What started off as a means of improved online presence has culminated into a nifty compilation of advice for aspiring young writers by distinguished writer and lecturer Colum McCann.
Dissecting the emotional smarts of writers, McCann dispenses post-it notes of wisdom.
Some of these pearls include: “Be subversive of ease. Read aloud. Risk yourself. Do not be afraid of sentiment even when others call it sentimentality. Be ready to get ripped to pieces: it happens. Permit yourself anger. Fail. Take pause. Accept the rejections. Be vivified by collapse. Practice resuscitation. Have wonder…Do not allow your heart to harden. Face it, the cynics have better one-liners than we do. Take heart: they can never finish their stories. Enjoy difficulty. Embrace mystery. Find the universal in the local…Reveal a truth that isn’t yet there. At the same time, entertain”
Letters to a Young Writer, Bloomsbury, €14.99
