Rating: 
Summary: Only for fans of Brooks- not for writers
Review: This book is probably worth a quarter of its retail price, for all it teaches about creative writing. There are no examples of an outline, for instance, as seen in The Novel Writer's Toolkit. If you are a fan of Terry Brooks, you will probably like it; he seems to gush more about life and how gosh-darn happy he is to be a writer than offer anything of substance about the craft or the business. I bought his 'Running with the Demon' to see how his main contention- outlining is the most important part of writing- shapes up, and he gently lost me after 300 pages with that novel. I didn't puke blood and seethe in rage, the book wasn't that bad- there was just little in it to draw me. His contention seems misguided, though evidently millions of readers disagree. If you want cotton-candy fantasy that does nothing particularly innovating or dangerous, then Brooks is your man and outlining is your plan.
Not for me though- his how-to and Running the demon were both time wasters.
Rating: 
Summary: Lessons Learned From a Lifetime of Writing
Review: Best-selling author Terry Brooks has written an excellent book that gives the reader a glimpse into his life as well as valuable information for aspiring authors. Brooks, the author of twenty New York Times best-sellers, provides readers with valuable tips for coming up with ideas for their book (described in his chapter about daydreaming), outlining, character development, publishing, and many other tips designed to help the new author.I also enjoyed Brooks' description of his own struggles to get his first book, the legendary Sword of Shanara published. Brooks was born and raised in Sterling, IL, which is a town located only ten miles from where I live. One person, Lester Del Rey, believed in Brooks' work and offered to publish it. The rest, as they say, is history. Thanks to Lester's faith, Terry has become one of the top-selling fantasy fiction authors. The personal insights into Terry''s life provide the reader with a picture of how Terry has become the author he has today. The chapters dealing with Terry's grandson reveal how a child's imagination can be used as a basis for writing. Also, Terry's poor experience with the adaptation of the movie Hook and the subsequent success with the adaptation of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace show that by learning from past mistakes and applying the lessons learned, success can be achieved in a later similar project. I've read all of Terry Brooks' books and will continue to do so with great enthusiasm. I highly recommend this fine book. Aspiring authors will surely benefit from Terry's teachings, while fantasy fiction fans will enjoy getting a glimpse into what makes Terry's ideas come to life.
Rating:
Summary: Lessons Learned From a Lifetime of Writing
Review: Best-selling author Terry Brooks has written an excellent book that gives the reader a glimpse into his life as well as valuable information for aspiring authors. Brooks, the author of twenty New York Times best-sellers, provides readers with valuable tips for coming up with ideas for their book (described in his chapter about daydreaming), outlining, character development, publishing, and many other tips designed to help the new author. I also enjoyed Brooks' description of his own struggles to get his first book, the legendary Sword of Shanara published. Brooks was born and raised in Sterling, IL, which is a town located only ten miles from where I live. One person, Lester Del Rey, believed in Brooks' work and offered to publish it. The rest, as they say, is history. Thanks to Lester's faith, Terry has become one of the top-selling fantasy fiction authors. The personal insights into Terry''s life provide the reader with a picture of how Terry has become the author he has today. The chapters dealing with Terry's grandson reveal how a child's imagination can be used as a basis for writing. Also, Terry's poor experience with the adaptation of the movie Hook and the subsequent success with the adaptation of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace show that by learning from past mistakes and applying the lessons learned, success can be achieved in a later similar project. I've read all of Terry Brooks' books and will continue to do so with great enthusiasm. I highly recommend this fine book. Aspiring authors will surely benefit from Terry's teachings, while fantasy fiction fans will enjoy getting a glimpse into what makes Terry's ideas come to life.
Rating: 
Summary: Very insighful and well written
Review: Brooks was one of the first fantasy authors I read way back in the early 80's, and I have to credit him with kindling my interest in the genre through his "Shannara" series as well as the "Magic Kingdom For Sale" books. "Sometimes the Magic Works" is both insightful and introspective, with plenty of inside personal information on why and how Brooks got his start in writing. You have to admire his "luck" (his words, not mine!), and I think this book is a good addition to any budding writers out there or any who just wish to learn more about the man behind the books. I could have done without the chapters (2 of them, I believe) which had to do with Brooks' grandson, though I suppose they have something to do with the author's own perception on life.
Rating:
Summary: How could you give this book less than 5 stars?
Review: Honestly, this book deserves five stars or more! I have found this nice volume of 197 pages extremely helpful in my writing, and Mr. Brooks is genious! Don't pass up the chance to read this one if you are an aspiring fantasy writer(if your an aspiring writer period it should be helpful), and learn a bit about the man behind so many great works.
Rating:
Summary: A look behind the scenes at the writing process.
Review: I have been a big Terry Brooks fan since first reading the "Sword of Shannara" nearly 25 years ago. His writing style has been often criticized, but mostly due to unfair comparisons with JRR Tolkien, although it is unlikely anyone writing in the same genre would stand up to the legend. That said Brooks deserves much credit for his accomplishments. His books never fail to deliver. What is different about this endeavor is that it is not fiction, but rather reads like a friendly conversation about his writing style and the process he uses to write his stories. I was captivated and encouraged by how he uses some simple and straightforward techniques, including outlining, to put his ideas onto paper. I have been thinking of several books that are just waiting to be written, and am inspired by his insights and encouragement to take a few risks and just get started. A very interesting read, and an insightful look behind the scenes. Equal parts talent, writing ability, hard work and luck enabled Terry Brooks to get to the top and stay there for twenty years. No reason why it cannot happen to someone else. I recommend this book to anyone who has been a fan of his work, or is thinking of writing themselves.
Rating:
Summary: A look behind the scenes at the writing process.
Review: I have been a big Terry Brooks fan since first reading the "Sword of Shannara" nearly 25 years ago. His writing style has been often criticized, but mostly due to unfair comparisons with JRR Tolkien, although it is unlikely anyone writing in the same genre would stand up to the legend. That said Brooks deserves much credit for his accomplishments. His books never fail to deliver. What is different about this endeavor is that it is not fiction, but rather reads like a friendly conversation about his writing style and the process he uses to write his stories. I was captivated and encouraged by how he uses some simple and straightforward techniques, including outlining, to put his ideas onto paper. I have been thinking of several books that are just waiting to be written, and am inspired by his insights and encouragement to take a few risks and just get started. A very interesting read, and an insightful look behind the scenes. Equal parts talent, writing ability, hard work and luck enabled Terry Brooks to get to the top and stay there for twenty years. No reason why it cannot happen to someone else. I recommend this book to anyone who has been a fan of his work, or is thinking of writing themselves.
Rating:
Summary: Terry Brooks is a wonderful author
Review: I have been a fan of Terry Brooks since I was about 12 years old. This book is a great read even for those who don't want to become professional writers!
Rating:
Summary: Not What I Expected
Review: I have loved Terry Brooks' work since the Sword of Shannara. I remember picking the book up in the late 70's and it blew my socks off. Later I had heard that he ripped off Tolkien, but back then I didn't know who Tolkien was, and when I did find out and tried to read the Hobbit for the first time I concluded that I liked Brooks better. I liked his writing style better. To me he is the best epic fantasy writer to date. In this book Terry describes or imparts his journey along the way. From before the release of Sword to the present day. He is very insightful to his own internal processes and offers guidance to the wanna-be writers out there like me. I bought this book with a little trepidation. I found that I really enjoyed it and could sense who he was and more about what writing was and is all about. If you like Terry Brooks and his writing and want to learn to write fiction, you'll like this book.
Rating:
Summary: Now THIS is what Brooks should be known for...
Review: I'll admit that I was really hesitant about reading another Brooks after what a disaster "Sword of Shannara" was. However, I was really surprised with this book. In here is solid, concrete and eyeopening lessons on writing, whether you deal with Fantasy or not. Brooks had a very easy to follow and deceptively simple formula for producing books that are readable and appealing. The autobiography aspect is interesting too without being all "rose tinted hindsight". You may resist his insistance to outline your work before beginning say a novel, but I tried it and it works a bazillion times better than expecting a story to write itself. Get this book to know more about the man behind Shannara and the Magic Kingdom, to improve your writing or just to have a darn good read. - A.
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