Yesterday I talked about why you should consider buying books of writing advice in addition to using the wide range of advice available online. All well and good, but with so many books available to buy, it can be hard to know which ones to buy. So, here are some quick pointers to selecting the right book for your writing needs.
1. Is It Aimed at You? Not every writing book is aimed at the same audience. Read the back cover blurb or the online description, and consider whether it is aimed at beginning or more experienced writers and whether it covers the genre you are interested in. For example, I’m a published author of children’s picture books, poetry and verse novels, so I am less likely to be interested in a book called How To Write Picture Books, than I am in one called Perfecting Your Prose. If you are new to writing children’s poems, you would get more benefit from Writing in Rhyme than, perhaps, a book called Tightening Your Verse.
2. What are the Author’s Credentials? On the book’s blurb, or isnde the book, there should be some information about the author’s background. If someone is going to tell you how to write a chidlren’s book, you would like to think that they are themselves a children’s book author, or editor or perhaps a reviewer. The advice they then give will likely come from experience, and be tried and tested.
3. What Do You Want from the Book? I admit to having a preference for books which actually give me some exercise to do. I want to be told to sit down and write, and given a challenge or starter which gets me going. You might feel the same, or you might want something different. For example, if you are trying to market your work you might be looking for a book which lists publishers and other markets. Or you might want something technical – a grammar guide, perhaps.
4. Recommendations. Before you spend your hard-earned money on a how-to book, it is good to hear from people who have already bought and used it. Ask your writer friends for recommendations, or search online. If you browse an online bookstore like Amazon, you’ll find reader reviews and recommendations. (Note, if, like me, you live in Australia and would prefer to support a local bookstore, you can still use Amazon as a source of recommendations before seeking the books locally)
5. Date of Publication. The more recent the book, the more up to date the advice and information. This is especially pertinent to market information, which changes all the time. With a ‘how-to’ book, the advice does tend to stay relevant longer, but even then, things can change. For example, where once picture book manuscripts averaged 1000 words, the preferred length now is 600 words or fewer. However, a popular book will often be updated when it is reprinted and some books go on speaking to readers for many years.
You’ll notice that in both this and yesterday’s article I have not actually pointed you to any specific books, because I wanted to give some more general advice. However, I will close by sharing a brief list of some of my favourite writing books. If you have a favourite which isn’t listed, feel free to leave a comment below.
The Writing Book: A Manual for Fiction Writers, by Kate Grenville (1990) ISBN 0-04442124-9 (Not specifically about writing for children, but lots of wonderful writing exercises)
Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market, by Alice Pope (Produced Annually) (Essential if you want to get published in the US or Canada especially)
Poetry Matters: Writing a Poem from the Inside Out, by Ralph Fletcher (2002) ISBN 978-0380797035 (I’m reading this one at the moment and am only half way through but love it. It is aimed at young poets but has lots to offer adult writers and teachers)
Poemcrazy: Freeing Your Life with Words by Susan G. Wooldridge (1997) ISBN 978-0609800980 (Gets you writing poetry and playing with words)
Okay, that’s a very short list because these are the four I use regularly. Perhaps I’ll build on this list from time to time.