There are various writing styles – a number of them having useful applications in specific writing contexts.
The book shown above – The Gentleman from Finland: Adventures on the Trans Siberian Express by Robert M. Goldstein – is among my favorite books read in recent memory. So much so that I’ve been buying copies to give as gifts to friends.
When I read the book, I laughed so hard that I cried.
What happens for a book to get readers laughing until they cry?
In the case of biography, a book must have a funny story to tell in order to get readers laughing until they cry. Yet, that’s only the groundwork. In the case of this book, the author was willing to be brutally honest and open in telling his compelling tale in a challenging situation – an American tourist experiencing harrowing experience along the Trans Siberian Express. The author did more than just relay dates and factual aspects about his journey. He opened up, bringing to life on paper the experientially human aspects of what made the trip worth laughing-until-you-cry. Goldstein was willing to share the aspects of the story that made the story emotionally-compelling.
The intimate self-disclosure within storytelling that made this autobiography great is very different writing than the writing that makes a biology textbook or an IKEA how-to-construct manual great.
Kim Burkhardt provides writing services at Burkhardt Writing Services. Contact us about your wordsmithing needs.
