Beginning with 鈥淭he Writer鈥檚 Wonderland鈥擮r: A Warning鈥 and ending with 鈥You鈥檝e Published a Book鈥擭ow What?鈥 The Creative Writer鈥檚 Survival Guide is a must-read for creative-writing students and teachers, conference participants, and aspiring writers of every stamp. Directed primarily at fiction writers but suitable for writers of all genres, John McNally鈥檚 guide is a comprehensive, take-no-prisoners blunt, highly idiosyncratic, and delightfully subjective take on the writing life.
McNally has earned the right to dispense advice on this subject. He has published three novels, two collections of short fiction, and hundreds of individual stories and essays. He has edited six anthologies and worked with editors at university presses, commercial houses, and small presses. He has earned three degrees, including an MFA from the 海角乱伦社区Writers鈥 Workshop, and taught writing to thousands of students at nine different universities. But he has also received far more rejections than acceptances, has endured years of underpaid adjunct work, and is presently hard at work on a novel for which he has no guarantee of publication. In other words, he鈥檚 been at the writing game long enough to rack up plenty of the highs and lows that translate into an invaluable guide.
McNally wrestles with writing degrees and graduate programs, the nuts and bolts of agents and query letters and critics, book signings and other ways to promote your book, alcohol and other home remedies, and jobs for writers from adjunct to tenure-track. Chapters such as 鈥淲hat Have You Ever Done That鈥檚 Worth Writing About?鈥 鈥淐an Writing Be Taught?鈥 鈥淩ejection: Putting It in Perspective,鈥 鈥淲riting as a Competitive Sport,鈥 鈥淪even Types of MLA Interview Committees,鈥 鈥淢oney and the Writer,鈥 and the all-important 鈥淭alking about Writing vs. Writing鈥 cover a vast range of writerly topics from learning your craft to making a living at it. McNally acts as the writer鈥檚 friendly drill sergeant, relentlessly honest but bracingly cheerful as he issues his curmudgeonly marching orders. Alternately cranky and philosophical, full of to-the-point anecdotes and honest advice instead of wonkish facts and figures, The Creative Writer鈥檚 Survival Guide is a droll, truthful, and immensely helpful map to being a writer in today鈥檚 complex world.
鈥淚 write this blurb in distress because for years I鈥檝e been stealing John McNally鈥檚 sharp insights into writing and publishing and passing them off as my own. Now this generous so-and-so is sharing his vast experience as a writer and editor with everyone. Worse yet, this book, despite its instructional value, is irresistibly, un-put-downably readable.鈥濃擳imothy Schaffert, author, Devils in the Sugar Shop
鈥淭his has got to be the most comprehensive nuts-and-bolts how-to that has ever been written about writing. McNally has answered every one鈥攅very one!鈥攐f the questions that always come up in a Q&A session when the writer鈥檚 impulse is to talk about Art and the audience wants to know: how do I get to be you? I look forward to having this book in hand. It鈥檚 a fine addition to the ever-growing literature of creative writing, and it covers everything.鈥濃擩anet Burroway, author, Imaginative Writing: The Elements of Craft and Bridge of Sand
