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Books on learning how to write better?

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syrianrue
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Books on learning how to write better?

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Hello,

I was wondering if anyone has any recommendations for a good book that teaches people how to write better? Not specifically a guide on how to write a novel or anything, but simply a good guide on how one can become a better writer in general? Perhaps, a book on the many different types of writing styles? Different elegant ways to string together sentences....... et,c etc.

Aside from the guide, of course, one way to become better at writing is to simply read more books and completely immerse oneself in the world of literature. A friend of mine had introduced me to a few writers I should get acquainted with; here is a list he has provided for me:

Joseph Conrad's "The Heart of Darkness"
DH Lawrence's "The Rainbow"
Hardy
Dostoevsky
Hawthorne
TS Eliot
Turgenev
Tolstoy
Fielding
Wilde
Whitman
Tolstoy
and many, many others...

does anyone have any books they would recommend? one that contains an elegant writing, or a style that is worthy of note?
bleachededen

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Re: Books on learning how to write better?

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Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms is very beautiful and moving, and Hemingway's style is very succinct but incredibly descriptive.

Gabriel Garcia Marquez has an elegant style, and his storytelling and use of magical realism can really transport you to the world he imagines. My favorites of his are 100 Years of Solitude (one of my favorite books of all time), and Love in the Time of Cholera.

Neil Gaiman tells great stories and creates wonderful, well-developed characters, and his humor and fantasy are second to none. My favorites of his (also all time favorites) are Neverwhere, Good Omens (co-written by Terry Pratchett), and American Gods.

Other than that, you can search Amazon for writing guides, ones that discuss different styles of writing and include writing prompts so that you can practice writing in certain forms, on certain themes, with so many words as a limit, in the style of some other writer, and so on. That's what I usually do when I feel I need some practice. I find writing prompts that give me certain parameters in which to write, and the strictness is actually liberating, teaches me a lesson in writing, and adds further depth and character to my writing.

I hope this helps a bit. Good luck. :)
syrianrue
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Re: Books on learning how to write better?

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Thank you so much bleachededen. I really appreciate all your wonderful inputs.

Regarding the writing guides, someone recommended me this one recently: The Elements of Style by William Strunk and E. B. White. After some research, it seems like this is a pretty widely accepted guide in the writing community, and one that I will probably try out.

Also, I see you listed a book that was co-written by Terry Pratchett. While i have not had the chance to read any of his book, I do know that he is a pretty famous author in the fantasy genre, and one that I will read in the short future.

cheers,
Rue
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Re: Books on learning how to write better?

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I moved this into the author forums, but I left a shadow in it's place. Thanks for the book recommendation syrianrue.
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Re: Books on learning how to write better?

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Joseph Campbell wrote "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" which talks about the meta myths that all cultures share past and present. Christopher Vogler, an executive at Disney was so impressed with it he wrote a memo outlining the information for their screen writers, which he later turned into a book. George Lucas rewrote parts of his "Star Wars" scripts after on reading it.
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syrianrue
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Re: Books on learning how to write better?

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Interbane wrote:I moved this into the author forums, but I left a shadow in it's place. Thanks for the book recommendation syrianrue.
let me know how you like it!
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Re: Books on learning how to write better?

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syrianrue wrote:Hello,

I was wondering if anyone has any recommendations for a good book that teaches people how to write better? Not specifically a guide on how to write a novel or anything, but simply a good guide on how one can become a better writer in general? Perhaps, a book on the many different types of writing styles? Different elegant ways to string together sentences....... et,c etc.

Aside from the guide, of course, one way to become better at writing is to simply read more books and completely immerse oneself in the world of literature. A friend of mine had introduced me to a few writers I should get acquainted with; here is a list he has provided for me:

Joseph Conrad's "The Heart of Darkness"
DH Lawrence's "The Rainbow"
Hardy
Dostoevsky
Hawthorne
TS Eliot
Turgenev
Tolstoy
Fielding
Wilde
Whitman
Tolstoy
and many, many others...

does anyone have any books they would recommend? one that contains an elegant writing, or a style that is worthy of note?
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Re: Books on learning how to write better?

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The Writer's Digest website has a bookstore with a great selection. Way back, when I first started out, I bought a bunch of books from them and they definitely helped.
http://www.writersdigestshop.com/
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NY152
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Re: Books on learning how to write better?

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There are a few good guide books that I have tried, but I did like the book 'No Plot? No Problem! A low-stress, high-velocity guide to writing a novel in 30 days.' by Christ Baty and another one that people like is 'If you want to write' by Breanda Ueland.
When I was a child, I really liked watching The Waltons, and watch John-Boy write about his family, that's what I did. Then I just gradually started to write better, like some of the authors that I really liked. So, for me, it was starting to write about my family, my day in and out, and finally started to sound a lot better.
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