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  • Published: 20 August 2024
  • ISBN: 9780593524404
  • Imprint: Penguin Young Readers
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 224
  • RRP: $24.99

You: The Story

A Writer's Guide to Craft Through Memory




The nonfiction debut by #1 New York Times bestselling author Ruta Sepetys is now in paperback! Perfect for fans of Burn After Writing and Bird by Bird.

The nonfiction debut by #1 New York Times bestselling and Carnegie Medal-winning author Ruta Sepetys. Perfect for fans of Burn After Writing and Bird by Bird.

Life is story in motion. Each day, you add to your story, revise it, and view it from a different angle. You erase things. Tear pages out. And sometimes, in hindsight, wish you could put them back. A day is a story. A year is a story. A life is a story.
You are a story.

Ruta Sepetys is known for creating vivid characters and harrowing plots. After five award-winning works of historical fiction and countless hours of meticulous research, she can affirm that the secret to strong writing is embedded within your life experience.

You: The Story is a powerful how-to book for aspiring writers that encourages you to look inward and excavate your own memories in order to discover the authentic voices and compelling details that are waiting to be put on the page. Masterfully weaving in humorous and heartfelt stories from her own life that illustrate an aspect of the craft of writing (such as plot, character development, or dialogue), Sepetys then inspires readers with a series of writing prompts and exercises.

Perfect for fans of Burn After Writing and Bird by Bird, You: The Story awakens the emerging writer and reveals that with some reflection, curiosity, and courage, you have a story to tell.

  • Published: 20 August 2024
  • ISBN: 9780593524404
  • Imprint: Penguin Young Readers
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 224
  • RRP: $24.99

About the author

Ruta Sepetys

Ruta Sepetys was born and raised in Michigan in a loving houshold, enjoyed her school years and bravely stepped into the world when she left home for Paris, France to live and work. She has her roots in a completely different medium, that of music and It was only when she visited relatives in Lithuania that she discovered a family history that was seemingly hidden, and realised that there was a personal story to tell of a cataclysmic event in European history that is not commonly known.

Between Shades of Gray is a story that is both poignant and extraordinary. It is both difficult to read, because it is so painful and so personal, and also uplifting - to discover the joy and spirit of the Lithuanian people.

Ruta Sepetys now lives in Tennessee with her family, enjoys their company and that of her friends and is passionate about the arts and truth.

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