriously warped sense of humour.

It's also very much worth checking out Michael Allen's 'Grumpy Old Bookman' blog.