Books about writing

Most people are familiar with Stephen King’s book On Writing. Perhaps the fact that it was written by one of the most successful fiction writers of our time has helped its popularity. (Not only did it sell phenomenally well, it was listed in 'The New Classics: Books - The 100 best reads from 1983 to 2008' by Entertainment Weekly.) But King’s is only one of the many thousands of books out there on writing, so any budding author should be able to find something to suit their style. Here are just three writing books on offer.

The Little Red Writing Book by Mark Tredinnick
The beauty of this book is that it is possible to read it as a non-writer and still enjoy Mark Tredinnick’s lyrical style. It’s full of practical advice and also really good writing – the best way to learn how to write well is to read good writing, right?

Mark Tredinnick has many years experience as an editor as well as a writer so he certainly has the background for teaching writing. For me, as a non-writer, I found the book practical without it feeling like I was reading a text book.

Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the writer within by Natalie Goldberg
This one was recommended to me by a friend who is writing her PhD. For those in the know, it’s considered a classic text for writers. Natalie Goldberg is a creative writing teacher and Zen practitioner. The book was written in 1986 and has sold over one million copies worldwide.

This book is less of a technical tome on the task of writing and more a spiritual exploration of creativity as a whole. There are practical writing exercises throughout the book but they don’t have the disciplined approach you might find in other books about writing. Obviously Goldberg’s expertise in Zen influence her views on writing and creativity, so be prepared for some new-agey type theories here. But the book comes highly recommended and all the reviews I read online were positive.

Writing From Start to Finish by Kate Grenville
Kate Grenville has written four books on the process of writing, including one with fellow author Sue Woolfe. You could do a lot worse than take advice from Kate Grenville - she is writer-in-residence and Honorary Associate at the University of Sydney and has a doctorate in Creative Writing from UTS, so she really knows her stuff. She has published five novels and won a number of prestigious prizes for her work, including the Orange Prize for The Idea of Perfection in 2001. 

Writing from Start to Finish was also published in 2001. This is a practical guide to writing and outlines Kate’s own Six-Step-Method – gather ideas, choose the best one, make an outline, write a first draft, revise, and edit. The book is easy to follow with each step given its own chapter, which is then split into three sections – About, Example and Doing It. The book also includes a basic grammar and punctuation guide. It’s a book for everyone – experienced writers or those new to the craft, classes or individuals, poets, screenwriters or writers of fiction.

These are three very different approaches to writing and each one will benefit different people in different ways. Of course, I don’t claim to be an expert and if anyone out there can suggest a book on writing that they think should be part of any writers library, I’d love to hear from you. 

                          

Comments

[petal]

you are awesome. I love the insight you give in your blogs.

[Elizabeth]

I love Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird ... she gives such illuminating insights and advice about the life of a writer. It's not just technique, but about the emotional life of the writer as well. I love her chapter on jealousy for one! It made me realise that I'm not the only one with the green-eyed monster perched on my shoulder!

[Danielle Williams]

Thanks for the recommendation Elizabeth. I'll check it out. The chapter on jealousy certainly sounds interesting!