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Quote by Terry Brooks

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Sometimes the Magic Works: Lessons from a Writing Life

This book offers a candid look into the author's experiences and wisdom gained over a lifetime of writing. It explores the challenges and joys of the writing process, providing valuable lessons for aspiring and established writers alike. more

Author

Terry Brooks
Terry Brooks

Terry Brooks is a distinguished American fantasy writer, recognized for his epic fantasy series, The Sword of Shannara. Born on January 8, 1944, he has made a significant impact on the fantasy genre with his imaginative storytelling and richly detailed worlds. more

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“I think my first general rule is that most of my experiences are not that interesting. It's usually other people's experiences. It's not that entirely conscious. Somebody tells me a story or, you know, repeats an anecdote that somebody else told them and I just feel like I have to write it down so I don't forget - that means for me, something made it fiction-worthy. Interesting things never happen to me, so maybe two or three times when they do, I have to use them, so I write them down.”

“Honestly, when you start talking about genres, you're talking as much about the business side of writing as anything else. Certainly there are elements of reader expectation that play into various genres, and those are important, but it also becomes about packaging, placement, audience....In the end, I'm not a fan of labels. I think the best fiction blurs the boundaries between genres, stretches and breaks them.”

“A woman journalist in England asked me why Americans usually wrote about their childhood and a past that happened only in imagination, why they never wrote about the present. This bothered me until I realized why - that a novelist wants to know how it comes out, that he can't be omnipotent writing a book about the present, particularly this one.”