In Other Words is John Crowley's first collection of non-fiction. It brings together more than forty pieces on a wide variety of subjects.

The collection contains musings on the late Renaissance scholar Ioan Culianu ('A Modern Instance: Magic, Imagination, and Power'), on Utopian fiction ('The Labyrinth of the World and the Paradise of the Heart'), and on the nature of narrative itself ('Tips and Tricks for Successful Lying').

In other pieces, Crowley takes an in-depth look at five writers (T. H. White, Anthony Burgess, Robert Louis Stevenson, Thomas Disch, and Vladimir Nabokov), and offers shorter takes on writers such as John Updike, Italo Calvino, Thomas Berger, Kathryn Davis, and John Banville.

In the closing section (entitled, simply, 'Comix'), Crowley explores the world of comic strips. His reflections cover Walt Kelley, George Herriman, Ben Katchor, and Edward Gorey.