Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing by Elmore Leonard and illustrated by Joe Ciardiello

Elmore Leonard must have laughed all the way to the bank. His advice to would-be authors, Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing, is an attractive publication but the text would make a short powerpoint presentation. He must have gotten the idea from David Letterman that he can make ten quirky statements and entertain his fans. It is entertaining, but it could be reproduced on a couple of postcards. You can read the book in five minutes or less.

To be fair, Leonard may have aimed this book more at the gift market. I can imagine it as an encouraging item to give to an aspiring author, who would keep it next to his/her desk as a reminder not to start novels with weather or use adverbs to modify the word "said."

The book does quickly convey Leonard's philosophy and the drawings are clever, but the book hardly seems worth taxpayer dollars. If you have a request at your library, you may borrow ours.

Leonard, Elmore. Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing. William Morrow, 2007. ISBN 9780061451461