This Stubborn World: Recommended Creative Writing Books

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February 2007

August 13, 2005

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Recommended Creative Writing Books

I leave tomorrow for Barga, Tuscany where I'll be teaching and coaching for Artemisia Holidays link and as I'll be spending tonight packing, my mind is partly on creative writing resources and my favourite books about the writing process. So I thought it would be fun to take my leave with a list of the books that have been most useful to me both for my own writing and as a teacher of creative writing. What follows will be by no means exhaustive but it certainly includes those titles that have most influenced my learning about writing fiction (for the purposes of this list, I'll exclude screenwriting). I'd be most interested to get further recommendations and would much appreciate it if fellow writers might add their favourites here so I might return from Barga to more inspiration...

So, here it is:

The Agony and the Ego - The Art and Strategy of Fiction Writing Explored Edited by Clare Boyland (Penguin) - I love this book, it is full of wonderful interviews with established authors and is full of fascinating insights into their creative processes.

The Right to Write - Julia Cameron - This is an essential companion to any writer. If you loved 'The Artist's Way' and you write, this is even more fascinating. If you are blocked, it gets you unblocked. If you feel frustrated by the writing business, it removes your frustration. It reminded me of why I write in the first place.

Becoming a Writer - Dorothea Brande (Macmillan) - Yes, that old favourite. Still holds its own. This one was immensely infuential to me when I began writing

The Red Notebook - Paul Auster - Auster is one of my favourite writers so naturally this collection of his essays and musings on his creative processes is one that I return to frequently.

Writing Down the Bones - Freeing the Writer Within - Natalie Goldberg - ( Shambhala). Goldberg's classic is great on the subject of writing without self-consciousness/censorship; for that I love it.

Bird by Bird - Anne Lamott - First lent to me by novelist friend Louise Voss, link, this is a great one to curl up with; reminds you that much can be achieved by writing in small increments.

The Writers at Work Series (The Paris Review Interviews) - edited by George Plimpton or Malcolm Cowley (depending on which volume you get). Malcolm Bradbury first recommended these to me when I studied at UEA. The interviews are a rich resource for all writers.

Paris Review Interviews - Women writers at work (Harvill £9.99) - an anthology of the Writer's at Work Series

The Writer’s Chapbook, edited by George Plimpton. (Penguin 1992) - an anthology of pithy quotes from the Writer's at Work series, arranged by subject.

Writing as a Way of Healing - Louise DeSalvo - Gets to the heart of the subject of writing autobiography and how telling our stories can be a transformative process.

The Creative Writing Coursebook - edited by Julia Bell & Paul Magrs (Macmillan 2001) - The UEA coursebook; a great place to start.

The Novel Today: Contemporary Writers on Modern Fiction Ed. Malcolm Bradbury (Fontana) - Bradbury's anthology takes some beating.

The Writer on Her Work - Ed. Janet Sternburg (Virago) - Interviews with women writers

Novelists in Interview - John Haffenden (Methuen) - Did you guess; I have a thing about author interviews... endlessly more useful than most 'how to' books I find...

From Pitch to Publication - Everything you need to know to get your novel published - Carole Blake (Macmillan 1999)

The Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook or The Writers’ Handbook - both published annually, full of practical information about publishers, magazines, prizes etc.

I'm sure there are many more but that's already a lot more than I'll be able to fit in my suitcase. I'm certain to find much inspiration in Barga and look forward to hearing your suggestions for further reading on my return.

August 13, 2005 in Writing | Permalink

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Over at This Stubborn World, Jacqui Lofthouse has posted an annotated list of books about writing as she packs for her annual stint as creative writing tutor with Artemisia Holidays in Barga, Tuscany. In other news, I'm beginning to [Read More]

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Jacqui Lofthouse is the UK's Top Writing Coach. Her highly acclaimed novels have sold over 100,000 copies in the UK, the USA and in four European translations. She has taught creative writing in a broad variety of settings including at City University, the Cheltenham Festival, for Artemisia holidays in Tuscany and at Richmond Adult and Community College. She has been profiled in ‘The Independent’ newspaper and her work has been featured in national newspapers including The Times, The Observer and The Telegraph. As 'The Writing Coach' she works with writers who wish to get unblocked, inspired, motivated and highly productive with their art.

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August 13, 2005

Recommended Creative Writing Books

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