In celebration of the craft...
my favorite books on writing
Congratulations to my dear friend Mary Gauthier on the release of her first book, “Saved by a Song,” out today on St. Martin’s Press.
The book is really a wonder. It’s so well-written, but it also has so much heart and generosity that it blows me away. If you’re a writer, you need it. But even if you aren’t, you’ll love Mary’s story and the telling of how she lived through it all by learning how to search for her truth inside her amazing songs and how she is healed by letting those songs live in the light to help others.
Here are some other books on writing that are essential for me:
The Writing Life by Annie Dillard
Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
the War of Art by Steven Pressfield
The Elements of Style by Strunk & White
On Writing by Stephen King
Draft No. 4 by John McPhee
The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp
How to Write One Song by Jeff Tweedy
The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr
Happy Writing. And happy Tuesday, y’all.
AM
I have read 6 of these, and they are fine. Time to read McPhee, Pressfield, and Dillard ( I know. What has taking me so long?) If I may make two more suggestions, I love Steering the Craft by Ursula K. LeGuin and A Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver.