Helpful books

I like On Writing a lot, but to be honest, if you really want to learn you can probably learn more hanging out here and reading a lot of the arguments this crowd of dysfunctional misfit toys has to offer, myself included. I certainly did, no disrespect to King at all, but I learn better with multiple opinions phrased multiple ways, and there's a lot of info to be had here.

that is my recommendation, and since this isn't my home life, I can tell you that I am always right......

I like that one.
also: Self-Editing for Fiction Writers (Renni Browne and Dave King)

But the most important advice for someone looking to write a first novel is: Start writing! and read lots of novels.

You may have heard this before, but if you want to write, read! Seriously. The best advice I have ever had is to read books that are in the same genre or very similar to the book you want to write. Seeing how other people accomplish things you will struggle with in writing your book.

I have learned so much from reading examples of other people's writing, it's awesome.

On Writing is good, but it's as much a quasi-biography as it is a book on the craft. That's not to knock it at all, as it's very well done as a book.

But a book I'd suggest that's solely written as advice for how to write fiction better has to be The Art of War for Writers by James Scott Bell. Easy to read, bite-sized chapters, and tons of helpful advice. I picked it up completely by chance and fell in love with it. Highly recommended.

Prepare to be drowned, Shannon.

Depends what you feel you need to polish up on.

Reading novels of the type you wish to write - and noting how you are drawn into them and how your attention is held both in narrative and dialogue- is as good a way of learning as any.

But since you asked, Techniques of the Selling Writer by Dwight V Swain is an easy read for someone who thinks their tool box may benefit from the addition of tried and tested techniques for engaging readers.

Out of all the books I read on writing years ago, I liked Stephen King's On Writing the best.

And yep, this place is great for how to write and submit your work.

McKee's Story.
I have not found many writing books of value, but that one is.

Add Lukeman's The First Five Pages to your list.

The entire Elements of Fiction Writing series and the entire Write Great Fiction series are both indispensable. Noah Lukeman's books are all wonderful. Thanks, But This Isn't For Us by Jessica Page Morrell was incredibly helpful to me, as was Self-Editing for Fiction Writers. There's so many. . . . Here, I created a Listmania on Amazon.

Maryn said:

I imagine you'll get plentiful recommendations from people helped by books. I received several as gifts at one point, but I've found them interesting but not really applicable to me. I'd send you a small box but I think I've already passed them all on to others.

Do you think Plot and Structure will be useful? How? I don't mean this as a challenge, but honest curiosity. I've never figured out why I don't seem to benefit, so I'm interested in the process for those who get something from the books that I don't.

Maryn, perhaps just a bit thick

Click to expand...

I'm not the OP, but I found Plot and Structure helpful. I can write a pretty sentence, but I'm not so solid when it comes to telling a strong story. Breaking down the three-act structure, with an initial disturbance, going through the first doorway of no return, ramping up to the second doorway of no return, etc., helped me get a better picture of how I need to structure my books. I wander too much in my writing, and seem to have an aversion to antagonists, so the book helped me see where I may be going wrong.

I agree that writing and reading are the best ways to improve. Here, I found the Learn Writing With Uncle Jim thread to be fantastic. It's in the Novels forum. Also, giving critiques helps me see ways to improve my work. I learn a lot by critiquing others and reading through other peoples' critiques.

When looking to write anything, really, the first thing you must do, as most of the people above me have already suggested, is to read novels and to study the craft that way, just as much--if not more so--than reading books about the craft. I do, however, suggest reading Stephen King's book On Writing: A Memoir Of The Craft. That is a terrific book and King gives a lot of useful information about writing, what influenced him to write some of his most popular books, and he does so all the while including his sense of humor.

But more than that, I suggest you crack open as many novels as you can by different authors and get your brain exercised that way.

Good luck with the novel!

I really like Jack Hodgins book, "A Passion for Narrative," and Susan Bell's "The Artful Edit".

job said:

McKee's Story.
I have not found many writing books of value, but that one is.

Click to expand...

Story by Robert McKee is more aimed at screenwriters than novelists but I recommend it as the best survey/intro of the major subject areas of writing theory that is currently available. Whether theory books in general will really help anyone write a first novel is questionable, but I'd recommend this book to anyone who wants to start reading theory books or likes reading theory books.

Books will do you the most good if you've been writing for a while, so you can put their advice into some sort of context. Mostly, you learn about writing by reading and writing. Books on writing can turn into a means of procrastination.

Books on writing that I like to recommend:

Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird
Ray Bradbury's Zen in the Art of Writing
Natalie Goldberg's Writing Down the Bones

Really, though, I will say that every novel I've read has helped me in some way while writing a novel. Sometimes, it's just enough to know what drove me crazy reading a book, so I wouldn't write that kind of mistake myself!

What It Is by Lynda Barry is FANTASTIC. It's a reflection on writing, an analysis on what it means to write an image / what a mental image is and other writing tools, a statement about your inner critique and, in the back, several different very helpful writing exercises. This is a MUST HAVE. I love this book.

My grandson - thankyou. He's now three but silly old me never gets round to burrowing into the techs of changing the picture.

On Writing - I know it almost by heart, even though I don't like genre fiction or even King's novels. It's not so much educating, as inspiring. Nothing like it to make you want to sit down and write on.

I owe to it the great piece of advice that helped me immensely: write as fast as the gingerbread man runs, and worry about editing later.

Story and Bradbury's Zen - both great books, too.

I'd like to add one that wasn't mentioned thus far: No Plot? No Problem! by Chris Baty -- not very educating as well, but empowering like a Red Bull four-pack.

Self editing for fiction writers. A gem. Browne and King wrote a little classic. Especially valuable for beginners. Written by former editors and it shows.

The elements of style. A second gem, but with a different focus.

Writer's Little Helper by Jim Smith
I love how this is written. So helpful.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003YCQDF2/?tag=absowrit-20

I second all the people who say "On Writing." And, I don't really like Stephen King's books otherwise, but that one is awesome.

Another suggestion is Pat Conroy's "My Reading Life." I warn you, this is not a guidebook for really applicable steps like half of "On Writing," but it is a lot like the autobiographical part of King's book. But, he does tell a lot of great stories about his own writing career, and why he wrote what he did, while he also talks about what makes some of the classic "great" books great.

I didn't really get On Writing. I kinda enjoyed it but I didn't glean that much about the craft other than how King does it. I don't really care for Stephen King's books so I'm probably biased. I don't mind reading books by authors on how they write, but I generally just pick up a new tip on how to structure how I do my work.

The stuff on my shelf that I felt really helped to improve quality:

Techniques of the Selling Writer
An Audio book by Dwight Swain on writing

These two I've read a bunch and reference to when I'm stuck with how to move forward with the book or how to finish or what I should do in this scene. Reading through it keeps me on track. Learning how to move from scene to scene without making a train wreck has been very helpful. It covers plot and structure and really all the basics.

Self Editing for Fiction Writing

While this is good before you write, you should really save it for after you've written something. The structures are invaluable but it is a conscious editing. You learn how to word things better, and refine your novel into something that reveals what you have in your head better.

Those are the two big ones I would get again. And I've got a shelf dedicated to just writing books I've picked up.

On the publishing process itself:

Fiction by Michael Seidman
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0938817469/?tag=absowrit-20

I enjoyed sitting down with this one and getting to understand the basics of what I was supposed to do with the darn thing. It has been helpful. There's also the blog by Miss Snark and Anna Genoese (http://www.annagenoese.com/).

Beyond that, read books that you have enjoyed and study what you enjoy about them.

But despite what anyone here says, go to your library and pick up everything they have on fiction. What worked for me and what I loved may mean squat to someone else. I didn't care for Bird by Bird, it was too flowery for me. But other people love it and recommend it so it is all preference.

TLDR: Library, usually section 808.