A Writer's Paris by Eric Maisel

By Kate Phillips

Eric Maisel has penned a fabulous love letter about Paris and all her charms to every writer in the world. After reading A Writer’s Paris: A Guided Journey for the Creative Soul, most of us will want to jump on a plane leaving for France immediately. Maisel makes us believe it’s not only possible, but essential for all writers to go there and write.

If you can plan, save, risk, and believe, Paris is yours….you can not only go to Paris—you can make your writing dreams come true. (page 96)

Who doesn’t dream of sitting at an outdoor café table writing for half the day then picking up your notebook and pen and heading for a bench in a tiny park square known only to locals or the famous Shakespeare & Company bookstore for more inspiration? Generously, Maisel shares his favorite writing spots all around the city.

 Each time I arrive in Paris I head directly for the Place des Vosges, the most beautiful square in the world…Once discovered, it becomes a place to be remembered. A working artist can spend whole days there—writing, soaking up the ancient and the contemporary…it is lively, quiet, shady, safe, inviting and gorgeous. (page 5)

 …I like to write at the Gallieni bus station…Every few minutes a drama unfolds. (page 34)

 If you are serious about going to Paris, a Planning Checklist is thoughtfully provided on pages 195-200. Published in 2005, some of the information will be out of date, but it includes goals, costs, and housing tips to ensure a “perfect” visit. (See also pages 91-97.) Locations for bookstores, markets, cafés, day trips, museums, parks (see also pages 85-90), and fun places for children and families are listed on pages 201-210, (more family fun is discussed on pages175-178), followed by Resources for Planning Your Trip on pages 211-213. Researching Paris Online information is listed on pages 98-101.

 While partially a guidebook to amazing sites, A Writer’s Paris really guides you to go there to write.

…Paris is the place you go when you mean to put your creative life first…Paris feeds an artist, motivates her, galvanizes her…Paris is the place to write. Since it is the perfect place to write, it is the perfect place to commit to writing…make Paris one of the stopping points on your creative journey… (pages 1-4)

…Come to this perfect park [the Jardin Saint Gilles Grand Veneur]—not to have your heart broken, but to write poignantly and well. Perhaps, close to tears, you will conjure up something beautiful… (page 88)

I love A Writer’s Paris although readers may not agree with all the author’s opinions. However, his passion for writing in Paris shines through.

The black and white illustrations and photographs are eye-catching on the heavy-stock, glossy pages. When I read it, I’m transported to Paris ready to write. I only wish the cover and monochromatic splashes of color inside the book had been more tailored to the City of Lights. Instead of the dull mustard gold, why not a vibrant green representing springtime in Paris or an electric French blue? The beauty of Paris is one of the author’s themes. A lovelier color would have better complemented his vision in this otherwise gorgeous book many will reread any time they feel the need to get away and write—or use as a guidebook should they be lucky enough to find themselves writing in Paris.