This was hard for to me to follow and get along with. The guided experience wasn't the best and I couldn't continue along with it.

Not Quite What I Thought, But Good

Titles set up expectations. I fully expected to open this book, and after a brief introduction, see 99 days laid out for me, one after the other, helping me to write a book, with specific hints, tips, and tasks for each day. But this book isn't like this at all. In fact, the author doesn't get to the “99 days” until nearly the end of the book. Instead, this book is a mini crash course on how to write fiction and nonfiction with a 99-day plan at the end. Actually, only the first five days have anything specific to do... after that, it's just—essentially—“write.” That's not to say the book doesn't have good ideas and insights into the writing process; it does. But the title sets up an expectation that wasn't really true to the book inside. I did appreciate, however, that the author not only talked about fiction but also nonfiction. So often, nonfiction is the redheaded stepchild in the authorscape. Though this book is not what I thought it would be, some writers could find it helpful as the nudge they need to get their minds in order to be ready to write the book inside them.

Inkslinger – 99-day Guided Writing experience is an excellent resource for beginner writers. It answers the questions about where to start, what to do before you start writing a novel. It clarifies a few basic things. Part one is about theory (where to start, what you need to know before you start, how to write, setting, plot, POV, characters,...). While part two consists of worksheets and a plan on how to write a 50.000-word story.

You may expect something else from the title. But anyway, I found this book to be a great reference book for beginner writers. 

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this! All opinions are my own.

A good beginners' guide to writing and editing a book. This book is designed for those not feeling the urge of write but want to know more about where to start. A first part describes what you need to know before writing a book, the decisions you need to make at start. Part two is the actual 99 day guided writing plan, which includes  planning, writing and editing your book. The final part is on editing and making the final result published. 
At the end, it looks comprehensive and full of helpful, ideas, especially if you are at the beginning of your career.

Inkslinger: 99-Day Guided Writing Experience
by Kimberly Cooper Griffin

Written by an award-winning romance writer, Inkslinger is set up like a writing workshop. I think many people enjoy having a sense of the scope of their endeavor, and learning to write a novel feels like it can take a long time. The promise this book makes is that you can follow this “guided writing experience” and write a 50,000-word novel in less than 100 days.

Part I covers a lot of the basics, with each chapter being about two pages long and dealing with the fundamentals of writing (creating setting, developing characters, etc.). Part II is where the magic happens, with a lot of questionnaires and worksheets (digital copies are available for free, too) that get you writing the actual manuscript pages. It even has a calendar that blocks out the days so you can visualize the task at hand.

If you gave NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) a shot this past November and had a hard time, this is the type of book that might be the solution. 

It’s possible that some might feel this book is overly streamlined, but if you need structure and guidance, this book is designed to help you out. I especially like that the 99-day sequence ends in celebration. Writers should ALWAYS take the time to value the hard work they’ve done.

4 out of 5 coffee cups

www.kimberlycoopergriffin.com

The book is divided into three parts. The first outlines what you need to know before writing a book. It includes things such as choosing a genre, story arc, character development, and tense. Part two is the actual 99-day guided writing plan. It includes ways to plan and write your book. The third part focuses on editing and shaping your work and different ways to get it published. This book was more comprehensive that some I've seen, and more so than others I've read. Things could be oversimplified for some writers/readers, but for those starting out, it could be a helpful book. Though a lot of the information could be found by searching online, it could be convenient for people to have it all in one place.

This book is labelled as a guided writing experience. Perhaps I had different expectations. 

Any person with an internet connection who wants to write a book will already have a lot of this information at their fingertips. I expected the guided writing experience to be more front and centre. Unfortunately, my expectations based on the title were not met.

There's nothing incorrect in what they have written about writing a dirty first draft, it is just not what I expected from the title.

I’m looking forward to starting 99 days of guided writing! Kimberly Cooper Griffin is very encouraging and I want to think of her as my own personal cheerleader as I’m reading through how to get started! If you think you have a book in you but have been discouraged and don’t know where to begin… this might be helpful in your journey! Happy writing…

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley on behalf of the Publisher and was under no obligation to post a favorable review.

A wonderful guide to writing and shaping a book. This book is designed for anyone who wishes to write a book but isn't sure where to start. Divided into three parts; the first outlines what you need to know before writing a book, such as choosing a genre, story arc, character development, tense etc. Part two is the actual 99 day guided writing plan, which includes days to plan, write and edit your book, part three, focuses on editing and shaping your work and different ways to get it published. I've looked at a lot of 'get into writing' type of books and this one is the most comprehensive and helpful, especially is you have an idea but aren't sure about how to structure your writing. I also like that they allow time for editing, something that is missing from the Nanowrimo challenge. 

With thanks to the publisher Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Nicely Balanced. A Workshop....
Nicely balanced writing advice. A workshop if you like. Written with an easy hand and a lightness of touch making straightforward and pleasant reading. Informative and useful throughout.

Can't wait to get this for my Library! The guided exercises will be perfect for our writing group if Covid ever goes away! Great book!

Inkslinger- 99 Day Guided Writing Experience is a really informative and useful resource to those beginning to learn about writing and the publishing world, however it may not be as groundbreaking for those who are more experienced. 

It is well structured and includes all of the basics that new writers need to get started on their journey, but doesn't dive deep into any of the topics. 

I was hoping for a little more, but I can definitely appreciate that this will be an invaluable tool to others. It did give me motivation, which in itself is useful.

Subtitle: 99-Day Guided Writing Experience

I received an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As a writer I’m always willing to read new books about the craft of writing. I requested to receive an ARC of this particular book because I struggle with finding ways to streamline the writing and revising processes and hoped it might hold some helpful tips.

Inkslinger is a very big-picture plan for writing a 50,000 word novel and preparing it for professional editing in 99 days. It starts with coming up with the idea for the book, developing characters, setting, etc.


I gave Inkslinger four stars on Goodreads. I’m not exactly the target audience for this book (I’ve written four novels so far, still unpublished though), I feel like it is a little oversimplified. It did provide some motivation thought.

Finally a well planned, easy to follow, straightforward guide to writing a novel. As a writer I have read many how to books, that promise to help you write and sell your novel. Never before have a found one that guides you step by step through the process while helping you set a realistic and tangible goal. I am in the process of following it now. 99 days to produce a novel that will be ready at least for serious revision. 99 days to write 50,ooo words or more. A concise timeline to write and revise. It gives writers a solid and realistic plan to follow. I am at it now and enjoying every minute.

Inkslinger is a well written, humorous, encouraging, and truly accessible guide with tips for solidifying ideas into written words, and editing them into a usable (possibly marketable) finished product. Released 5th Nov 2020 by Night River Press, it's a compact 150 pages and available in electronic format. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

Every year when NaNoWriMo rolls around, I intend to sit down and get words on paper. Every year until now it's turned into a somewhat stress filled NaNoWriNO-WAY for me personally. The author, Kimberly Cooper Griffin, gives me some hope that I can manage to get some words down and at least begin to understand the mechanics behind getting them into a readable form. After all, I've managed hundreds of thousands of words over my years on my blog (so how hard can it be, right? *haha*).

The guided course is set up like a workshop (without the group therapy aspects) in a logical and progressive format. The introduction and preparatory sections provide an overview of the course: background information (including tips on genre, target audience, text elements and overviews for both fiction and non-fiction writing and moving through a realistic and (sorry) brutal examination of the self-editing and revision process).

The second part of the material includes the actual timeline calendar (99 days). The author has broken it down into four main sections: inspiration, perspiration, celebration, transformation. This is a very concise guide and well laid out. I never found myself searching fruitlessly for needed information. The voice is very positive and upbeat and full of humorous camaraderie - we're all in this together.

The appendices include a good insider's overview of what happens after the newly born work is finished and edited - to publish (or not), how to publish (the options), and insightful no-nonsense info about the writerly life. This would be a good selection for a would-be writer, and I can also see it being a solid choice for a more formal writing class or writing instruction in a classroom setting.

Whether or not I ever manage to get through NaNoWriMo with something approaching a book/story/WordyThing - this book certainly provided both inspiration and reflection. It's very good at what it does. Four stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

This is a good solid book for beginners that want some guidance when attempting a long-form writing project - like a novel. I'll certainly be recommending it to anyone that is interested in attempting NaNoWriMo for the first time.

There is always a demand for quality books that guide people through the process of writing a book. This is a great one to recommend, because it is accessible and has an upbeat, compassionate tone which is encouraging for newbie authors. It is general enough to encompass fiction and nonfiction, and offers a practical 99 day plan as well.

Inkslinger — 99-Day Guided Writing Experience is a brilliant book for writers, especially those just beginning.  I loved they way the book was so easy to read, straight to the point and so full of lightness and humour.  Often books on writing are heavy and longwinded so this was very refreshing.  I think the author has struck a really good balance because you feel inspired after reading it.  The structure for jumping in and starting the challenge of writing is very good, and the additional worksheets are a huge bonus.  Overall one of the best short books on writing I have read.  Thank you

I have read my fair share of self-help books and writing advice. But this one... This one was actually funny and helpful. I don't think I am actually going to be able to a my book in 99 days, but that's not because this book didn't provide me with the necessary advice. I think it's one of the few self-help books that's actually been helpful. I am going to come back on those tips eventually over time, but since I am currently swamped with university work, I won't be able to stick to a constant routine. The day only has 24 hours after all and right now, these hours are filled with university and reading. 

Thanks to Netgalley and the author for providing me a free copy!

I’m a writer so I was really excited to see a new book on the writing published. Even if I don’t always agree with a particular method, I usually can take something from it that is valuable. I think this book might be best for beginners who don’t have much experience in writing a full novel. But honestly? I felt like this book was kind of lacking. It reads more like a basic website that can be found for free online. It went over basic definitions in the same way a high school class would, then gave a “schedule” and skipped over the nitty gritty. I would not purchase this book.