Writing and Life gathers eight essays on the art of writing into an inspiring and concise look at how good writing can capture life and pin it on the pages of a book. The chapter titles give a sense of its scope: Writing and Thought, Writing and the Self, Prose Rhythm, Realism, and Bad Writing. Writers quoted and examined include Homer, Shakespeare, Cervantes, Balzac, Dickens, Dreiser, and James Jones. Poet Michael McClure says, "Writing and Life has a natural life that holds readers' attention because of its wit and fast moving scholarship."