This book taught me there are three key ways to become a famous author: 1)Hate everything I’ve ever written. 2) Have a tumultuous relationship either platonic, familial, or romantic. 3) Die halfway through my manuscript so it can be discovered and published posthumously which ultimately saves me the trouble.

I really enjoyed the format of Revisionaries. Each chapter focuses on a different famous author and highlights a lesson drawn from their life, circumstances, or writing habits. For example, Octavia Butler’s chapter explores her seven-year writer’s block during which she still wrote every day, as well as her daily routine of waking up early to write before heading to her day job.

Each chapter wraps up with a “Fail Like a Genius” section, where the author, Kristopher Jansma, offers exercises and advice tailored to that chapter’s theme. Some are genuinely helpful, others sort of silly, but the variety means there’s likely something for everyone.

More than the writing advice, what I loved most was reading about the lives of these writers and seeing how their routines both overlapped and diverged. It felt like a crash course in literary history. Revisionaries is equal parts inspiring, informative, and entertaining and a reminder that failure is just part of the creative process.