My
first children’s book, ME + MATH = HEADACHE, was published in 1986. Writing-wise, that means I’ve been around the
block (and over the river and through the woods and up and down the 101) more
than a few times. You’d
think after all these years, and all those miles, that I’d. Know. Everything.
Ha.
Truth
is, even with close to 30 published books, I’m still exploring and discovering
my characters, my craft, and myself.
With
a little help from my friends, family…and bookshelf.
Following
is a list of my favorite books that I dip into again and again, year after
year. They comfort and challenge me. They remind and rewind me. They help me to learn…and relearn.
Do
you see any of YOUR favorites here? Do
you have any you’d like to share? Please do!
ARISTOTLE'S POETICS
ART AND FEAR by David Bayles and Ted Orland
BIRD BY BIRD by Anne Lamott
IT’S A BUNNY-EAT-BUNNY WORLD by Olga Litowinsky
ON WRITING by Stephen King
POEM-MAKING by Myra Cohn Livingston
REAL REVISION by Kate Messner
SAVE THE CAT! by Blake Snyder
SECOND SIGHT: AN EDITOR'S TALKS ON WRITING, REVISING, AND PUBLISHING BOOKS FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS by Cheryl Klein
THE ART OF DRAMATIC WRITING by Lajos Egri
THE ART OF FICTION by John Gardner
THE ART OF FICTION by Ayn Rand
THE ARTIST'S WAY by Julia Cameron
THE CHILDREN'S WRITER'S AND ILLUSTRATOR'S MARKET (Writer's Digest Books)
THE PLOT WHISPERER by Martha Alderson
THE READ-ALOUD HANDBOOK by Jim Trelease
THE ZEN OF WRITING by Ray Bradbury
WRITING ALONE AND WITH OTHERS by Pat Schneider
WRITING THE BREAK-OUT NOVEL by Donald Maas
I love many of these, Lee. I particularly like your highlighting several lesser known ones, including Pat Schneider's WRITING ALONE AND WITH OTHERS. A good reminder to me to reread it.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Michael! My shelves are overflowing with books I could recommend...and a few I haven't read yet...and a few more that I need to reread...and...I think I need more bookshelves!
ReplyDeleteI've probably read half of these and need to look into the others. I'm looking forward to eventually reading Francine Prose's Reading Like a Writer.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this great list. There are a few here I hadn't heard of.
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