[2U7]⋙ Download Free The Wand in the Word Conversations with Writers of Fantasy Leonard S Marcus Books

The Wand in the Word Conversations with Writers of Fantasy Leonard S Marcus Books

Download As PDF : The Wand in the Word Conversations with Writers of Fantasy Leonard S Marcus Books

The Wand in the Word Conversations with Writers of Fantasy Leonard S Marcus Books

Beautiful book.


Tags : Amazon.com: The Wand in the Word: Conversations with Writers of Fantasy (9780763626259): Leonard S. Marcus: Books,Leonard S. Marcus,The Wand in the Word: Conversations with Writers of Fantasy,Candlewick,0763626252,Biography & Autobiography - Literary,Authors, American - 20th century,Authors, English - 20th century,Children's stories - Authorship,Children's stories, American - History and criticism - Theory, etc,Children's stories, American - History and criticism - Theory, etc.,Children's stories, American;History and criticism;Theory, etc.,Children's stories, English - History and criticism - Theory, etc,Children's stories, English;History and criticism;Theory, etc.,Fantasy fiction - Authorship,Fantasy fiction, American - History and criticism - Theory, etc,Fantasy fiction, American;History and criticism;Theory, etc.,Fantasy fiction, American;History and criticism;Theory, etc.,Fantasy fiction, English - History and criticism - Theory, etc,Authors, American - 20th century,Authors, English - 20th century,Biography,Biography & Autobiography - Literary,Children's BooksYoung Adult Misc. Nonfiction,Children's stories - Authorship,Children's stories, American,Children's stories, American - History and criticism - Theory, etc,Children's stories, American - History and criticism - Theory, etc.,Children's stories, American;History and criticism;Theory, etc.,Children's stories, English,Children's stories, English - History and criticism - Theory, etc,Children's stories, English;History and criticism;Theory, etc.,Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9),Educational: English literature,Fantasy fiction - Authorship,Fantasy fiction, American,Fantasy fiction, American - History and criticism - Theory, etc,Fantasy fiction, American;History and criticism;Theory, etc.,Fantasy fiction, English - History and criticism - Theory, etc,History and criticism,JUVENILE,Juvenile Grades 7-9 Ages 12-14,Juvenile Non-Fiction,Language Arts - Composition & Creative Writing,TEEN'S BIOGRAPHY LITERARY,Theory, etc,United States,Writers, poets & dramatists,YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION,YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION Biography & Autobiography Literary,YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION Language Arts Composition & Creative Writing,YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION Literary Criticism & Collections,anthology;writing;essays;literary criticism;books for 13 year old girls;books for 12 year old girls;tween books for girls ages 11-14;teen books for boys;books for 12 year old boys;creative writing;teen girl gifts;nonfiction books for teens;gifts for book lovers;biographies for teens;biographies for kids age 12-14;books for 14 year old boys;teen books;young adult books;books for teens;teen girl books;ya books;young adult;gifts for teen girls;books for teen girls;literature;teen boy books;library,nonfiction books for teens; nonfiction for teens; biographies for kids age 12-14; writing; creative writing; teen books; young adult books; books for teens; young adult nonfiction; young adult nonfiction books; essays; short stories; anthology; reference; books about books; school; anthologies; books for 12 year old boys; language; literary criticism,Language Arts - Composition & Creative Writing,YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION Biography & Autobiography Literary,YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION Language Arts Composition & Creative Writing,YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION Literary Criticism & Collections,Children's BooksYoung Adult Misc. Nonfiction,Children's stories, American,Children's stories, English,Fantasy fiction, American,History and criticism,Theory, etc,YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION,Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9),Educational: English literature,Writers, poets & dramatists

The Wand in the Word Conversations with Writers of Fantasy Leonard S Marcus Books Reviews

Ever wondered what it takes to be a writer or where writers get their ideas? THE WAND IN THE WORD answers these questions and more.

The book is in question/answer format. Each author is introduced with a brief biography, and each section is closed with a reader - a list of books written by that author. I enjoyed reading each author's responses war stories from Brian Jacques and Garth Nix, rejection tales by Tamora Pierce, Granny Aching character inspiration from Terry Pratchett, and good, solid writing advice from all around.

This is one book that will spread through your home or workplace. I showed the book to my mother to describe something about one of the featured authors, leaving her engrossed in a story by Lloyd Alexander. When I came back in, she was reading a quote to my teenage brother. Three with one blow, I guess, but we all enjoyed catching a glimpse of what makes a fantasy writer.

I'd recommend THE WAND IN THE WORD for anyone who writes or reads fantasy - or who plans on becoming a writer in the future.

Reviewed by Aubrey Hepburn
The Wand in the Word is a wonderful compilation of interviews with some of the major voices in fantasy literature today. Leonard Marcus begins his introduction by telling us that fantasy writers have not enjoyed the spotlight until recently. This is surprising because fantasy has been in existence for a very long time, not the least of which was Alice's Adventures in Wonderland published in 1865. It is only in more recent years that the Fantasy genre has enjoyed greater popularity and acceptance. Marcus has provided a high interest book that will capture the attention of readers with his one on one interviews with Nancy Farmer, Brian Jacques and Diana Wynne Jones to name a few. Marcus himself conducted all of the interviews included in the book, either in person or over the phone. He includes some access features such as a table of contents, index and most importantly a bibliography for each author he interviews. Of special interest are the pictures of the authors and often a picture of a manuscript page from the author with editing marks and corrections. This allows the reader to see into the author's real life and work process.

Marcus begins each section with a short profile of the author he will be interviewing. This is especially helpful because you may not be familiar with the author, their work or details about them. From this he progresses into the interview. Each interview begins with the question, "What kind of child were you?" From this answer he builds upon their experiences to show how it may have influenced their writing, opinions and ideas. He also asks many of the authors if they took advantage of the public library or if they had other readers or writers in their lives. This is an important way to show our younger readers how to be open to new experiences and that reading and writing can go hand in hand. He also uses the questions he asks about how the author works to illustrate that writing is a full time job, not just something that these people play at doing.

The interesting thing about all of the writers included is that they all describe themselves as a type of dreamer. It doesn't matter the type of child that they were, they all dreamed and used these as some means of escape. Good writers can accomplish this feat and all almost without the reader being aware of what has happened until they surface from the book. The authors profiled in this book strive to do just that and based on the popularity of their books, they have succeeded quite well. The Wand in the Word would be a good addition to any library as a resource for author information, to do an author feature or just to illustrate to readers where their favorite books come from.
I was into Leonard S. Marcus before it was cool. Really! Okay, fine. I wasn't. In fact, until I read his collection of the letters of Ursula Nordstrom ("Dear Genius") and heard about his Margaret Wise Brown bio ("Margaret Wise Brown Awakened By the Moon") I didn't know just what a great editor and writer he could be. But now that he's come out with "The Wand In the Word Conversations With Writers of Fantasy", I have a feeling his star is going to rise pretty high. Anyone could write a book with an interview by Jane Yolen. You might even be able to squeeze out some interest if you included a talk with Garth Nix. But a glance at the people included in this book and it begins to get a little silly. Lloyd Alexander? He's still alive? And Nancy Farmer? How did he get her? Susan Cooper!! Omigod I LOVE Susan Cooper! There are only thirteen fantasy writers contained in this volume, but with the notable exception of J.K. Rowling, they are undoubtedly the greatest living fantasy writers working today.

Most of the interviews were done in-person or over the phone. Two were done via e-mail as well. It's a testament to Marcus's skills (and the verbal gymnastics of his subjects) that the casual reader is unable to distinguish between the live and written. In fact, the eloquence of each of these fantasy writers is the most startling similarity they have between one another. The interviews are presented in alphabetical order with Lloyd Alexander first and Jane Yolen last. In between, Marcus includes photographs of each author's early drafts, pictures of them as children, and the occasional shot of what their workspace looks like. Who knew they even made Terry Pratchett figurines? Marcus asks a sets number of questions of each author. What did they read as children? How did World War II affect them? What becomes clear as you read through the book is that the greatest influence this crew ever had was Tolkien. In fact, they have very different opinions on the man. Susan Cooper found his lectures "wonderful" whereas Diana Wynne Jones (who you come to trust in this matter) found them "absolutely appalling". Philip Pullman even had dinner with him, though again the great man does not come across as particularly appealing. Each author mentions what they advise up and coming writers, who their inspirations have been, and what their lives were like. All in all, it makes for a truly stunning series of interviews.

Being the twisted soul that I am, I was most interested in the authors that were prone to saying particularly odd things. If I got to sit down and have dinner with four fantasy authors based solely on their interviews, I think my choices would have to be Nancy Farmer, Diana Wynne Jones, Brian Jacques (a surprise for me), and Terry Pratchett. Perhaps Philip Pullman too, but we'd have to keep the conversation well away from touching on C.S. Lewis. After a while you do feel like quizzing your other fantasy loving friends. "Did you know that Nancy Farmer worked in the lab of a mad scientist, "felt like a fruit fly pimp", and was a holy terror in school? Did you know that "A Wrinkle In Time" was turned down twenty-six times by different publishers? Or that Tamora Pierce has "twenty-two baby name books, plus three URLs for baby name databases, plus a CD-ROM"? It's all true. It's all here.

I suspect that some well-meaning kids will complain about the people not included in this book. Where's Cornelia Funke? Or Christopher Paolini? I, personally, was very very happy at these exclusions. Obviously I would have liked Rowling to have been included but what could she say that she hasn't already mentioned in the roughly five billions interviews she's done worldwide? Less explicable is the fact that Anne McCaffrey isn't mentioned. A quick check of a "Dead Or Alive" website confirms her status of "Alive", so what gives? And what about Robin McKinley? That said, the list Marcus has already come up with is pretty close to perfect. You could argue that Billingsley hasn't done enough to gain a spot with this crew (and Yolen, perhaps, too much) but that's neither here nor there.

Sometimes when I finish a particularly good book (for example, "Fly By Night" by Frances Hardinge), I feel depressed. Like so many other people out there, I'd like to be a writer but I get intimidated by really really good authors already in existence. "The Wand In the Word" had the opposite effect on me. These are the best authors of their field and their advice and enthusiasm is easy to catch. I dare say budding fantasy novelists everywhere will be able to take a page out of Marcus's newest book and create their own entirely new little worlds. It's a wonderful collection and a necessary purchase for anyone who considers themselves a serious fantasy fan.
Beautiful book.