Original essays by today's top prose writers, including John Barth, Rick Moody, Melanie Rae Thon, Brett Lott, Thisbe Nissen and more, show that all writers have a rule of thumb when it comes to writing and offering the unique insights into these writers' personal habits.

"Neophyte scribblers should eat well (broccoli is a recommended brain food), avoid writing dream sequences, establish writing routines, write short chapters whenever possible and, above all else, 'be wary of rules of thumb,' because too many 'can make a chap all thumbs.' These advice snippets come from established writers and are collected in this go-to resource for blocked, procrastinating or otherwise distracted would-be writers in need of a quasi-mentoring. The counsel runs the gamut and can be contradictory-Molly Giles's contribution, for instance, is a list of incongruous 'tips, tricks, tics, and tools' provided to her by her writer pals, and John Barth cautions against adhering to rules of thumb-but the ground covered is wide enough and the means varied enough that most young writers (many of the contributors teach at university writing workshops) will have no trouble finding helpful craft niblets (use 'such' as little as possible; crying is okay, but do not write the word 'tear') or a helpful tic to adopt." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Martone (creating writing, U. of Alabama) and Neville (writing, Butler U. and Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers) asked 73 writers to write very brief essays on composition rules of thumb. In the resulting collection, well-known and little-known authors contribute witty, contradictory, useful and whimsical rules and suggestions that, above all, teach by example.
Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Martone (creating writing, U. of Alabama) and Neville (writing, Butler U. and Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers) asked 73 writers to write very brief essays on composition rules of thumb. In the resulting collection, well-known and little-known authors contribute witty, contradictory, useful and whimsical rules and suggestions that, above all, teach by example. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Seventy-one authors offer a spectrum of helpful and sometimes contradictory advice, making for a rich guide to the craft. 150 two-color illustrations.