How To Write An Autobiographical Novel: Essays

Halfway through this book upon the discovery of yet another gut-punching line of prose, after already half-a-dozen run ins with nuggets of advice I’d want to remember forever and words that made we shudder with thought-provoking excitement, I realized that I should’ve read along with a highlighter and little sticky tabs. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣I’ve never been the kind of reader to graffiti a book with bleeding highlights and colorful tabs littered throughout its pages. And I never understood those who did either. “Great! Let’s ruin something fun by turning it into homework…”⁣⁣⁣⁣But like confetti, celebratory thrown into the air, HOW TO WRITE AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL NOVEL dazzled me—with its honesty, wisdom, and flat out artistry for writing. Each essay something shiny made to celebrate something about the self and about life. But though confetti glitters, it's also sharp around the edges. These essays remind us of that—that while there's a beauty to life and to the self, both can still cut back. ⁣As writer this book felt like a treasure map, and as a person this book felt like a magic mirror from some kind of twisted fairy tale—a mirror I could see myself in but one that could also see me right back.⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣I finished the second half of this book without a highlighter. Instead I ended the book with a folder in my iPhone called “Susan,” filled with snapshots of pages and lines I hope to never forget. Now the only thing left to do is reread the first half of the book and fill Susan with photos of the lines I missed the first time. ⁣⁣⁣⁣

This book is essential reading for writers and those who love books. It is really three books: 1. How to Write, a primer on what makes writing powerful, moving, evocative, urgent, and necessary. The lessons in this portion of the book are some of the most important and well-explained tidbits. In two cases, Chee took old axioms I've heard again and again and showed me the rationale behind them--why the are true--and now I understand them. 2. Autobiographical, an exploration of Chee's life, in which he has borne witness to exceptional moments, who has wrestled with a complicated past and rendered all of those moments so clearly it feels as though we are being told a richly drawn secret. I don't know what it is quite yet, but there is something about the way this book is written that feels both exceptionally public and deeply intimate. Reading it is like going on the best first five dates of your life. Chee is one of our best public intellectuals, made stronger by the fact that I don't think he sees himself as more than a careful observer. 3. Novel, a cohesive story of many moving parts, one that coalesces into a sum greater than those parts. There is Chee, the protagonist, and his first novel, a sometimes antagonist, and in some ways this book of essays evokes Odysseus making his way back home--a long journey with many sidetracks, each of which enriches the story told and deepens our experience.

I bought this book 6 months ago and then felt guilty for not picking it up every time I passed my shelf. So when I pulled this title out of my book jar two weeks ago, I was relieved. And then I started reading it and was even more relieved, because this was absolutely the right time to encounter this book. A beautifully moving collection of essays, Chee's nonfiction debut ranges from the front lines of AIDS activism in 1990s San Francisco to the search for purpose when teaching writing in a post-9/11 New York. Personally, I will treasure the essay on studying under Annie Dillard until the day I die, but pretty much every essay in this book is the best. The final installment, "On Becoming an American Writer," is perhaps the most convincing argument I've read in favor of nurturing creativity in our increasingly entropic world. I cannot recommend this one highly enough. I'll be rereading it many times.

Chee's language and thought are poetic and masterful. This was admirable compilation of essays that give depth to the process of self expression, self exploration and the constructing nuts and bolts of the written word art form. I was put off by its title; assuming it to be an academic instructional experience. It proved to be an edifying journey through this author's life with insights into his evolution as an artist and soul. I really loved this experience.

In Alexander Chee’s HOW TO WRITE AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL NOVEL, he goes deep into his past, his boyhood, life as a student, the years leading up to becoming a writer, and a trauma that he gently reveals as he discovered he was not really past the pain as he had not yet acknowledged the hurt.In the book, Chee’s dedication to his craft, and how using his own stories and sharing his beliefs, enabled him to become a better writer. It is clear how immensely talented he is not only in the way his written words so effortlessly seep into you, but in the way, he pours his heart and soul into this book. It is a gift to his fellow writers as well as to any reader who appreciates how a book comes to life. It is both encouraging and wise. It is the stuff of what makes readers admire authors for the hard work that they do and how we, as readers, fall in love with great books.

Easily the best book I’ve read this year - and I’ve read a lot, as a funemployed grad student waiting for my COVID-delayed job to start who is toying with writing my own novel.I came into this cold, having not read Chee’s other works yet. I was reading the essays as a way to break up reading a 900 page novel but quickly got sucked in and dropped the other book to focus on Chee’s essays- they are beautiful, thought provoking, eye opening, and reminded me exactly why I’ve always wanted to be a writer.Everyone should read this.

A very insightful book, more than a collection of short stories, it reads as a novel going from the early years of AIDS in San Francisco to the “election” that felt like the end of the world. It makes me want to read again his masterpiece “Edinburgh” now that I know how it came to be.

Es un libro con un formato bastante interesante para escribir una autobiografía. La prosa es buena y entretenida. Da ánimos para seguir procurando la obra del autor.

Awesome writing

One of the best essay collections I've read in a long time.Incredibly accurate and moving in its portrayal of childhood trauma. Thoughtful, fresh thoughts about writing and identity.I just finished the collection and know it will be one to return to. I want to start all over again already!

I enjoyed two of these essays more than the others: the one about the garden, and the one about writing an autobiographical novel. They both touched me. Very good writing about how writing can help with one's mental health.