My Response to Lamott's Bird By Bird

I found Anne Lamott's Bird By Bird, to be a very easy read, as well as a helpful book. Excluding the fact that she mentioned her dead friend Pammy, and her late father enough to make the book a bit of a downer for me, I enjoyed getting first hand insight into the writing process and everything that goes along with it. Overall, there were a few pieces of advice that I know I will try to keep in mind as I write from this point on, which basically revolve around not being afraid to fully express one-self or write terribly in order to improve as a writer.

While discussing plot, Lamott stressed that "plot grows out of character," and not vice versa. For some reason, I always find myself focused on the details of a certain plot idea that formulates out of whatever message I am pondering, without even scratching the surface of the people who will be involved; maybe spending more time on my characters and having a little faith in them will help make for a better end result. She basically describes characters as personified, unconscious manifestations that can be developed through words, which I found to be inspiring since the unconscious can pretty much be a source of limitless innovation if one knows how to properly extract it.

Lamott’s ‘one-inch picture frame’ metaphor also really spoke to me because of my tendency to get overwhelmed with the big-picture. To focus on that one inch frame in order to make it the best it can possibly be in terms of detail and clarity is definitely a piece of advice that I will carry with me. As someone who realizes that my tendency toward perfectionism is my handicap, I am now going to try and focus on each bit of my work rather than obsessing over my writing as a whole.

Finally, although I like and appreciate the fact that she played up the image of neurotic writer to get her points regarding effort, persistence, and self-doubt across, I think she may have taken it too far at certain points. To dedicate an entire chapter to jealousy seems unnecessary; it was at that point that I began to lose interest in the book. I would have liked to hear more about what she felt got her friend, or hated rival, published as opposed to how much she wanted to kill her. However, I understand that she is trying to help her readers comprehend the frustration and anxiety