The Lively Art of Writing

This book gets me so excited about writing. What a blessing to all of us who love words and the use of them. Bravo!

Here is what I like most: if you read and use this book, you will become a better writer Ms. Payne' lessons are technically sound, and her instructions are clear. Moreover, she writes examples that show you what she just told you. For example, she states that an essay is an opinion couched in an argument, and she teaches you that the argument need not be offensive; in fact, it can be entertaining. After you've read that, she writes a scintillating description of of a hot rod mechanic. Instead of characterizing him as a grease monkey; she makes him sound like an MIT engineer.Ms. Payne defines the argument as the presentation of opposing points of view. For her, Certs is either a "breath mint", or a "candy mint". It's never "two mints in one"s.She coaches you to define heat by presenting cold, light by talking about dark, love by contrasting it with hate. That's how she gets clarity out of you.Payne can flat out write and she can teach you to write better. I read her book once a year, every year because that makes me a better writer. I'm no John Steinbeck, but I've actually had stuff published because I use what I learn from her. Her LIVELY ART OF WRITING is the best and the most accessible "How To" available. Comparing Payne to Sheridan Baker or Strunk & White is like comparing walnuts to meringue pie.They are hard to crack, but she is easy to take.Lucile Vaughan Payne's THE LIVELY ART OF WRITING is so good that I have given a copy to friends who have children who want to write better. The fact that their kids thank me is proof that Ms. Payne wrote a seminal tome. . .

I heard of this book as a homeschooler. I thought it might be useful for teaching a high school English credit to my oldest (age 15) son. I have decided to use parts of this book rather than use it completely.One of the things that is a bit of a turn off is that it is dated. You can see this in some of the language used and in some of the examples. The fact that it's dated is not a bad thing, but for a fifteen year old son the information is overlooked for this very fact.One of the things that I liked about this book is that it had some very good examples for common mistakes students make when writing. For example, the word very. This author provides a basic example of using the word very and then essentially has you reread the same sentence substituting some better words into the sentence. This is a very concrete way of teaching and it is helpful. I think it will help my son understand what I am saying when I talk about the word Then.... which is another common mistake.Overall, if you are trying to improve your writing prior to taking a class or a test, this would be an excellent review book. If you are trying to educate yourself and you are an adult and willing to be a little bit bored at time, this is a great book with lots of concrete examples that is sure to be helpful.Well worth the money. Enjoy.

There tend to be two levels of achievement in everything we do: the functional level, and the superb level. In school, we are taught the functional level; in life, we admire the superb level. Drivers education will not make you a race car driver, and your english class will not make you a good writer. In this book, however, are the skills and techniques necessary to take your writing and expression beyond the current level. Since I've read the words in that book, the words in my papers have suddenly been lining up for me and saying things in clever ways. The book talks about specific ways, and gives specific examples, of how good writers write. There is no bull in this book. If you read it, apply it, and write a lot - you will improve your writing. It used to take me about eighteen hours to write a single page paper because my mind would go off in so many directions trying to get my idea on paper. It now takes me about twenty minutes, because I am able to think through an entire paper before I write it. It sounds rather fanciful, but in reality it isn't. The book helps select what literary methods to use. It is your caddy. In your bag are many tricks which you use to drive ideas home or push thoughts along. Each trick, like a golf club, is useful in certain situations. The caddy helps you pick them. Most other books give you the clubs but not the caddy. This book is different because it tells you how and when to use them - and it knows. This is not your pimple-faced 12 year old caddy... Oh no, this is the real deal. This is the caddy that will get you off of the torn up local greens and onto your neighbors TV screen... Leave the functional and join the superb. This book will help you get there.

We read this in high school in the 70s. The examples she gives are dated, but the advice on essay structure, shaping the argument inside the essay, ordering one's persuasive points, is timeless. Some of the lessons carry over into speech construction, but with speech one has the ability to make eye contact, gesture, speak with emotion, move about and seize the audience's attention. With speech, one is limited in time, but with the essay, one must do without the advantages of visual presence and accomplish one's persuasion strictly through words -- well-planned, crafted essay paragraphs. And, unlike extemporaneous speech, one can edit, rewrite, revise and perfect one's words.I can't help wondering what Mrs. Payne would have made of our search engine world -- how much easier our high school essay assignments would have been with the cornucopia of sources available at our fingertips today. But the richness of our content is for naught if we do not shape our essays properly and do what we can to craft instruments of persuasion. For facts are useless if one cannot present them in a lively way that convinces the reader that your argument is worth reading to the end.

Best guide for essay writing.Suitable for college and Uni students Small pocket size you can take it everywhere with you to read it.STRONGLY RECOMMEND IT

If you want to improve writing, starting with words, sentences, paragraphs and pages, this is the book you should reach out for. Don't be put off by this humble, mass market paperback with yellow cover - it is a powerhouse of good advice on writing. It takes the advice, "show, don't tell", to a whole new level. Ms. Payne shows you sentence by sentence how to craft good prose. She gives you wonderful examples for everything she discusses. But most importantly, her own writing is a clear example of how she has used her language gracefully. Unlike Strunk and White, which stops at giving rules, she encourages you to put pen to paper and write.Who can use this book?Pretty much everyone who has anything remotely to do with writing, which is all of us.

I bought this for my daughter with a passion for English. She loves it.

A must for writers like me.

THANKS