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Helpful Books/Sites


  • Barbara
    Nov 14 6:50 AM 2007
    Reply
    Anyone have any helpful books that they use for writing? I don't mean the dictionary, or thesaurus, but ones specifically designed for writing in their chosen genre.

    A couple years ago, I picked up a hard cover copy of "Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy" by Crawford Kilian. It's a wonderful book that has a lot of good information. There's also sections on selecting an agent, publisher, etc... and a fictious 'timeline' on a published book... kind of interesting, and a slight downer when you realize that it's true (two years in print, out of print, basically less than 10,000 total for those two years in royalties)


    If you dont' have a book you use, are there any web sites on writing that you have bookmarked and visit so many times that the advertisers should be paying *you*? (no 'competiting sites', please )

  • GuitarShank
    November 14, 2007
    Reply
    The best book I've gotten on writing is "How to Write a Damn Good Novel" by James N. Frey. It's humorous to keep it from being dry and it gives lots of information on novel-writing in any genre.

    Another one I use contains A-Z sections on oft-confused words and how to use certain things in a story (including a fairly long section dedicated to commas). That one is called "How to Say It: Style Guide" by Rosalie Maggio.

    Oh, and the best advice I've found in the first book is this:

    "With straightforward narrative you may be able to create in the reader's imagination a visual image of a character, but the character will spring to life only when he is put to the test, when he is forced to make a decision and act."

    I wish more people would realize this instead of starting the story with a long biography on a character detailing every nook and cranny of their personality so the reader doesn't have to discover their personality on their own.

    • CactusJack
      November 16, 2007
      Reply
      "With straightforward narrative you may be able to create in the reader's imagination a visual image of a character, but the character will spring to life only when he is put to the test, when he is forced to make a decision and act."
      I just had to repeat that because it's great advice. I must go apply it now!

  • yoshi97
    November 15, 2007
    Reply
    "Hooked" by Les Edgerton will help you get a great start to your story.

    "Conflict, Action, & Suspence" by William Noble is a small but useful bible to writing really good scenes.

  • Elisabeth
    December 16, 2007
    Reply
    A book I like is called: "The Little Red Writing Book" by Mark Tredinnick. It's printed by University of New South Wales here in Australia.
    It's easy to read and understand, has a lot of very good points that are easy to apply to your writing.
    It's also an entertaining read. There are exercises to do if you wish.

  • Barbara
    January 6
    Reply
    I found an interesting sites this morning.

    http://www.absolutewrite.com/novels/10_steps.htm (10 Steps to Being Published) ,.... when reading, it seems obvious, but a lot of people miss out on a lot of hte advice.


  • Myryca
    February 1
    Reply
    Ian Irvine has a lot of good information on his site http://www.ian-irvine.com/

    You'll have to click on "Truth About Publishing", "Writing Tips" and "Guide To Success" to get to it.

  • Barbara
    February 2
    Reply
    http://www.plagiarismchecker.com/
    Interesting site, it uses Google to check for your work, and see if anyone has copied and posted it.

  • yoshi97
    February 5
    Reply
    www.publishersmarketplace.com is a good place to go scouting for agents.

  • Andy Stephenson
    February 7
    Reply

    Writer's Market

    The Writer's Market offers an on-line service which has been very helpful to me. It lists publishers and agents: What they pay, require, the genres of material they want, response time, etc. There are over 6,000 publishers and agents listed. I believe they offer a free thirty day trial.

    This site also organizes your queries, manuscripts you have sent out, etc.

    There are also helpful articles. It is a writer's tool.

    http://www.writersmarket.com/


  • Bitter Irony
    February 8
    Reply
    Orson Scott Card's "How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy." I cannot recomend it highly enough.

    • GuitarShank
      February 8
      Reply
      I saw that one... almost picked it up... then didn't

      I was low on money at the time lol. He's the author of Ender's Game, that's all I know.

      I still find How To Write A Damn Good Novel extremely helpful for not only its material, but because it's humorous.

  • yoshi97
    February 9
    Reply
    Mr. Card is also a great short story writer.

    • Myryca
      February 11
      Reply
      Orson Scott Card has some great ideas, true, but there are some really (and I mean really really) weird short stories he's written though.
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