 |
||||||||||
|
The
Serious Writer's Toolbox, Part One: Books
Every
serious writer needs to read. Read
what, you might ask? Well,
everything. If you’re a fiction writer, it’s good to read books that
are similar to the genre(s) you write in so that you can see what’s
out, see what’s being published.
You can also read these works to pick up some pointers on style
and delivery. You might
also read these works to figure out what not do to if a story
gets bad press or reviews. I,
for example, read a lot of chick lit and mystery novels because
typically, these are the genres I write in. It’s
also good to read books on a barrage of topics.
I subscribe to architectural and travel magazines to help with
locations in stories. I buy
books or magazines on topics that might interests the characters I’m
writing about. These things
help me learn about the world and in the end, help me flesh out
“words” into “life.” Another,
equally important reason for the serious writer to read is to better his
or her craft. The best
thing I ever had to do was take a Form & Theory of Poetry course.
I credit that course in helping me learn about rhythm and sound
and “the word.” In this class, we read Paul Fussell’s Poetic Meter and
Poetic Form. By taking
this class, I developed a love for poetry and began buying collections
of Yeats, Whitman, Snodgrass…and I had already been in love with
Ntozake Shange, Sylvia Plath, and Anne Sexton.
Reading these works helped me with my style and with the sound of
my writing. Honing
your craft is an important aspect of being an “always” developing
writer, and while you are crafting that Great American Novel, you add a
new component to your learning experience:
you study the craft of publishing so that you can snare an agent
and eventually, an editor. There
are a slew of books published on writing and on how to get an agent.
Any bookstore’s reference section is full of them.
Though I have many of those books, there are a few that I always
go back to for tips and for that “writer’s block push” that
plagues every writer at some point.
Each of these books is highly regarded, not only in the industry,
but by aspiring to be published writers, too.
Check them out below. Next issue, I will talk about the “documents” that every serious writer should have at a minute’s notice. Click on each book cover to check the book out at AMAZON.COM!
Arguably,
the best book on style of all time.
It covers matters such as composition, grammar, word usage and
misusage, and writing style. No serious writer should be without this tiny, power-packed
book!
It
doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner or a professional writer,
everyone needs to get back to “the art of storytelling,” and James
Frey does just that in this book. This
book gives golden nuggets on all aspects of novel writing.
Whereas
Damn Good Novel, Part One, aided writers in the process of writing, Part
Two, uses the works of various authors to offer advanced studies in
techniques that aid in building suspense, creating fresher, more
interesting characters, and achieving greater reader sympathy, empathy,
and identification.
We
all have to do it at some point: self-edit.
Once that glorious book is done, we have to go back and revise
and edit and make the book shine. Editors
want to open an envelope and read a book that is well edited and devoid
of most, if not all, textual errors.
This book offers great exercises and examples of how to
critically edit your work in the hopes of bettering your chances of
getting that brass, publishing ring.
If
you want an agent, you should have this book.
Period. *Side note:
While you’re buying this book, check out the acknowledgments of
books that are written in the same genre as yours.
Often, authors thank their editors and agents.
Take out a pad, jot down names, and get to sleuthing on finding
addresses to these important people.
They might be the first ones you contact in searching of
publishing glory!
It’s the BIG THICK BOOK all aspiring to be published writers should own. It not only has invaluable information about book publishing, but it also has contact information for many magazine/journal publications, as well as information about awards and contests. Have a great article about gardening? There’s a magazine to submit to. Have a “true story” about the love that got away? There’s a magazine for it. Finished a suspense novel with a awesome, twisted ending? There’s an editor who’d like to read it. It really is a one-stop book for finding a publishing house for your novel or your article.
If you have questions about writing or an idea for an article
you'd like me to write for THE WRITE LIFE, please e-mail me at chickoflit@hotmail.com
and let me know. I'm always here to help the fellow writer.
Keep
Writing. TTFN:
Shon Bacon
Next: Article #6: The Serious Writer's Toolbox, Part Two: Documents |
|||||||||
