Book Review: Writing on Empty

Natalie Goldberg, Writing on Empty: a Guide to Finding Your Voice. New York: St. Martin's Essentials, 2024. ISBN: 9781250342546.

Genre: memoir

Subgenre: COVID-19 times, writing, travel 

Format: e-book galley

Source; Edelweiss Plus 

 

In this book, Natalie Goldberg writes about her journey struggling to get out of a serious writer's block moment. This block happened just as the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The publisher advertises the book as "a gentle and instructive guidebook to remembering what truly matters." That is partially true. The book's subtitle is "a Guide to Finding Your Voice." To be honest, I was expecting more than I got in this book. 

Let's get down to it. Goldberg's solution was to just leave her home in New Mexico to visit various literary sites, especially in the Western United States. My first thought was it must be nice to be able to just take off and drive out to seek inspiration. The rest of the book is mostly a memoir chronicling her experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic times (when the pandemic was in its prime). It essentially looks at some traveling she did, meeting cautiously with friends, and just noting what was happening in her life at the time. The other prominent topic is her serious hate for Google, social media, and the Internet, which she discusses at length in various parts of the book. 

The bottom line for this book. If you are a memoir reader, and you want to read a memoir that takes you back to the dark days of COVID, this may be for you. If you want a bit of travelogue to some literary sites, this may be for you as well. If you are looking for a writing guide and overcoming writer's block, other than taking trips, this may be a book to skip. 

The book does not give that much about actual writing. We get some writing instructions at the end of the book. This last part feels a bit like a lecture where the teacher gives the solution at the end after presenting a somewhat convoluted word problem or distills a long essay. If you just want the writing instruction and advice, you can skip ahead to the last part in the book and go past all the sightseeing. 

I would consider this book as optional reading. Goldberg's fans will probably want to pick it up. Memoir readers may want to consider it. Readers looking for a book about writing, as the title suggests, may want to go back to her previous book Writing Down the Bones, which does provide some good reading guidance. 

This is a very optional selection for libraries. Libraries that have collected her other books may want to add this one for completists. Otherwise, I'd say it is optional. It was OK for me, but I do feel some of her previous works are better. 

2 out of 5 stars. 

Book qualifies for the following 2024 Reading Challenges: