I got this book from NetGalley for my honest opinion and review.

It is a book about balancing writing (work) and life and enjoying both, by Marissa Meyer. I have not read her best selling book Cinder yet, and have not listened to her podcast. But I might, one day.

It is not about how to write, but about how to be a writer. There are some valuable prompts and guidelines in the book, but there are mostly for writers, not beginners.

Like so many readers, I am a wanna be writer. So at first I was very disappointed. But as I read through, the enthusiasm and energy got me.

I can’t say that this book has anything new to offer on work balance, writing prompts, creativity or dealing with agents and publishers. But it covers them all and the examples are inspiring.

The audio narrative was very good and since it is by the author, very energetic and enthusiastic.

What I liked most about this book is its tone. The energy she puts in is contagious.

If you are a writer or like me wanna be one, this is a good book to look at for inspiration.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio, this is my honest opinion about this book.

I greatly appreciated all of her insights, tips, and encouragement throughout the entire book. Alongside practical advice for developing healthy habits and finding inspiration in your dreams or nature, Marissa emphasizes one of the most essential pieces of guidance: always remember to be kind to yourself while chasing your dreams of becoming a writer. This is something I occasionally overlook.

In summary, this book is incredibly helpful and uplifting, and I would recommend it to anyone pursuing a career in this field!

The Happy Writer is an encouraging guide for writers of all genres, offering practical advice to make the creative journey joyful and fulfilling. Blending craft guidance with coaching, it tackles common challenges like procrastination, writer’s block, rejection, and impostor syndrome, while offering strategies for building confidence and generating ideas. This book helps writers navigate every stage of their creative journey.

This was such a fun book to listen to! It doesn’t offer anything truly revolutionary, but it does go step by step through the common challenges writers face in different parts of the creative process. And listening to the author for the audiobook version, you can really hear just how much she believes what she’s sharing and just how much she wants to be able to help her fellow authors.

The book leans more towards writers seeking traditional publishing, but a lot of the advice can be applied to any writer. I liked how the book was laid out, and how it starts from the beginning. You could easily jump to whatever section that applies to what you’re facing.

While I loved the audio book, I think this is one that would definitely be great to have as a paperback at my desk to pick up whenever I needed it.

Authors, this one is for you!

Marissa Meyer really breaks down the writing process from beginning to end. I really liked that when she couldn't answer the question, she brought in other authors who could give guidance (this was in the section about losing agents, editors, etc). This made me trust her as an expert even more. She talks not just about writing but taking care of yourself as a person. If you don't take care of yourself, you can't enjoy your craft and do your best work. As someone who wants to write a book, this answered all the questions I had and gave me an overview of what to expect.
As an audiobook, I really enjoyed this. Meyer is peppy and really sounded like a happy writer. It was really inspiring and kept my mood up and I listened and tried the exercises she suggested.

I really enjoyed this writing guide! It was fun, informative, encouraging, and insightful. I love how wide-ranging the topics were--how Meyer just grazed over a lot of different topics. A great introduction to the industry and the writer's life. Highly enjoyed this one. It reminded me of. Bird by Bird a bit, with it's conversational prose and encouragement. Highly recommended.

This is an entertaining book about writing. I loved how Marissa said you do not have to be the brooding-whiskey drinking & smoking writer that may come to mind when we think of writers. You can be happy and enjoy writing, while finding fun in constructing your pieces!
There are many examples she gives for garnering ideas, and she recommends you keep a running list of what you think up. Dip into that list when you write. Research could be going to the zoo, or to a tea party. Everything can feed into your work. Her examples of exploring and discovery are inspirational.
I especially liked the parts about subplots and outlining. She also gives ample advice about scheduling your work, and the incentives you could create. If you take her ideas to mind, you probably won't feel too overwhelmed or burnt out. I think she is advocating balance. I would recommend to writers and those interested in How-tos.
I listened to an audio copy from Net Galley I received free from the publisher and NetGalley. Thank you, these are my own honest opinions about the book.

I received a copy of this audiobook from netGalley for a honest review.

I loved this book that clearly states you don't have to be a grumpy, angry, depressed person to write. I love that it takes you from creating ideas to writing to getting an agent to publishing to promoting your book all while keeping a healthy life balance and happy demeanor. I will be buying myself a hard copy of this book to highlight and bookmark this wonderful book!

The Happy Writer is based on Marissa Meyer's podcast about being optimistic in the writing life. Some of what is in this book was a little new age and "woo woo" for me, but on the whole, I found Meyer's outlook refreshing and some of the advice, especially about beta readers, very helpful. I wasn't familiar with the podcast before the book, but I listened to an episode and plan to listen to more.

As a writer that’s gone through a rut and someone familiar with Marisa Meyer’s podcast, I was excited to see this book and that the author is narrating the audiobook. So I pressed play and enjoyed what I heard from start to finish.

The book itself is broken into six parts that takes you from idea, drafting, publication, mindset, and beyond, covering just about everything in the writing life outside of craft (and even that gets touched on in a few chapters). Each chapter begins with a quote from a guest from her podcast that relates to the subject manner. Most of the over 70 chapters themselves are on the shorter end, mainly 15 minutes or less on 1x speed on the audiobook. It’s bite sized for easy reference for later. If you’ve been around the block, there’s a chance you’ve heard this before, but the way Marisa Meyer approaches it, the idea feels fresh and invigorating. Sure, much of it is also surface level as well, but it could be a jumping point to go deeper. Since she’s only been in trade publishing, most of the advice does follow that path, but is flexible enough to know other types of authors exist.

Marisa Meyer narrates the audiobook herself and has an excited energy throughout that I love that makes listening to the advice that much easier and makes me ready to implement many of the tips as soon as I can. One chapter about leaving agents and publishers does have short snippets narrated by other authors as she lacks experience in this area, which I enjoyed.

Highly recommend for all writers to read and/or listen to. And if you want more, listen to her podcast, The Happy Writer, which while no longer releasing new episodes, has 225 episodes to listen on the archive.

3.49

I see the value of this book. Marissa Meyer is a cheerleader. This book is enthusiastic and has helpful recommendations, even if many seem obvious. I think my issues were heightened exponentially by listening to the audio narration by the author. She has such a bubbly voice that would be audible gold at story time but combined with some cutesy writing is a bit too saccharine to me. I am not sure what I would have done the next time I heard her say “awesome” or an interjected “, well,” + pun or other witty comment, like if I said “writing my book about bees was, well, sweet!”

I would likely recommend the book instead, maybe even the physical paperback, where one can move around, refer back to, and even mark specifically useful bits.
I can see the value of her podcast, even though I hadn’t been a listener before.

Full disclosure: I did not make it through the book because, even though the tips were helpful, I couldn’t understand how there were hours more left and I had no idea what more there was to cover. I mean I literally did not know because, despite some sort of content breakdown at the beginning, I wasn’t being pulled along in an obvious way. Good for mind-bending fantasy novels. Not as much for educational publications.

I think her support is a value, though, in addition to the book format, I would probably prefer it as her podcast where I assume she speaks more or less unscripted and not trying as hard to be witty and rhythmical. There is a structure to her assistance, but my ADHD brain couldn’t keep track of it from an audiobook. This is not a bad book, it’s just not the format and delivery for me. I may check out the podcast, especially if they each address a specific topic or couple of topics where I can target those episodes that best meet whatever I am interested in learning about at the time.

Thank you to Marissa Meyer, NetGalley, and Macmillan Audio for providing me with a free advanced copy of this book for my unbiased review.

This was a very informative audiobook on today’s publishing industry. It was a nice insight into writing from a published writer’s perspective as well. I found Marissa Meyer’s words to be very uplifting and optimistic. I also appreciated it was not only her narrating the audiobook, but other authors as well. It was also nice to see several other famous authors mentioned in the book with their advice.

I think this particular book is good for both novice writers still in grade school as well as adults. The way in which Meyer writes is a bit young and a bit cheesy to some extent. But the advice and insight on the publishing industry would be beneficial to anyone interested in becoming a writer.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for a chance to listen to this advanced copy!

I didn't fully realize what I downloaded. I was expecting to listen to a book about encouraging teenagers to become creative writers. As a middle school writing teacher, that's right up my alley! I didn't realize it was a book for adult writers written by a YA author (one that I happen to really like). I still found myself so encouraged! I have been wanting to write a novel for years, and this was actually the push I needed to start. I don't just want to be a writer (and a writing teacher), but I want to be a happy writer!

audio-ARC from NetGalley.

This was so sweet & encouraging. It made me feel more optimistic in my own authorial journey.

The Happy Writer by Marissa Meyer is chock full of great ideas for ways writers can build a more blissful practice. I’m so grateful to @macmillanusa for an e-arc and to @macmillan.audio for an ALC of this one. It came out Tuesday so you can grab a copy now for yourself or a writer in your life.

The book is divided into sections that cover everything from how to fill the create well to how to overcome resistance to querying querying There was so much good advice and energy packed into this book. Most of the advice I’d heard before, but I don’t know that I’ve seen it compiled in one place by someone who clearly wants the reader to succeed.

I’m not sure what age this book was written for. I’m clearly an adult and I loved it and it’s the kind of book I think is great to have in a collection for times when you need a little pep talk and there’s no one around to give it to you. But the imprint, Feiwel & Friends—who have published all of Meyer’s books—is a children’s imprint. And I think if you have a young writer in your life, they would love this one. It’s straightforward, the chapters are quick, she doesn’t stay too long on any one topic and there’s a lot of information that new writers probably don’t know about the publishing process. But there were also tips like using resources to get childcare so you can write that made not sure about the target audience’s age. Either way, I think it’s a book writers of any age can get a lot out of.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by the author, and hearing her cheer me on was a really lovely experience. I thoroughly enjoyed listening. I do think this might be one of the times I grudgingly admit that a physical copy might be preferable if you can only get the book in one format because it’s the kind of information you’ll definitely want to look back on, which is harder with audiobooks. But if you can have both, that’s the way to go.

THE HAPPY WRITER by Marissa Meyer is one of the better books that I have found about writing. I say that because it offers a myriad of practical suggestions and, as Meyer says, is written to connect the readers with their intrinsic love of writing as they "build a foundation of happiness, a love of words, a passion for telling stories, and appreciation of our own bizarre and beautiful imaginations." Meyer divides her thoughts into six sections that deal with cultivating creativity, setting goals, crafting and revising a first draft, pursuing publication, overcoming common challenges, and finding big payoffs through little joys. For example, she mentions developing a story playlist and listening to different types of music. A very established and best-selling writer herself, Meyer has been providing similar pointers on her Happy Writer podcast (link below) and this text certainly offers suggestions on many, many ways to "Get More Ideas, Write More Words, and Find More Joy from First Draft to Publication and Beyond." I received a preview copy of the text and an audiobook file read by the author. For me, Meyer's voice was a bit strident, and I found it difficult to focus and retain so many ideas when listening. Personally, I would prefer a print version where I could scribble and highlight – and I would because her ideas are useful and motivating. Meyer even includes a list of sources and further reading like Joyful by Lee, plus writing classics like Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott or Stephen King's On Writing. Meyer has added a great pep talk for aspiring and established writers!

Podcast link:
https://www.marissameyer.com/podcast/

This was an absolutely delightful book about writing. I have read many and this one is going to be one of my favorites. Many books about writing are not giving you tips about keeping the fun in writing, and Marissa Meyer gives a ton of great tips peppered all throughout this book that brings the focus back to that, always. I find that refreshing because so many times, writing will begin to feel like a chore, which is not what I envisioned as a little girl writing stories just for herself to escape from her unsafe world to worlds of wonder. Marissa helps to bring that magic back!

I want to read this book over and over again! I feel it will keep me optimistic and help me keep a positive attitude about writing. I wish I had this book when I was homeschooling my boys during those annual novel writing months that we sometimes struggled through. This may have been super helpful.

I thoroughly enjoyed the audiobook format. I listened intently to the author/narrator with a notebook and pen. It felt like I was back in creative writing class, the lecture portions, haha! I definitely recommend this book!

Having been a long-time listener of the Happy Writer podcast, I was thrilled about this book — and it didn't disappoint! I loved every chapter of The Happy Writer and often found myself nodding along (and making notes).

I loved that Marissa narrated the book, It was so fun listening to her!

Author Marissa Meyer tackles the art of being the healthiest and hardest working author in this self-help book. From creating outlines to going on writing retreats, Meyer gives inspiring tips, pushing authors to get words down on the page and accomplish their goal of publishing their first or their fiftieth book.

Thank you Marissa Meyer and Macmillan Audio for the audio copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts and review. All opinions here are mine and mine alone.

Meyer does an excellent job bringing energy into her writing. I was definitely inspired to sit myself down and work on my manuscript. A good chunk of this book had this energy, but there were some slower and almost unnecessary sections that did not keep me as engaged, such as the discussion on breathing exercises.

I definitely recommend this book to anyone wanting to get inspired to work on their writing dreams. Listening to it via audiobook read by the author herself gave it great pacing and better insight to what Meyer was trying to convey.

This is a highly enjoyable book to reminder writers why they love to write while spurring them on with gentle, common sense guidance. It won’t be a book for every writer, but should be. We can all use a dose of happy every once in a while.

Oh to have just an ounce of Marissa’s optimism. This book was just chock full of such good advice for aspiring writers. She has a way of making you feel like it is possible to achieve your dreams of being a writer — that it doesn’t have to be a dream, you can make it a reality. She made me feel optimistic about my passions and hopes of being a published author one day and that’s not easy to do, given I can be a bit pessimist when it comes to my own aspirations.

I loved hearing all her advice and tips and encouragement throughout this whole book. In addition to very practical advice when it comes to building healthy habits, or getting inspiration from your dreams or from the outdoors, Marissa also advises readers to take heed of the most integral advice - to be kind to yourself when you’re pursuing your dreams of being a writer. Something I forget to do sometimes.

Thank you to Netgalley and MacMillan audio for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!