Writing Resources
Working as a professional writer, it’s been a few years since I’ve actively studied writing in terms of grammar, sentence structure, and more. Sometimes I look at something I’m working on and ask myself, “When did I forget how to do that?” One time I noticed I only use commas and don’t take risks with sentence variety like I used to. That’s fine, nothing inherently wrong, but it’s my job to keep studying, growing, and further polishing my technique.
Are you in the same boat? Are you looking for guidance or do you need somewhere to start? Welcome back to my Writing Wednesdays series (monthly posts) with a list of my writing resources and references.
Books on Writing
Grammatically Correct 2nd Edition by Anne Stilman:
This is the holy grail of all grammar and punctuation explanations. The most straight-forward, easy to digest information out there. Great for beginners, simple to refresh for others.
A Tutor’s Guide Second Edition by Ben Raforth:
It is exactly as it sounds. But these tips and stories helped me look at and strengthen my own writing. If you know how to be a good tutor and editor, it’ll only benefit and give more variety to your editing and writing skills.
The Art of Styling Sentences Fourth Edition by Longknife and Sullivan
Did you know one sentence can be written many ways? This book helps you learn a variety of structures and styles. Good stories are never written in sentences that are all in the same structure and length. That is boring!
Repetitive Example:
Ben went to the store. Ben bought milk. Ben paid the cashier. Ben felt happy. Ben was finished. Ben went home with his milk.
Example with Variety:
Ben went to the store. He was out of milk, so he wanted to get some. Finding the right milk, he picked it up and paid the cashier. Happy, Ben went home.
On Writing Well by William Zinsser 30th Anniversary Edition
The classic guide to writing nonfiction.
Rules for Writers by Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers
I use the 7th edition, but some programs have evolved to the 8th edition. It’s hard to get writers to change their ways when it comes to usage! Like Grammatically Correct, this is the literal Bible when it comes to writing. Essential.
That or Which, and Why by Evan Jenkins
I don’t know if I would have done well reading this one on my own. It’s a little complex. I want to dive into some of these rules in later WWWs to break them down and create examples. But it’s a lot of important rules to think about with situations like ‘that’ or ‘which’, ‘further’ VS ‘farther’, and more.
References
Writing requires lots of reading. The options are endless, but I wanted to suggest a few of my favorite references. I look for literary fiction, short stories, magical realism, and more.
Flannery O’Connor A Good Man is Hard to Find
Southern gothic, gritty real life, and crystal insight into the tragedies and wonders of being human.
Ethan Canin The Palace Thief
A series of long-form short stories that are each shorter than a novella. There are more conflicts, multiple rise-of-action sequences, and greater complexity of the characters involved. A high art.
Gabriella Garcia Marquez
The magical realism master.
The Scribner Anthology of Contemporary Short Fiction A great resource to read pieces by many different authors.
Writing Inspiration
When writing, I often reread and dive into stories that are written in the style and voice I want to master. Including the references I listed above, I frequent these author’s works to learn from their incredible works:
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen
Short Stories by Annie Proulx
A Guide to Being Born short stories by Ramona Ausubel
Strange Weather in Tokyo by Hiromi Kawakami
Colorful by Eto Mori
Ape House by Sara Gruen
The Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb
Please Look After Mom by Shin Kyung-sook
Conclusion
I hope some of these resources can be of some use to my readers. A good place to start is to look at local libraries or on websites such as Thriftbooks.com. You don’t have to break the bank gathering all these books.
As mentioned previously, good reading habits creates good writers. Reading is a great break from all the work too! Start exploring these options and be sure to drop some questions below if you are unsure about what books are the best for you. Share some of your favorite references and books as well!
Best,
Danni Lynn, Evangeline40003