The challenge of writing is what I love the most. No writer is ever perfect. No book is ever perfect. And no matter how seasoned you are as a writer, there is always something new to learn about writing. There are hundreds of books to help writers grow and expand in their craft. Choosing the right book can be a daunting task in itself, so we’ve compiled a list of recommendations for faith-based, nonfiction, and fiction writing help books.
Writing Reference Books for Faith-Based Genre
- The Art of Spiritual Writing: The most common advice I give new spiritual writers is that what they might need to work out in their spirit is not always what’s best to put on paper for readers. This book is a great resource for writers who want to share aspects of their spiritual life. It focuses on the best way to share faith experiences in a way that readers gain something from the book.
- Walking on Water: Whether you view yourself as an artist or not, writers are in fact artists. And this book answers the questions: What does it mean to be a Christian artist? And What is the relationship between faith and art? On top of that, it also explores the most important tasks of an artist.
Writing Reference Books for Fiction
- DIY MFA: Being a writer isn’t a separate silo from your day to day life. In fact, allowing the different parts of your life to come together under one roof, so to speak, is the best way to stay inspired. DIY MFA stands for Do-It-Yourself Master in Fine Arts (the upper-level degree you would want to get if you wanted a master’s degree in writing). This book helps readers build an active creative life. It focuses on reading, writing, and building a community—all aspects of an MFA program.
- The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing: The title of this book says it all. Within the pages of this amazing fiction writers’ resource, you will find help for any and every aspect of writing fiction, including plot, developing character points of view, creating unique tones for each character, idea generation, finding an agent, and more.
- Plot and Structure: Chances are, if you’re writing your first fiction manuscript, you’re struggling with the plot and overall structure of your story. This book is great because it is micro-focused on those two important pieces of writing fiction.
Writing Reference Books for Nonfiction
- Handling the Truth-On Writing a Memoir: If you are writing any sort of autobiographical book, you are most likely dealing with the cumbersome task of battling true facts about specific moments in your life and what your mind has attached to those moments as you’ve gotten older. The way autobiographical writers handle the truth in their books is the absolute most important part of that project. Before your brain dumps 20 years of your life on paper, learn how to construct your life into meaningful chapters that provide a true benefit to readers. Understand what your rights are as an autobiographical writer, and find tips on how to present information in a tactful way.
- Writing Hard Stories: There is a special level of care and attention needed when writing stories about traumatic life events. It can stir up painful memories and affect the writer’s current emotional state during the writing process. It can resurface past anger, which can spill into writing as rants and hatred toward others. Stories about trauma can also quickly get off track and become too heavily focused on the healing the writer needs and pull away from offering readers what they need—guidance to walk through their own dark valleys. This book is a must if you are writing about any sort of traumatic event from your life because it helps you remain focused on the truth and guides you in telling your story from a place of healing.
Looking for more books on writing? Here are 5 Books Worth Reading for Writers.
