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I have been building a reference section of books to aid my writing. These books include: -'Characters and Viewpoint' and 'How to Write Sci-fi/fantasy' by OSC -'A Manual of Writers' Tricks' by David Carroll -'Zen in the Art of Writing' by Ray Bradbury -'On Writing' by Steven King -2004 Novel/Short Story Market -Dictionaries/Thesaurs. Each of these books has been utterably invaluable to me in writing my own book. Does anyone else have opinions of any good others? Posts: 12 | Registered: Feb 2011
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WRITING IN GENERAL AND THE SHORT STORY IN PARTICULAR, by Rust Hills, is one that made a difference for me.
Posts: 8826 | Registered: A Long Time Ago!
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I found 'Worlds of Wonder: How to write Science Fiction and Fantasy' by David Gerrold a very illuminating book, largely because it takes a very different course from most books on similar subjects, and is one of the few writing books I've found that touches on style in a way that connected with me.
It is also a fairly amusing read, which is IMHO essential for an instructive book :-)
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On Writing by Stephen King is very good and his best advice is of course. Don't sit around and read books about writing all day the only way to become a better writing is too read and even more importantly read.
Also Sometimes the magic works by Terry Brooks I have heard is pretty good but I haven't gotten around to reading that one yet.
[This message has been edited by Bone (edited January 05, 2004).]
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I've been on a binge of reading writing books, so I've got a few suggestions. OSCs books are both amazing... but going to assume if you're HERE you've already read those anyway. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott was really good and inspirational. The 7 steps on the writer's path was really good and very practically self-helpy for the writing neurosis. On Writing is phenominal, with anecdotal, inspirational and practical elements all wrapped into one book. "Sometimes the magic works" is pretty good, if a bit short and pretty similar to On Writing. Brooks has a different take on some things than King, but I put them in the same genre of writing books in my mind. I also think that For Writer's Only by Sophie Burnham was really inspirational for me. I've got more "in depth" reviews over on wordtrip.com
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I loved BIRD BY BIRD, by A.L., too! I pull it off the shelf just to flip open to whatever page, and boom!--I'm reminded of the heartbreak, sweeping highs, and everything in between, of being a writer.
Another book that "moved/inspired" me was FANTASISTS ON FANTASY. Can't tell you who wrote it or who published it, though. I only remember the title, plus lots of what was inside. (No doubt a quick Google search will tell all, but I haven't gotten that far today!)
Anyway, there's great advice in its pages, such as..."Fantasy does not destroy nor insult reason; it does not either blunt the appetite for, nor obscure the perception of, scientific verity. On the contrary the keener and the clearer is the reason, the better fantasy it will make."
That's but one of the quotes I scribbled into a notebook from it. I read it years ago, and remember it still today.
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'Fantasists on Fantasy' was edited by Robert H. Boyer and Kenneth J. Zahorski, and published by Avon (Discus). It's a book I've liked too (pulled it down off the shelf for the info, actually).
It's not exactly speculative and it's certainly fiction rather than how-to, but another one of my top writing books of all time would have to be Fay Weldon's 'Letters to Alice on first reading Jane Austen'. If you were scared off of Weldon by 'Life and Loves of a She Devil', this is about as far away as you could get. It's a fascinating look into the art of creation, and inspirational as well. Definitely worth a look if you're into Austen and run across a copy (sadly, it's out of print).
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Damon Knight's Creating Short Fiction has been a tremendous help to me, espeically in understanding the basic story materials you need (character, emotion, setting, and situation) before you can start writing. His comments on viewpoint are also quite helpful.
This leads me to a question for KATHLEEN. It's because of your recommendation that I read Knight, and so I'm very tempted to read Rust Hills. If you can state it up briefly, what's the difference? I'm kinda at the point where I'd rather be writing and reading fiction than reading about writing and fiction.
[This message has been edited by Balthasar (edited January 15, 2004).]
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