Moving house is a stressful time in life. One part that is affected by this experience in my case is how to relax. I've found for the two or three weeks as the move grew closer, happened and then lead into the unpacking that my reading has suffered. I, kind of, felt a little burned out mentally by all the events going on.

As a result of this I've found it quite difficult to concentrate on novels and so have tried alternate reading forms. I've read short stories (from a wonderful anthology I will be reviewing shortly) and articles from various of the magazines we subscribe to (and for the curious, a typical example is New Scientist).

Then I remembered the book that arrived at our old house on the morning we were leaving

This is the book - Terry Brooks's Sometimes the Magic Works. It's a writing memoir in a similar style to Stephen King's On Writing. It gives a little background information into what was happening in Brooks's life that lead up to the first Shannara novel being published; his interactions with his first editor Lester del Rey; his struggles with writing his second novel; details of his experiences of promotional events; and some of the processes he goes through writing novels.

But where this differs a little from the Stephen King book are the sections on how he writes. These are much more readable for the non-writer. I can understand many writers getting more from King's book than I - I have no interest at this point in my life in writing a novel. Whenever I wake up with an idea in my head that I think would make a good novel I keep it in mind, and then try to find out if anyone else had the same idea and read what they made of it.

Brooks, much more than King, makes these details a little more alive, and less like a "how-to" guide book. This is certainly how it feels to the non-writer in me.

I can see this book being highly interesting to any devoted fan of Terry Brooks, but it should have a wider appeal than just his current fan base. There are tips in here I would imagine could help aspiring writers - there are certainly practices I wish the authors of some of the less accomplished novels I've read had followed.

It's also a very friendly book. It comes across as advice and anecdotes that Terry Brooks might be telling over a glass of some libation or other in a cosy little pub/inn or other such hostelry. Quite an achievement too, for this book is when you look at it, an instruction manual.