This is quite a cool collection of excerpts taken from letters, stories and interviews in which Hemingway talks about the writing process. Larry W. Phillips did a good job of collecting the material and splitting it into sections and I think it would be of interest to either fans of Hemingway or writers.
Obviously this is just advice and it shouldn’t be read as, ‘if you follow these steps you will become a great writer’ because I don’t think that’s possible for any book to do. I like that it gives an insight into a writer’s way of thinking, and how he approaches his craft. I think the best section was the one about other writers, and how Hemingway talked about looking to beat dead writers. It was quite a telling look into his psyche and how he thought of himself, and how writing was a battle to better those that came before you, and leave a challenge for those that follow.
There’s not much more to say really. It’s a book that does exactly what it says on the cover.
Tagged: book reviews, ernest hemingway on writing, larry w. phillips
