Writing Books and Sites
There is no shortage of “how-to” writing books. I’ve read more of them than times Billy Idol got action in the 80s (A LOT). This list is by no means comprehensive or meant to function as the sole guide to writing books out there (other authors will recommend what works for them), it is just an effort to provide a functioning list of the writing books that are gems.
“Writing the Breakout Novel” by Donald Maass. Of all the writing books I’ve read, this is the best, because not only does Mr. Maass tell the reader the qualities of breakout fiction and insights into what he likes seeing in submissions and what he doesn’t like to see, he also identifies what truly separates those books that people rave about with exclamations of, “You have to read this” from those that they skim the back covers of and scoff, “Seen it before.” It covers all the essentials that new and established authors need to know, and it’s a must-read for anyone trying to break in to the fiction market, particularly for commercial fiction.
“The Fire in Fiction” by Donald Maass. It’s a 2009 release, hot off the presses, and once more, Mr. Maass delves into the reasons behind the successes of breakout fiction through examples and his commentaries, as well as revealing further insights into what he sees too much of in submissions to his agency and what he would like to see more of.
“The Successful Novelist” by David Morrell. Mr. Morrell covers everything you could ever possibly want to know about what publishing is really like, the fiction market, how to make your manuscript stand out, and a lifetime of lessons he’s learned from, including how to overcome writer’s block. He writes in a very friendly, casual style that’s informative at the same time and you really learn from what he has to say. Listen to this man. He knows what he’s talking about.
Chapter after Chapter by Heather Sellers. This is one of those books that is helpful not because it instructs you in technique, but because it deals with the emotional aspects of being a writer and how to maximize your productivity and regain your confidence when you’re in the pits.
On Writing Horror, Revised Edition: A Handbook by the Horror Writers Associations, Edited by Mort Castle. Not only does this book give a detailed, easy-to-follow account of how how the horror genre began and the state that it’s in now, but it also provides techniques, such as how not to fall prey to cliches and some good, common approaches to starting a short story or a novel. It also includes sections written by established horror authors like Ramsey Campbell, as well. Highly recommended.
The Novelist’s Guide by Margret Geraghty. This is a bit tougher to find, so I would recommend that you go to the library for this one. Geraghty does an excellent job of summarizing the most common conventions a good novel should have and how to go about creating them; things like plot, narrative, dialogue, characterization, description, etc. She pretty much encompasses it all in a very accessible format, so this book comes very highly recommended.
Series: all of the books in the Writer’s Digest Write Great Fiction Series, including “Characters, Emotion, and Viewpoint,” by Nancy Kress (if you see a writing reference book by her, buy it, because she knows what she’s talking about), “Description and Setting,” by Ron Rozelle, “Plot & Structure” by James Scott Bell (this guy is also pretty trustworthy in terms of quality advice), “Dialogue” by Gloria Kempton (this book is the bible of how to get dialogue right).
Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card. What can I say? The man knows how to deliver a useful how-to book. He is very concise, yet he gives you the right information that you need to know. You’re getting your money’s worth if you buy one of Card’s how-to books. Highly recommended.
Beginnings, Middles, and Ends by Nancy Kress. This one is okay if you’re having issues with structure, how to start a story or how to finish it, or indeed how to resolve issues if you’re stuck in the middle.
Portable MFA in Creative Writing by the New York Writer’s Workshop: this book introduces some interesting elements involved in taking an actual MFA program in Creative Writing. Although there are mixed opinions as to whether or not doing one is actually necessary, this is a useful guide to the teaching of fiction.
Beginning writers, this one’s for you: Writing Fiction: The Practical Guide from New York’s Acclaimed Creative Writing School, by the Gotham Writers Group. I strongly recommend this book for anyone who wants a “Complete Idiot’s Guide to Writing Technique” but wants something a bit more comprehensive and detailed than the Complete Idiot’s Guide, which is actually excellent if you want to learn about the publishing industry, how it works, and how contracts, for example, work. This book by the Gotham Writers uses the approach of explaining a movie plot to a ten year-old child, and it works. If you want to just start from scratch and examine the basic elements of writing fiction, this is the book for you. It allots an equal amount of time to each section, such as plot, dialogue, narrative, characterization, etc. Strongly recommended.
Lori Perkins, “Insider’s Guide to Getting an Agent.” Not only does this book accurately describe what being an agent entails, it describes the process by which writers should go about getting an agent, potentially, and it’s a frank, witty account of the business by one of the top agents in the field. Highly Recommended.
Beginning Writers Answer Book by Jane Friedman. This one needs no explanation; it’s pretty straightforward. I recommend it strongly to anyone who is just starting out and wants a better idea about how things work. Highly Recommended
Guerrilla Marketing for Writers by Jay Conrad Levinson. This is another one of those books that every writer MUST have. Good promotion can make a large difference between good and poor sales. Highly Recommended.
Raymond Obstfeld’s Novelist’s Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes
Another more useful book on scenes is Make a Scene by Jordan Rosenfeld. I thoroughly enjoyed this one, and you will, too.
The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing by Meg Leder, Jack Heffron
Breathing Life into your Characters (somewhat recommended) by Rachel Ballon. This one is decent if you need help with characterization.
Formatting and Submitting your Manuscript by Cynthia Laufenberg (pretty self-explanatory). One of the better how to format books.
First Draft in Thirty Days by Karen Wiesner. I recommend this book not because it teaches you how to write a book in thirty days (it doesn’t) but because it forces you to sit there and outline and it truly maximizes your productivity. I used to struggle with how to go about plotting and outlining a book, and this helped me maximize the use of my time and energy. It also has very efficient tools inside that let you plot out climactic moments on a chart, i.e. “When Johnny gets shot in Part Two near page 220″ Highly Recommended.
Story Structure Architect by Victoria Lynn Schmidt. This book is vital to the comprehension of how plot works. It deals with backstory, how much to divulge and when, and how to integrate it subtly in a book, what to do about exposition particularly when it’s tricky, how to write flashbacks and dream sequences, and a whole host of other techniques that every writer should have at his or her fingertips. Highly recommended.
Give ‘Em What They Want by Blythe Cameson and Marshall J. Cook. This book is vital for every writer to have so that if you ever have the opportunity to pitch to a big-time editor or agent in person, which is preferrable particularly for agents, you know what to do and what to say, as I did during my meetings with editors at conventions. The book also contains a good chapter on how to write effective query letters and synopses, which ones work and why, and also on which publication option is the best for you based on the evidence presented–small press, big 5, self-publishing, etc.
Series: “The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror” edited by Stephen Jones. Although an anthology of short stories, it contains a very useful guide in the form of the introduction, which chronicles all that went on in the worlds of horror, fantasy, and science fiction with an emphasis on horror, in all media, including books, film, television, and so on.
Books on How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy:
The only real way to learn how to write good sci-fi, fantasy, and horror (and yes, I realize that I sound like a schoolmarm here) is to read good sf-f-h and study it. I’m not talking about you sitting at your desk analysing a Terry Brooks novel for its literary merit or its use of theme. Sit down with a pencil and as you are reading, start out simply: circle anything you think is a good technique (i.e. ‘Good use of characterisation to show that the character is lonely and not just tell us), nice description, new terminology for you that you always wondered what the name for something was (i.e. parapets, a portcullis, gauntlets, vambraces, etc), effective use of dialogue, etc. Highlight everything you thought could have used improvement, i.e. trite or anachronistic dialogue, poor characterization, telling and not showing (which is sometimes appropriate, but this is rare), using excessive backstory or too much exposition which bogs down the text. Incidentally, there is a book that details this called Reading Like a Writer by Francise Prose.
Without further ado, here is the list:
“How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy” by Orson Scott Card. Not only is he qualified to write this book as a paragon of both genres, but Card does a good job conveying to his readers the necessary elements of what makes a good sci-fi or fantasy novel. Highly recommended.
“The Writer’s Complete Fantasy Reference” by Writer’s Digest Books. This is a good book if you’ve always wondered what a chimera is or who slew it, or if you’ve always wondered what a broadsword is and how it’s different from an epee. Although no book, in my view at least, can replace or let you somehow skip over reading, familiarising yourself with, and internalising Greek, Celtic, Egyptian, Norse, etc myths, this one holds some pretty good answers if you’re stuck trying to remember, for example, who that lady is with the snakes in her hair that turned people to stone (a: Medusa).
The Complete Guide to Writing Fantasy by Tom Dullemond. Byfar the most useful book of the three that are available in the series, published by Edge and Dragon Moon Press. It is the most comprehensive guide to all aspects of writing in the genre, including how to do combat scenes properly, martial arts scenes, magic, worldbuilding, and even the ever-expanding genre of humor fantasy. If you don’t already have a copy, you should get one right away.
The Fantasy Writer’s Companion, by Tee Morris and Valerie Griswold-Ford. See number 3 above.
The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, by John Clute and John Grant. It’s a bit of a bigger one, but this is useful if you ever want to look up who wrote Stalking Tender Prey, for instance (the answer is Storm Constantine, by the way, although I’m unsure if this compendium would include her in a listing).
*** A final note: If you write speculative fiction, you must know your monsters like the back of your hand. The following is a list of some of the books that I have found most useful in my research. I know, I know, it sounds funny–researching what’s make believe, right? To a certain extent, yes. But you need to know the interpretations of succubi in different cultures if that’s what you’re writing about. Above all, read. Know who has done what before you, when, and how it was received. Also, watch television and films. Know what Supernatural is doing now. Know what Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel have done. Know what Charmed has done, and so on. ***
Katherine Ramsland, The Science of Vampires. If you are writing a novel involving vampires, this pretty much sums up all the myths involving the creatures of the night and it also gives case studies of people who were thought to be vampires, and cases of medical conditions that resemble vampirism, such as porphyria.
Natural History of the Vampire by Anthony Masters. He was a master of writing about the occult. A must for anyone writing about vampires.
Maya Deren’s Divine Horsemen is an insightful glimpse into Haitian vodou, but keep in mind that the information is told from the position of a privileged, middle-class, educated White woman. For a better look at voodoo, read The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Voodoo by Shannon R. Turlington–it’s the most useful book on voodoo out there.
Gustav Davidson’s Dictionary of Angels. This is my bible. I can’t live without it. From Ariel to Zephon, this book lists every known angel and fallen angel name ever and gives you a detailed account in most cases of the origins of the name and of the angel.
The Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves, and Other Monsters by Rosemary Guiley. She is a respected person in the field, and she really knows what she’s talking about. Also see her books on witchcraft, angels, and saints.
The Vampire Book: An Encyclopedia of the Undead by J Gordon Melton
Encyclopedia of Demons and Devils by Timothy Brown and James W. Ward; pretty self explanatory
Gods, Demi-gods, and Demons by Bernard Evslin (pretty self explanatory)
The Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religions by James R. Lewis
Asian Horror Encyclopedia: Asian Horror Culture in Literature, Manga, and Folklore by Laurence Bush
Myths of the East: Dragons, Demons and Dybbuks : An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Eastern Mythology from Egypt to Asia by Rachel Storm
The Encyclopedia of Hell by Miriam Van Scott
The Celtic Encyclopedia, Vol. 2 by Harry Mountain
Encyclopedia Of Wicca & Witchcraft by Raven Grimassi
Fantasy Encyclopedia by Judy Allen, Richard Hook, Jonathon Stroud, and John Howe
