As many of you know, there is a veritable mountain of a mess of How-to writing books out there. I have read many of them. In fact, I have read as many writing how-to books as times Billy Idol got action in the 80s when he was at his prime. So, while this list is by no means comprehensive or meant to function as the sole guide to writing books out there, it is just an effort to, as my dreadful second year social science class would put it, get rid of the disinformation out there, weed through the “garbage information” (to use Neil Postman’s term), and provide a functioning list of the books I think are actually helpful.

As a further aside, I rarely purchase writing books because a) they’re too damned expensive and b) they usually aren’t worth however much money you are supposed to pay because they’re good for reading once, maybe picking out the useful bits, and then giving it back to the library.

1) Chapter after Chapter by Heather Sellers. This is one of those books that is helpful not because it instructs you in technique, but because it deals with the emotional aspects of being a writer and how to maximize your productivity and regain your confidence when you’re in the pits. Highly recommended.

2) On Writing Horror, Revised Edition: A Handbook by the Horror Writers Associations Edited by Mort Castle. Not only does this book give a detailed, easy-to-follow account of how how the horror genre began and the state that it’s in now, but it also provides techniques, such as how not to fall prey to cliches and some good, common approaches to starting a short story or a novel. It also includes sections written by established horror authors like Ramsey Campbell, as well. Highly recommended.

3) The Novelist’s Guide by Margret Geraghty. This is a bit tougher to find, so I would recommend that you go to the library for this one. Geraghty does an excellent job of summarizing the most common conventions a good novel should have and how to go about creating them; things like plot, narrative, dialogue, characterization, description, etc. She pretty much encompasses it all in a very accessible format, so this book comes very highly recommended.

4) Series: all of the books in the Writer’s Digest Write Great Fiction series, including “Characters, Emotion, and Viewpoint,” by Nancy Kress (if you see a writing reference book by this lady, buy it, because she knows what she’s talking about), “Description and Setting,” by Ron Rozelle, “Plot & Structure” by James Scott Bell (this guy is also pretty trustworthy in terms of quality advice), “Dialogue” by Gloria Kempton (this book is the bible of how to get dialogue right).

5) Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card. What can I say? The man knows how to deliver a useful how-to book. He is very concise, yet he gives you the right information that you need to know. You’re not wasting your money if you buy one of Card’s how-to books. Highly recommended.

6) Beginnings, Middles, and Ends by Nancy Kress. This one is okay if you’re having issues with structure, how to start a story or how to finish it, or indeed how to resolve issues if you’re stuck in the middle.

7) Portable MFA in Creative Writing by the New York Writer’s Workshop: this book eliminates all need for spending $50,000 on an MFA in Creative Writing, which I find amusing and delightful (for those of you who know me personally, you know my negative stance on writing programs such as these. Some workshops are excellent and highly recommended, but an MFA–not so much).

Beginning writers, this one’s for you: Writing Fiction: The Practical Guide from New York’s Acclaimed Creative Writing School, by the Gotham Writers Group. I strongly recommend this book for anyone who wants a “Complete Idiot’s Guide to Writing Technique” but wants something a bit more comprehensive and detailed than the Complete Idiot’s Guide, which is actually excellent if you want to learn about the publishing industry, how it works, and how contracts, for example, work. This book by the Gotham Writers uses the approach of explaining a movie plot to a ten year-old child, and it works. If you want to just start from scratch and examine the basic elements of writing fiction, this is the book for you. It allots an equal amount of time to each section, such as plot, dialogue, narrative, characterization, etc. Strongly recommended, especially for beginning writers.

9) Lori Perkins, “Insider’s Guide to Getting an Agent.” Not only does this book accurately describe what being an agent entails, it describes the process by which writers should go about getting an agent, potentially, and it’s a frank, witty account of the business. Highly Recommended

10) Beginning Writers Answer Book by Jane Friedman. This one needs no explanation; it’s pretty straightforward. I recommend it strongly to anyone who is just starting out and wants a better idea about how things work. Highly Recommended

11) Guerrilla Marketing for Writers by Jay Conrad Levinson. This is another one of those books that every writer MUST have. Promotion is the only way you’re ever going to let people know you’re out there. Highly Recommended

12) Raymond Obstfeld’s Novelist’s Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes

13) The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing by Meg Leder, Jack Heffron

14) Breathing Life into your Characters (somewhat recommended) by Rachel Ballon. This one is decent if you need help with characterization.

15) Formatting and Submitting your Manuscript by Cynthia Laufenberg (pretty self-explanatory). One of the better how to format books.

16) First Draft in Thirty Days by Karen Wiesner. I don’t recommend this because it teaches you how to write a book in thirty days (it doesn’t) but because it forces you to sit there and outline and it truly maximizes your productivity. I used to struggle with how to go about plotting and outlining a book, and this truly helped me maximize the use of my time and energies. It also has very efficient tools inside that let you plot out climactic moments on a chart, i.e. “When Johnny gets shot in Part Two near page 220″ Highly Recommended.

17) Story Structure Architect by Victoria Lynn Schmidt. This book is vital to the comprehension of how plot works. It deals with backstory, how much to divulge and when, and how to integrate it subtly in a book, what to do about exposition particularly when it’s tricky, how to write flashbacks and dream sequences, and a whole host of other techniques that every writer should have at his or her fingertips. Highly recommended.

18) Give ‘Em What They Want by Blythe Cameson and Marshall J. Cook. This book is VITAL for every writer to have so that if you ever have the opportunity to pitch to a big-time editor or agent in person, which is preferrable particularly for agents, you know what to do and what to say, as I did when I met Betsy Mitchell of Del Rey. The book also contains a good chapter on how to write effective query letters and synopses, which ones work and why, and also on which publication option is the best for you based on the evidence presented–small press, big 5, self-publishing, etc.

Some good books on how to write science fiction and fantasy:

I would like to preface this section by saying that there aren’t many good “How-to” books in the sf-f category. The only real way to learn how to write good sf and f is (and yes, I realize that I sound like a dorky schoolmarm spinster librarian here), as sad as the truth of the matter is, to read good sf-f and to really study it. I’m not talking about you sitting at your desk analysing a Terry Brooks novel for its literary merit or its use of theme, but rather sit down with a pencil and as you are reading, just start out simple: circle anything that you think is a good technique (i.e. ‘Good use of characterisation to show that the character is lonely and not just tell us), nice description, new terminology for you that you always wondered what the name for something was (i.e. parapets, a portcullis, gauntlets, vambraces, etc), effective use of dialogue, etc. Similarly, go through novels with this same approach, this time highlighting everything you thought could have used improvement, i.e. trite or anachronistic dialogue, poor characterization, telling and not showing (which is sometimes appropriate, but this is generally rare), using excessive backstory or too much exposition which bogs down the text and makes it boring for the reader, who puts the book away and takes out a more exciting one.

All that said, here are some of the few books on sf-f writing that are actually helpful:

1) “How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy,” by Orson Scott Card. Not only is he qualified to write this book as a paragon of both genres, but Card does a good job conveying to his readers the necessary elements of what makes a good sci-fi or fantasy novel. Highly recommended.

2) “The Writer’s Complete Fantasy Reference,” by Writer’s Digest Books. This is a good book if you’ve always wondered what a chimera is or who slew it, or if you’ve always wondered what a broadsword is and how it’s different from an epee. Although no book, in my view at least, can replace or let you somehow skip over reading, familiarising yourself with, and internalising Greek, Celtic, Egyptian, Norse, etc myths, this one holds some pretty good answers if you’re stuck trying to remember, for example, who that lady is with the snakes in her hair that turned people to stone (a: Medusa).

3) The Complete Guide to Writing Fantasy by Tom Dullemond. Listen closely, dear children–ALL FANTASY WRITERS MUST HAVE THIS BOOK and must have read it. It is the most comprehensive guide to all aspects of writing in the genre, including how to do combat scenes properly, martial arts scenes, magic, worldbuilding, and even the ever-expanding genre of humor fantasy. If you don’t already have a copy, buy one now! You have no idea what you’re missing out on!

4) The Fantasy Writer’s Companion, by Tee Morris and Valerie Griswold-Ford. See number 3 above.

5) The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, by John Clute and John Grant. It’s a bit of a bigger one, but this is useful if you ever want to look up who wrote Stalking Tender Prey, for instance (the answer is Storm Constantine, by the way, although I’m unsure if this compendium would include her in a listing).

Finally, these are books that will enhance your comprehension of mythical beasts, figures, demons, and other things you will no doubt have to research to portray accurately in your fiction:

1) Katherine Ramsland, The Science of Vampires. If you are writing a novel involving vampires, this pretty much sums up all the myths involving the creatures of the night and it also gives case studies of people who were thought to be vampires, and cases of medical conditions that resemble vampirism, such as porphyria.

2) Gustav Davidson’s Dictionary of Angels. This is my bible. I can’t live without it. From Ariel to Zephon, this book lists every known angel and fallen angel name ever and gives you a detailed account in most cases of the origins of the name and of the angel.

3) The Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves, and Other Monsters by Rosemary Guiley. She is a respected person in the field, and she really knows what she’s talking about. Also see her books on witchcraft.

4) The Vampire Book: An Encyclopedia of the Undead by J Gordon Melton

5) Encyclopedia of Demons and Devils by Timothy Brown and James W. Ward; pretty self explanatory

6) Gods, Demi-gods, and Demons by Bernard Evslin (pretty self explanatory)

7) The Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religions by James R. Lewis

Asian Horror Encyclopedia: Asian Horror Culture in Literature, Manga, and Folklore by Laurence Bush

9) Myths of the East: Dragons, Demons and Dybbuks : An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Eastern Mythology from Egypt to Asia by Rachel Storm

10) Medieval France: An Encyclopedia (Routledge Encyclopedias of the Middle Ages) by William Kibler

11) The Celtic Encyclopedia, Vol. 2 by Harry Mountain

12) Encyclopedia Of Wicca & Witchcraft by Raven Grimassi

13) Fantasy Encyclopedia by Judy Allen, Richard Hook, Jonathon Stroud, and John Howe

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