Hundreds of books are around that tell how to avoid bad writing. Here is one that tells how to create good writing. What a pleasant surprise. The secret of creativity, Natalie Goldberg makes clear, is to subtract rules for writing, not add them. It's a process of "uneducation" rather than education. Most people are baffled at how to teach this, since teaching and "uneducation" appear contradictory. But Natalie's experience in Zen meditation, which is essentially a subtractive process, has provided her insights. Proof that she knows what she's talking about is abundant in her own sentences. They flow with speed and grace and accuracy and simplicity. It looks easy to a reader, but experienced writers know it is the hardest writing of all. It's the simple style of a Zen archer who looks like he's not even aiming, yet sends arrow after arrow to the bull's-eye time after time. -- Robert Pirsig, author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance It would be wonderfully efficient and clever of us writers to have to learn our lessons only once; failing that, a copy of Writing Down the Bones on a table nearby could save a lot of grief. It could even save your life. A fine poet and prose writer, Natalie Goldberg has found a new voice. It is simply the best aid and comfort around today. -- Judith Guest, author of Ordinary People Natalie Goldberg is a writer, poet, and teacher who lives in Taos, New Mexico. She is available to teach workshops using the methods outlined in this book.