Sue Monk Kidd's ninth work, Writing Creativity and Soul, deftly blends practical craft advice and spiritually minded self-help as she traces her development as a writer.
Kidd (The Invention of Wings; The Book of Longings) observes that her books share "a submerged female longing for voice and self-identity." Growing up in the South in the 1950s, she learned girls must be quiet, polite, and conventional. On her 30th birthday, though, the nurse and married mother of two declared she was going to become a writer, despite her high school guidance counselor having told her it was not a career for a woman, only a hobby.
The opening section, "Moorings," recounts moments from Kidd's apprenticeship. She knew from age six that she wanted to write, but her actual career started inauspiciously when a short story she submitted to a regional magazine was returned with a note reading "THIS IS USELESS!" Honing her skills and finding confidence took many years; she offers shortcuts to both. The "Mystery" and "Method" sections consider stories' sources and the nitty-gritty of their construction. Kidd gives pointers for mining characters' motivations and achieving a good pace and sense of place. The final part, "Meaning," reflects on how writing has connected her with family and strangers alike.
The book flows easily, its rapid-fire chapters interspersing writing tips with pilgrimages to the homes of literary role models, examples from her books and others', and inspirational quotations. A trove for Kidd's fans, this accessible toolkit for budding authors is also suited to readers of Elizabeth Gilbert's Big Magic. --Rebecca Foster, freelance reviewer, proofreader, and blogger at Bookish Beck