3 Writing Books

Welcome to day one of this blog party!!! Are you excited?! I know I am! There is a quote hunt game thingy, a super awesome giveaway, and lots of good information all to celebrate and encourage writers in their quest to write the kind of books that bless people. Rebekah explains how everything works in her lovely introductory post here complete with the giveaway. 😀

But let’s get started. *hands out ice cream sandwiches* *cheers for no reason*

If we were to collect all the writing how-to books ever created and make a stack, it’d be taller than the Empire State Building and we’d probably die climbing down. How do I choose? 😀

Today in our countdown to writing, I’m sharing my three favorite writing books.

1. Writer to Writer: From Think to Ink by Gail Carson Levine

I love this author’s writing voice! She is both conversational and hilarious, giving writing lessons like a friendly mentor instead of a textbook teacher. I finished this book with new ideas and fresh enthusiasm to write. (Just a note for those of us who don’t plan on including magic in our stories–there is one chapter that I skipped.) 😀 You can read my longer review here.

2. The Elements of Style by William Strunk and E.B. White

I’m an E.B. White fangirl. With an almost blunt, down-to-earth writing style and the first name Elwyn what’s not to like? 😉 This little book is concise, authoritative, and thorough. I often refer to it as the final word on grammatical issues.

3. 5 Secrets of Story Structure by K.M. Weiland (happens to be FREE on Kindle right now!)

(Warning: this book does get a little technical.) It’s the “Wikipedia version” of her longer book Structuring Your Novel which I also highly recommend. (Except it’s cheating to sneak a fourth book in here. 😛 ) I first realized how important and doable outlining can be when I read this little gem! I reference it as I outline (and even during writing) just to make sure each part of the story is serving the right purpose. (Find my longer review here.)

Those are my favorite writing books! I hope you discover something encouraging and helpful to read. ;D

But wait–there’s more! 😀 Rebekah Morris and I have put together a short, inspiration book full of story starters, prompts, and style suggestions just for you. Click on the cover to download it. 😉

See you tomorrow and don’t forget to enter that awesome giveaway! Next stop on the blog party…