Reading about Writing
Reading about Writing
This chapter explains some of the influences on authorship and reading discoveries behind Ray Bradbury's remarkable rise from raw and undisciplined talent to literary prominence. Once Bradbury realized that he could write with conviction and power from his own hopes, fears, and experiences, he was able to develop his own style instead of imitating the hallmarks of other writers. He discovered new, more mature influences and use them in honing his writing skills. Bradbury came to these discoveries through three interrelated processes: his professional reading in the nature of authorship, his ever-widening range of literary reading, and the constructive criticism offered by other writers. This chapter discusses Bradbury's professional readings between 1938 and 1944, including W. Somerset Maugham's The Summing Up, Dorothea Brande's Becoming a Writer, Lajos Egri's How to Write a Play, and Maren Elwood's Characters Make Your Story; the last three books provided the insights by which Bradbury worked out his own maturing dynamics as a writer.
Keywords: authorship, reading, Ray Bradbury, writers, W. Somerset Maugham, The Summing Up, Dorothea Brande, Lajos Egri, Maren Elwood, writing
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