How to Be a Writer

Marcus Berkmann has been a freelance writer since 1988 working for newspapers and magazines and occasionally writing a book like this one. He reckons to have written literally millions of words in that time several of them in the right order. This his 13th or possibly 14th book is about those years of writing: the triumphs (few) the heartbreaks (many) the sackings (more than you would expect) the biscuits (many many more than you would expect). In it he somehow makes the act of staring out of a window wondering what to say next seem both fascinating and in some strange way enviable whereas like most writers he rarely leaves the house other than to go to the pub or the off-licence. Often asked how you become a writer his advice remains: Please do not. There's already enough competition out there and we don't need any more. His advance for this book was about enough to buy a packet of Jaffa Cakes.