Sometimes the Magic Works: Lessons from a Writing Life

Upon finishing the Elfstones of Shannara I was reduced to tears. Who would have guessed that the same would happen with this career-autobiography of Terry Brooks. The man loves what he does and it shows in everything he writes. If there is a story in you, and you read this book, you will find yourself racing to the computer afterwards to bring it to life.

Shame on me, I know...I've never read a Brooks novel. As a writer, though, I was interested to read his insights on the writing life. The book looked readable. Helpful. Witty.I wasn't disappointed. In fact, I read the entire thing in one evening. From peeks into the labor of the editing process to the debacle of writing the novelization of a movie, Brooks is honest and informative. He gives glimpses into his own beginnings... Read Full Review

Like Stephen King's book `On Writing,' `Sometimes the Magic Works' is part autobiography and part writing advice. Brooks addresses the general and the specific, teaching writers how to avoid some of the biggest blunders while growing and developing into a writer of more depth. Brooks had a very interesting beginning. He was a lawyer for several years, yet when he decided to write, he wasn't interested in becoming a legal... Read Full Review

SOMETIMES THE MAGIC WORKS is Terry Brooks's personal tribute to the writing life. I have had no prior interest in the fantasy genre, but I am now a Brooks fan and will comb the stacks for his bestselling titles. His love for the writing craft glimmers like a diamond throughout the book.In the early chapters, he pictures the writer as observer, at times detached from the reality of mundane experience. He surmises that an author... Read Full Review

Terry Brooks is the author of the Shannara fantasy series. The series began in 1977 when The Sword of Shannara was published, the early books have been compared often with Tolkien. Sometimes the comparison was favorable, sometimes not. Brooks himself said that he wanted to tell an adventure story like Tolkien, but he had no intention of going into the linguistic detail that Tolkien is known for. The Shannara series has been... Read Full Review