Whether you're a veteran writer or new to the craft, these books offer wisdom to help overcome hurdles and spark inspiration.


Compiled by:
Morning W.
Bird by bird: some instructions on writing and life

Anne Lamott
808.02 Lam

Lamott offers a gift through this book, a step-by-step guide on how to write and on how to manage the writer's life. If you have ever wondered what it takes to be a writer, what it means to be a writer, what the contents of your school lunches said about what your parents were really like, this book is for you.


How dare we! write: a multicultural creative writing discourse

Sherry Quan Lee
- editor
810.8092 How

The authors of this book challenge the reader to consider what it means to work through resistance from supposed mentors, to face rejection from publishers and classmates, and to stand against traditions that silence people.


Mastering the process: from idea to novel

Elizabeth George
808.3 Geo

This book is great for those who are wanting to add more structure to their creative writing process. It includes practical advice and explicit descriptions of the author's process.


No plot? No problem!: a low-stress, high-velocity guide to writing a novel in 30 days

Chris Baty
808.3 Bat

NaNoWriMo founder Chris Baty gives pep talks and strategies for writing a novel while empathizing with the various emotional stages of writing during NaNoWriMo.


On writing: a memoir of the craft

Stephen King
800.92 King Kin

Part memoir, part master class by one of the bestselling authors of all time, this superb volume is a revealing and practical view of the writer's craft, comprising the basic tools of the trade every writer must have.


Self-editing for fiction writers: how to edit yourself into print

Renni Browne, Dave King
808.3 Bro

Want to make your manuscript worthy of publication? Chapters on dialogue, exposition, point of view, interior monologue, and other techniques take you through the same processes an expert editor would go through to perfect your manuscript.


Steering the craft: a twenty-first century guide to sailing the sea of story

Ursula K. Le Guin
808.02 Leg

This book is short but precise in its advice, including a rare emphasis on certain elements of creative writing such as voice, perspective, sentence length and complex syntax, and indirect narration.


Story genius : how to use brain science to go beyond outlining and write a riveting novel

Lisa Cron
808.3 Cro

This book describes how story structure is built into the architecture of the brain and shows writers how to plumb the nitty-gritty details of their raw idea to organically generate a story scene by scene.


The true secret of writing: connecting life with language

Natalie Goldberg
808.042 Gol

This book combines the writing life with spiritual practice through memoir and instruction.


Wonderbook: the illustrated guide to creating imaginative fiction

Jeff VanderMeer
808.3 Van

This guide to writing imaginative fiction takes an artistic approach and exploits the visual nature of fantasy through original drawings, maps, and exercises to create a beautiful and inspiring work. It energizes and motivates while also providing practical, nuts-and-bolts information needed to improve as a writer.