Anne Lamott – Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life (1994)

November 2023 • Non-fiction

I was once told that, if I'd like to write, or write well, it's best not to read any books on writing and just sit down for an hour every day to plow right ahead. Needless to say, I've ignored that advice and read a great number of them; books by writers like John McPhee, Brian Dillon, Vivian Gornick and Annie Dillard, covering a variety of ideas and tools—things to remember, and things to forget.

Writing, or the writing life, has always held a mysterious allure to me, even though my rational side understands that, at the end of the day, it is a job, perhaps more so than an overly romanticised calling—a job that requires a lot of discipline and effort, sustained Monday through Saturday. Though, that's not to say writing can't be an incredibly fulfilling thing to (learn how to) do, and Anne Lamott paints that picture beautifully in Bird by Bird, originally published in 1994 and subtitled “Some Instructions on Writing and Life”.

I've read it twice before and, together with Annie Dillard's The Writing Life, it is my favourite book on writing (though its advice can be applied to any creative pursuit). Lamott taught writing classes at UC Davis and Bird by Bird is her attempt to put those classes in writing, so others could benefit from them, too. The book, then, is her personal account of the writing life. Wittily, and in the most down-to-earth manner, with her infectiously dark sense of humour, she covers (among other things) the need to write shitty first drafts, giving yourself small assignments, how to cope with the jealousy that keeps popping its head around the corner, letting go of perfectionism, listening well to people around you, taking notes to remember things for later, and why writing for the sake of publication is the wrong way to go about it.

The anecdotes and nuggets of advice in this book are wise, useful, fulfilling and—at times—eye-opening. Every time I read this book I experience a certain warmth, and an eagerness to excavate the stories I may have inside of me, waiting to be put to paper, while at the same time feeling giddy with excitement about the many magnificent books out there I've yet to read. Because, as Anne puts it, and I can only agree:

“Writing and reading decrease our sense of isolation. They deepen and widen and expand our sense of life: they feed the soul. When writers make us shake our heads with the exactness of their prose and their truths, and even make us laugh about ourselves or life our buoyancy is restored. We are given a shot at dancing with, or at least clapping along with, the absurdity of life, instead of being squashed by it over and over again.”

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott
Published by Anchor Books in 1994

Buy the book

One book recommendation, once per month.
Book #10 • November 2023