Status
Available
Call number
Collections
Publication
Harper Paperbacks (2005), Epub, 304 pages
Description
In writing, style matters. Our favorite writers often entertain, move, and inspire us less by what they say than by how they say it. In The Sound on the Page, acclaimed author, teacher, and critic Ben Yagoda offers practical and incisive help for writers on developing and discovering their own style and voice. This wonderfully rich and readable book features interviews with more than 40 of our most important authors discussing their literary style, including: Dave Barry Harold Bloom Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer Bill Bryson Michael Chabon Andrei Codrescu Junot Díaz Adam Gopnik Jamaica Kincaid Michael Kinsley Elmore Leonard Elizabeth McCracken Susan Orlean Cynthia Ozick Anna Quindlen Jonathan Raban David Thomson Tobias Wolff
User reviews
LibraryThing member bobbieharv
A thoughtful, very well-written book about "style and voice in writing." Writing is "making consciousness manifest."
LibraryThing member subbobmail
I went from one Ben Yagoda book to another...this one is all about literary voice. What is it? Can it be learned? Can it be taught? The answers to all these questions are inconclusive, of course, but Yagoda has a fine time talking shop with a bunch of fine writers and coming to some qualified
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conclusions. (If you had to boil his conclusion down to one sentence, it would be "The style is the man.") This is one of those books writers read when they don't feel like writing. (Not that there's anything WRONG with that...) Show Less
LibraryThing member scottjpearson
Books about writing offer varied advice and often contradict themselves. Should everyone write like Hemingway? Is it ok to diverge from Strunk and White’s style? How can I inject personality into writing without putting off my audience (or my editor)? These are common issues for writers,
He divides his investigation into two parts: history and practice. The historical facet is interesting because it captures how style changes over time. Without a grasp of the past, it’s hard to figure out why we got here and how to move forward. At times, this section can involve a lot of names that I’m frankly unfamiliar with, but Yagoda offers erudite insights about topics like how speech and writing mingle or how modern writing should marry the heart and the head.
The section on practice is filled with transcripts of interviews from great authors. Yagoda himself is not the main driving force here as much as the questioner. The variety of writers this second-half deep and wide. Its meatiest chapter is about forms and genres; in 58 pages, that chapter looks at an interview with one-or-more expert in each writing form – personal essays, stories, poetry, online, etc. – and discusses how that person gained a remarkable style.
This book seems most suited towards writers in an educational degree program, but newer writers on their own can benefit from the self-discipline of reading Yagoda’s words. He concludes by noting that the cultivation of a writing style occurs throughout an entire life. It accompanies the building of inner strength and is most enhanced through reading, not practice. Thus, even experienced writers (and middle-aged fogeys like myself!) can benefit from his studied expertise. My authorship will benefit from the rich tapestry of quotations noted here.
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especially new or aspiring ones, and Ben Yagoda has decided to address them. He has interviewed and compiled results on acclaimed writers from many fields, genres, and styles. He presents his findings and garnered insights in this book.He divides his investigation into two parts: history and practice. The historical facet is interesting because it captures how style changes over time. Without a grasp of the past, it’s hard to figure out why we got here and how to move forward. At times, this section can involve a lot of names that I’m frankly unfamiliar with, but Yagoda offers erudite insights about topics like how speech and writing mingle or how modern writing should marry the heart and the head.
The section on practice is filled with transcripts of interviews from great authors. Yagoda himself is not the main driving force here as much as the questioner. The variety of writers this second-half deep and wide. Its meatiest chapter is about forms and genres; in 58 pages, that chapter looks at an interview with one-or-more expert in each writing form – personal essays, stories, poetry, online, etc. – and discusses how that person gained a remarkable style.
This book seems most suited towards writers in an educational degree program, but newer writers on their own can benefit from the self-discipline of reading Yagoda’s words. He concludes by noting that the cultivation of a writing style occurs throughout an entire life. It accompanies the building of inner strength and is most enhanced through reading, not practice. Thus, even experienced writers (and middle-aged fogeys like myself!) can benefit from his studied expertise. My authorship will benefit from the rich tapestry of quotations noted here.
Show Less
Subjects
Language
Physical description
304 p.; 8.02 inches
ISBN
0060938226 / 9780060938222
Local notes
A historically based inquiry into the allure of literature with a simple premise: "Style matters." He establishes two stylistic poles: the "transparent" prose advocated by Strunk and White's Elements of Style and style as self-expression and the embodiment of a moral viewpoint. Seeking understanding of a "middle style" that combines the best of both, Yagoda spoke with 40 diverse writers about style and voice, and excerpts from his interviews with the likes of Harold Bloom, Toni Morrison, Elmore Leonard, Gish Jen, Dave Barry, Ann Beattie, and Billy Collins enliven his cogent running commentary with revelations of everything from whether writers use pens or computers to how a writer strikes a balance between spoken and written language.