As I've talked about on my blog several times, an important part of growing as a writer is learning about writing. For years I've wanted to compile a list of writing books I've read, liked, and recommend. Today I'm happy to say I now have that list to add to my blog (perfect timing for anyone who likes summer reading). I'm sure over time, this list will be added to.
Many writers I've talked to have read quite a few of these books. How many have you read? And is there one I need to look into? (You can comment at the bottom).
If you haven't read any of them, cool. Now you have a list to chose from should you ever want to.
Hundreds
of books have been written on the art of writing. Here at last is a
book by two professional editors to teach writers the techniques of the
editing trade that turn promising manuscripts into published novels and
short stories.In this completely revised and updated second edition, Renni Browne and Dave King teach you, the writer, how to apply the editing techniques they have developed to your own work. Chapters on dialogue, exposition, point of view, interior monologue, and other techniques take you through the same processes an expert editor would go through to perfect your manuscript. Each point is illustrated with examples, many drawn from the hundreds of books Browne and King have edited.
What makes a good story or a screenplay great?
The vast majority of writers begin the storytelling process with only a partial understanding where to begin. Some labor their entire lives without ever learning that successful stories are as dependent upon good engineering as they are artistry. But the truth is, unless you are master of the form, function and criteria of successful storytelling, sitting down and pounding out a first draft without planning is an ineffective way to begin.
Story Engineering starts with the criteria and the architecture of storytelling, the engineering and design of a story--and uses it as the basis for narrative. The greatest potential of any story is found in the way six specific aspects of storytelling combine and empower each other on the page. When rendered artfully, they become a sum in excess of their parts.
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Bestselling
author David Farland has taught dozens of writers who have gone on to
staggering literary success, including such #1 New York Times
Bestsellers as Brandon Mull (Fablehaven), Brandon Sanderson (Wheel of
Time), James Dashner (The Maze Runner) and Stephenie Meyer (Twilight).
In this book, Dave teaches how to analyze an audience and outline a novel so that it can appeal to a wide readership, giving it the potential to become a bestseller. The secrets found in his unconventional approach will help you understand why so many of his authors go on to prominence.
How do you create a main character readers won't forget? How do you write a book in multiple-third-person point of view without confusing your readers (or yourself)? How do you plant essential information about a character's past into a story?
Write Great Fiction: Characters, Emotion & Viewpoint by award-winning author Nancy Kress answers all of these questions and more! This accessible book is filled with interactive exercises and valuable advice that teaches you how to:
Choose and execute the best point of view for your story
Create three-dimensional and believable characters
Develop your characters' emotions
Create realistic love, fight, and death scenes
Use frustration to motivate your characters and drive your story.
The
road to rejection is paved with bad beginnings. Agents and editors
agree: Improper story beginnings are the single biggest barrier to
publication. Why? If a novel or short story has a bad beginning, then no
one will keep reading. It's just that simple.In Hooked, author Les Edgerton draws on his experience as a successful fiction writer and teacher to help you overcome the weak openings that lead to instant rejection by showing you how to successfully use the ten core components inherent to any great beginning.
Plus, you'll discover exclusive insider advice from agents and acquiring editors on what they look for in a strong opening. With Hooked, you'll have all the information you need to craft a compelling beginning that lays the foundation for an irresistible story!
This ultimate insider's guide reveals the secrets that none dare admit, told by a show biz veteran who's proven that you can sell your script if you can save the cat!
"Show—don't
tell." How many times have you heard this standard bit of writing
advice? It's so common in writing courses and critiques that it has
become a cliche. Writers are often told to write scenes, dramatize, cut
exposition, cut summary—but it's misguided advice. The truth is good
writing almost always requires both showing and telling. The trick is
finding the right balance of scene and summary—the two basic components
of creative prose.
Showing and Telling shows you how to employ each of these essential techniques in the appropriate places within a narrative.
Complete with examples from bestsellers and interactive exercises, this comprehensive guide offers an in-depth look at scene development, the role of reflection in storytelling, the art of summarizing, and how to bring it all together.
Showing and Telling shows you how to employ each of these essential techniques in the appropriate places within a narrative.
Complete with examples from bestsellers and interactive exercises, this comprehensive guide offers an in-depth look at scene development, the role of reflection in storytelling, the art of summarizing, and how to bring it all together.
One of the biggest problem areas for writers is conveying a character's emotions to the reader in a unique, compelling way. This book comes to the rescue by highlighting 75 emotions and listing the possible body language cues, thoughts, and visceral responses for each.
Using its easy-to-navigate list format, readers can draw inspiration from character cues that range in intensity to match any emotional moment. The Emotion Thesaurus also tackles common emotion-related writing problems and provides methods to overcome them.
This writing tool encourages writers to show, not tell emotion and is a creative brainstorming resource for any fiction project.
This
book is a set of tools: literary crowbars, chisels, mallets, pliers and
tongs. Use them to pry, chip, yank and sift good characters out of the
place where they live in your imagination.
Award-winning author Orson Scott Card explains in depth the techniques of inventing, developing and presenting characters, plus handling viewpoint in novels and short stories. With specific examples, he spells out your narrative options—the choices you'll make in creating fictional people so "real" that readers will feel they know them like members of their own families.
Award-winning author Orson Scott Card explains in depth the techniques of inventing, developing and presenting characters, plus handling viewpoint in novels and short stories. With specific examples, he spells out your narrative options—the choices you'll make in creating fictional people so "real" that readers will feel they know them like members of their own families.
All
successful writers use resonance to enhance their stories by drawing
power from stories that came before, by resonating with their readers'
experiences, and by resonating within their own works.In this book, you'll learn exactly what resonance is and how to use it to make your stories more powerful. You'll see how it is used in literature and other art forms, and how one writer, J. R. R. Tolkien, mastered it in his work.
An
illuminating and invaluable guide for beginners wary of modern poetry,
as well as for more advanced students who want to sharpen their craft
and write poems that expand their technical skills, excite their
imaginations, and engage their deepest memories and concerns. Ideal for
teachers who have been searching for a way to inspire students with a
love for writing--and reading--contemporary poetry.
Like
a muse for the writer, Oakley Hall thoughtfully leads us past the
sinkholes of cliches, flat prose, and self-conscious writing and guides
us toward the magic of vivid and original storytelling. ...An essential
resource for any writer -- beginning, published, or just plain stuck. --
Amy TanOakley Hall cites the works and methods of such great novelists
as John Steinbeck, Joyce Carol Oates, Leo Tolstoy, Agatha Christie and
Milan Kundera to show readers what works in the novel, and why. This
book features advice on taking a novel through each of its stages, from
the beginning of an idea to The End, and guides writers through the
process of writing a novel.
How
essential is setting to a story? How much description is too much? In
what ways do details and setting tie into plot and character
development? How can you use setting and description to add depth to
your story?
You can find all the answers you need in Write Great Fiction: Description & Setting by author and instructor Ron Rozelle. This nuts-and-bolts guide - complete with practical exercises at the end of each chapter - gives you all the tips and techniques you need to:
Establish a realistic sense of time and place
Use description and setting to drive your story
Craft effective description and setting for different genres
Skillfully master showing vs. telling
With dozens of excerpts from some of today's most popular writers, Write Great Fiction: Description & Setting gives you all the information you need to create a sharp and believable world of people, places, events, and actions.
You can find all the answers you need in Write Great Fiction: Description & Setting by author and instructor Ron Rozelle. This nuts-and-bolts guide - complete with practical exercises at the end of each chapter - gives you all the tips and techniques you need to:
Establish a realistic sense of time and place
Use description and setting to drive your story
Craft effective description and setting for different genres
Skillfully master showing vs. telling
With dozens of excerpts from some of today's most popular writers, Write Great Fiction: Description & Setting gives you all the information you need to create a sharp and believable world of people, places, events, and actions.
Learn step-by-step how to create fictional fights that leave the reader breathless with excitement.
The book gives you:
* A six-part structure to use as blueprint for your scene.
* Tricks how to combine fighting with dialogue
* Information about swords, daggers and other weapons, and suggestions how to write about them
It helps you to decide:
* What's the best weapon for your character
* Where the scene takes place
* Which senses to use, how and when
* How much violence your fight needs
and more.
The book gives you:
* A six-part structure to use as blueprint for your scene.
* Tricks how to combine fighting with dialogue
* Information about swords, daggers and other weapons, and suggestions how to write about them
It helps you to decide:
* What's the best weapon for your character
* Where the scene takes place
* Which senses to use, how and when
* How much violence your fight needs
and more.
“Long
live the King” hailed Entertainment Weekly upon publication of Stephen
King’s On Writing. Part memoir, part master class by one of the
bestselling authors of all time, this superb volume is a revealing and
practical view of the writer’s craft, comprising the basic tools of the
trade every writer must have. King’s advice is grounded in his vivid
memories from childhood through his emergence as a writer, from his
struggling early career to his widely reported, near-fatal accident in
1999—and how the inextricable link between writing and living spurred
his recovery. Brilliantly structured, friendly and inspiring, On Writing
will empower and entertain everyone who reads it—fans, writers, and
anyone who loves a great story well told.
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The
Elements of Style is the definitive text and classic manual on the
principles of English language read by millions of readers. The 18 main
topics are organized under the headings, “Elementary Rules of Usage,”
“Elementary Principles of Composition,” “A Few Matters of Form,” “Words
and Expressions Commonly Misused,” and “Words Often Misspelled.”
Robert McKee's screenwriting workshops have earned him an international reputation for inspiring novices, refining works in progress and putting major screenwriting careers back on track. Quincy Jones, Diane Keaton, Gloria Steinem, Julia Roberts, John Cleese and David Bowie are just a few of his celebrity alumni. Writers, producers, development executives and agents all flock to his lecture series, praising it as a mesmerizing and intense learning experience.
In Story, McKee expands on the concepts he teaches in his $450 seminars (considered a must by industry insiders), providing readers with the most comprehensive, integrated explanation of the craft of writing for the screen. No one better understands how all the elements of a screenplay fit together, and no one is better qualified to explain the "magic" of story construction and the relationship between structure and character than Robert McKee.
A deft analysis and appreciation of fiction―what makes it work and what can make it fail.
Here is a book about the craft of writing fiction that is thoroughly useful from the first to the last page―whether the reader is a beginner, a seasoned writer, or a teacher of writing. You will see how a work takes form and shape once you grasp the principles of momentum, tension, and immediacy. "Tension," Stern says, "is the mother of fiction. When tension and immediacy combine, the story begins." Dialogue and action, beginnings and endings, the true meaning of "write what you know," and a memorable listing of don'ts for fiction writers are all covered. A special section features an Alphabet for Writers: entries range from Accuracy to Zigzag, with enlightening comments about such matters as Cliffhangers, Point of View, Irony, and Transitions.
Get Your Readers' Attention—And Keep It—From the First World to the Final Page.
Translating that initial flash of inspiration into a complete story requires careful crafting. So how do you keep your story from beginning slowly, floundering midway, and trailing off at the end? Nancy Kress shows you effective solutions for potential problems at each stage of your story—essential lessons for strong start-to-finish storytelling.
- Hook readers, agents, and editors in the first three paragraphs.
- Make and keep your story's implicit promise to the reader.
- Build drama and credibility by controlling your prose.
- Consider the price a writer pays for flashbacks.
- Reveal character effectively throughout your story.
Get the tools you need to get your story off to an engaging start, keep the middle tight and compelling, and make your conclusion high impact.
* This is a guidebook for nonfiction, but I've included it because many of its great principles can apply to creative writing
On Writing Well has been praised for its sound advice, its clarity and the warmth of its style. It is a book for everybody who wants to learn how to write or who needs to do some writing to get through the day, as almost everybody does in the age of e-mail and the Internet.
Whether you want to write about people or places, science and technology, business, sports, the arts or about yourself in the increasingly popular memoir genre, On Writing Well offers you fundamental principles as well as the insights of a distinguished writer and teacher. With more than a million copies sold, this volume has stood the test of time and remains a valuable resource for writers and would-be writers.
* This is a guidebook for nonfiction, but I've included it because many of its great principles can apply to creative writing, and I have referred to it in my writing tips.
Engaging and direct, Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace is the guidebook for anyone who wants to write well.Engaging and direct, Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace is the guidebook for anyone who wants to write well.
Williams’ own clear, accessible style models the kind of writing that audiences–both in college and after–will admire. The principles offered here help writers understand what readers expect and encourage writers to revise to meet those expectations more effectively. This book is all you need to understand the principles of effective writing.
Happy reading ^_^
In other news, I do have several writerly blog posts in the works. This last week I started one on Mary Sues--that's been an interesting one to write.
Awesome list, September! I can't believe I've only read one (and a half) of these. Time to start expanding my education again. ;)
ReplyDeleteGreat list. I've read 4: The Art and Craft of Novel Writing, Elements of Style, The Emotion Thesaurus, and On Writing. I'd recommend one more that is more obscure, if you can find it. It's by Lucille Vaughn Payne, The Lively Art of Writing. One of my faves for developing voice. Thanks for the reminders to keep learning!
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