Write for Your Life - by Anna Quindlen (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Write for Your Life is a guide for those who don't, won't, or think they can't write--what Anna Quindlen calls 'civilians.' Using examples past, present, and future--from Anne Frank to Toni Morrison to members of her own family--Quindlen makes vivid all the ways in which writing connects us, to ourselves and to those we cherish. From love letters written after World War II to journal reflections from nurses and doctors today, and using her personal experiences not just as a writer but as a mother and daughter, Quindlen makes the case that recording our daily lives in an enduring form is more important than ever"--

Book Synopsis

NATIONAL BESTSELLER - In this clarion call to pick up a pen and find yourself from "one of our most astute chroniclers of modern life" (The New York Times Book Review), #1 New York Times bestselling author Anna Quindlen shows us how anyone can write, and why everyone should.

What really matters in life? What truly lasts in our hearts and minds? Where can we find community, history, humanity? In this lyrical new book, the answer is clear: through writing. This is a book for what Quindlen calls "civilians," those who want to use the written word to become more human, more themselves.

Write for Your Life argues that there has never been a more important time to stop and record what we are thinking and feeling. Using examples from past, present, and future--from Anne Frank to Toni Morrison, from love letters written after World War II to journal reflections from nurses and doctors today--Write for Your Life vividly illuminates the ways in which writing connects us to ourselves and to those we cherish. Drawing on her personal experiences not just as a writer but as a mother and daughter, Quindlen makes the case that recording our daily lives in writing is essential.

When we write we not only look, we see; we not only react but reflect. Writing gives you something to hold onto in a changing world. "To write the present," Quindlen says, "is to believe in the future."

Review Quotes

"I have been fortunate enough to experience firsthand Anna Quindlen's generosity of spirit, thoughtfulness, wisdom, and encouragement, writer to writer. It's a wonderful thing, then, to see all of those qualities presented for writers everywhere in Write for Your Life, an invaluable guide to the hows and whys of expression, whether we're aspiring to make art for the world around us or simply to learn more about our own lives. I'm sure that everyone who ever attempts to string a few words, or a lot of words, together to make some sort of sense will find much education and inspiration in this cherishable volume."--Benjamin Dreyer, author of Dreyer's English

"Highly recommended for those looking for a means of coming to terms with their lives and the world around them."--Library Journal (starred review)

"Inspirational . . . The author's journalistic eye for story and detail breathes life into her literary philosophies."--Publishers Weekly

Praise for Anna Quindlen

"[Quindlen] is one of our most astute chroniclers of modern life."--The New York Times Book Review

"Thank goodness for Anna Quindlen. [She] is smart. And compassionate. And witty. And wise."--Detroit Free Press

"Anna Quindlen is America's Resident Sane Person. She has what Joyce called the common touch, the ability to speak to many people about what's on their minds before they have the vaguest idea what's on their minds."--The New York Times

"Classic Quindlen, at times witty, at times wise, and always of her time."--The Miami Herald

"Quindlen is an astonishingly graceful writer."--San Francisco Examiner

About the Author

Anna Quindlen is a novelist and journalist whose work has appeared on fiction, nonfiction, and self-help bestseller lists. She is the author of many novels: Object Lessons, One True Thing, Black and Blue, Blessings, Rise and Shine, Every Last One, Still Life with Bread Crumbs, and Miller's Valley. Her memoir Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake was a #1 New York Times bestseller. Her book A Short Guide to a Happy Life has sold more than a million copies. While a columnist at The New York Times she won the Pulitzer Prize and published two collections, Living Out Loud and Thinking Out Loud. Her Newsweek columns were collected in Loud and Clear.