Dear Writer

How I wish I'd had access to this book when I was first starting out as a writer! Maggie Smith has created an offering here of great substance and generosity - walking writers of all levels through the sometimes wild and terrifying landscape of literary endeavour -- ELIZABETH GILBERT
Every so often, a book comes along that fundamentally changes how we think about art, and the lives and work of writers and artists both seasoned and new. Dear Writer is this book, and anyone who strives to put pen to paper will be profoundly changed by it and by Maggie Smith's creative clarity, generosity and heart. This is a book that is meant to be savoured, and read again and again. I absolutely loved it -- ELISSA ALTMAN
Revelatory . . . [Smith] has much to teach all writers . . . Tips for every writing eventuality, from revising drafts to silencing the inner critic * * TLS * *
This guide on craft is an open, thoughtful gold mine of advice for writers and nonwriters alike. Filled with breakdowns of Smith's own poems, as well as exercises and suggested outside reading, these pages invite you to reference their knowledge over and over, for a lifetime -- CHRISTINA CALA
Praise for Maggie Smith: 'As beautiful and lyrical as they come * * Red * *
I am in awe of Maggie Smith for what she is willing to show us. Yes, the writing is keen and gorgeous, and yes, she tells us a hundred truths in every chapter, but most of all she allows us to witness a self-crumbling, scattering and renewing -- KATHERINE MAY
To read Maggie Smith is to embrace the achingly precious beauty of the present moment * * TIME * *
Maggie Smith is that rare poet who can inspire you, break your heart and make you stop astonished at the planet around you - all in the same poem, often in the same moment -- ILYA KAMINSKY