There are so many books on writing out there, and most of them profess to be "#1" or "the best" or "the must-have authority." The problem is that not all of us approach writing the same way. I have mentioned this before in a few other posts.
Anyway, today I will share a few of the books that have been helpful to me while writing and navigating the world of publishing.
On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King
Most of the time when I see writers, editors, agents, etc. post about good books on the craft of writing, Stephen King's book seems to be on the list. And it is a great book. In fact, a great deal of my acceptance over not being an immediate success is on account of reading this. The first half is little snippets from King's own writing career, detailing his process, his many rejections, and his dedication over the years. Then in the second half, while still giving us little memoir snippets, King talks about what you need to do to become a writer.
I love it. One of the first things he says is that to be a writer you need to do two things: read a lot and write a lot. So many in the industry say the same thing, so it is one of a handful of comments/advice I actually believe whole-heartedly. And don't just read in your genre; read everything you can get your hands on. Poetry, non-fiction, western, historical fiction, romance, fantasy, sci-fi, young adult...it'll give you a greater understanding on how to write your own stories.
Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg
I took a couple different creative writing courses in college so my next few books are actually from those classes, but they have been helpful in their own ways. Natalie Goldberg has a sort of zen like approach to the whole process. In some ways, like King's On Writing, this book has personal experience and little memoir-like snippets.
The chapters are all relatively short, a couple of pages typically, and Goldberg mentions early on that you can read this book from cover-to-cover, or you can just jump around to whatever topic is relevant to you in that moment. It isn't necessarily a how-to guide, but each segment does make you think about your writing, whether it is showing instead of telling, being specific with details, your writing space, why you write, etc.
What If? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers by Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter
Okay, so this one really is a sort-of how-to book. I still haven't made it through the whole book, but we covered a lot of it during my creative writing class, and it is pretty helpful. There are a number of parts to this book and in each part there are several chapters highlighting a different component relevant to the part.
For example, one part is called "A Writer's Tools." Within that part there are chapters on timing and pacing, showing and telling, transitions, titles, etc. In each chapter it will talk a little bit about the chapter's topic, and then it will have a writing exercise. Most of the time Bernays and Painter also include a student example from what they've amassed from teaching this over the years.
In school we actually had a creativity notebook where we had to jot down things. I would often pick chapters from both Writing Down the Bones and What If? and either write my own ponderings about it or actually attempt the exercise. It was helpful to me and in some ways pushed me to try different styles or methods, which can certainly improve your writing overall.
Gotham Writers' Workshop Writing Fiction: The Practical Guide from New York's Acclaimed Creative Writing School
Okay, so this one is another how-to styled book that my class used for the advanced fiction writing class. Like What If? it has various chapters and exercises throughout the book, configured to help you think about all the components of your fiction writing. If I had to pick which one I liked more, I would go with What If? but the Gotham Writers' Workshop book really is set up as if you were doing a workshop of your very own.
It runs through characters, plot, POV, description, dialogue, setting, voice, theme, revision, and the business of writing, so it covers a lot of ground and gives a lot of information. And though I've never tried it, GWW does hold online courses/lectures/workshops that you can pay for. If they're anything like this book, they are probably pretty helpful.
No Plot? No Problem! A Low-Stress High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days by Chris Baty
Finally, I always seem to come back around to NaNoWriMo when it comes to posts about writing and inspiration and motivation. I first read No Plot? No Problem! several years ago and it helped me prep for participation in NaNo.
Chris Baty is an amusing writer, and reading about the history of NaNo and getting advice for dealing with the awesome chaos that is writing a book in a month is fabulous. The second half of the book especially breaks down NaNoWriMo week-by-week and discusses the feelings and pitfalls that tend to accompany each week. This all comes with the knowledge Baty has accumulated from his many years with NaNo (and he would know since he founded it back in 1999).
In 2014 they came out with an updated and revised version of the book. I need to get that version and see what bonus goodies are between the covers, but for now, let's just say that I highly highly recommend this book and participating in NaNoWriMo in general.
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Those have been some of the biggest helps to me, though there are many more writing books I own and possibly could have mentioned. Of course there are a myriad of other books out there and I'm sure there are more I should read. If you know of any, let me know in the comments.
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