Review: Some good information to be had
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 6, 2012
A few things attracted me to this as I normally don't read non fiction.First off, it had Scott Nicholson's name on it and I'm a big fan.  Secondly, it was free (and I admit it, I'm cheap like that) and thirdly, it had several other authors I like including JR Konrath and MJ Rose.Write Good or Die is basically a group of short essays and blog posts from various authors and people 'in the business' that range from practical writing tips, even as mundane as comma use, to self promotion and the inner workings of publishing and getting your work out there.Make no mistake.  This is no magic formula in book form.  It won't tell you how to write a best selling novel and be adored by millions of bibliophiles and have hollywood knocking down your door because you're just that good from having read it.  There is some good advice, both on the craft of writing and the business end of writing.Scott says in his afterword to 'take what you can use and discard the rest'.  He's essentially saying that not everything is going to work for everyone but the most important thing you can do as an aspiring writer is to just keep writing as much as you can.  You can use failure as a learning tool and not everyone writes a great book right out of the gate.  In fact, most don't.  I had no idea that JR Konrath spent ten years filing away rejection letters before finally getting a novel published and to date, has over 94 out there.It just goes to show that even the very good ones had to work hard and be frustrated by the creative process before they made a name for themselves.Will reading this make you a better writer?  No.  There's no 'and just add water!' clause here.  But it does give some food for thought and you may discover some good authors you never thought to read before.