All right, I've finally finished Writer Mama by Christina Katz. It took me longer than my usual speed-of-light reading pace because I actually tried to do the exercises Katz supplied at the end of each chapter. All right, I fudged on some of them. Having made it though the whole book, though, I can now give it an unequivocal thumbs up as a resource for aspiring mothers-who-are-writers.
If you have studied writing and/or journalism, you can consider much of the content something along the lines of a thorough refresher course. Even with an advanced degree, some of the chapters served as a dash of cold water to get me out of daydream mode and back into writing mode. If you don't happen to have a degree in journalism, the insights will be a godsend in starting your career.
Katz writes in an easy-to-understand manner and is thorough in her advice. My favorite part, though, was the exercises I mentioned above. You can read all the books you want, but none of them will help you establish your career unless you sit down and write. The exercises in Writer Mama urge you to action and provide clear, gradual steps for breaking into freelance journalism.
If I had one beef, it's that she paid little attention to writer toddler mamas who had to move in with their parents because they're flat broke and their doctorate-holding husbands can only find jobs at local grocery stores...but I guess she can't be expected to cover everything!
Writer Mama. Buy it. Read it. Use it.
2 comments:
I love this book. I found your review because Christina Katz tweeted it this morning. Great review.
Thanks for the positive feedback! As you can tell, I love the book as well, and I've become a real fan of Christina Katz through reading it.
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