One of the questions I got asked at the Q&A was about resources for writers. For a while I’ve been wanting to put something on my blog that might be useful for other people. Something not just about me. There is a lot of advice out there from self-appointed experts about how you should write so there’s really no point in me telling you my two cents on the topic – it’ll probably be wrong anyway.
But what I can do is point people in the right direction. Places to find good advice.
I therefore introduce…
Soizic’s writing toolkit!
Books:
How to write, by Harry Bingham.
It does what it says on the tin: it explains how to write. Not only how to create plots and characters, but also how to construct a sentence that will engage the reader. What I particularly like about how it’s written is that Bingham is constantly using examples (from real books or sentences he’s made up) to illustrate his points. So you can see clearly what a plot skeleton would look like, how it moves from vague ideas to a plot, how a sentence might sound boring or overwritten but a different sentence could carry the same meaning much better.
Which is one thing I can’t do since I can’t reproduce anything from it. All I’ve got to say is: if you’re only going to get one, get this one.
Getting published, by Harry Bingham (noticing a pattern here?)
By the same author, this was my first book on writing, and as well as information on agents etc. it contains some good information on writing for the market. As it was the author’s first book on the matter, it might repeat some of the information he later developed in How to Write. I have to say that having How to Write, I consult How to get published a lot less nowadays, but I found it useful at the time. As his other book, this one is well written and clearly illustrates what it sets out to explain.
Write to be published, by Nicola Morgan
A great companion to How to write, this one touches more on trends, hooks and story structure. It explains how to play with your reader’s breath through your plot – make them hold it when you want them to, but also give them a chance to breathe every now and then. You don’t want them to collapse.
Even if you don’t want to pander to the masses, these books on writing for publishing are well worth reading to know what kind of books agents and publishers are looking for (if that is the route you want to go down). In my opinion, you want to make an informed choice about which rules to follow and which to break.
The Emotion thesaurus (and other thesauruses)
Ever been stuck on how to describe a character’s feelings without sounding cliché or corny? Then this thesaurus is for you. Now I haven’t actually used it so this one is a bit of a naughty add, but I’ve heard great things about it first-hand, so it was word worth spreading.
http://writershelpingwriters.net/bookstore/
Blogs:
My top blog for writing tips is Emma Darwin’s This Itch of Writing. I’ve never actually read any of her books and only discovered Emma through the Writers' Workshop, but her posts are always clear and she has a no-nonsense approach to writing I really appreciate. For example this post on 'show not tell' is all about how to use that rule sensibly. Show sometimes, tell sometimes, and always correctly. But check it out, she explains it much better than I do.
I’ve only read a few things on this one, especially on moving stories forward using the choices characters make, but it also comes recommended by Catherine Queen, a fellow writer, so I figured it needed to feature.
Although I found it less easy to apply to my own writing, it prompted some reflections (remember?)
'Some writing advice' is another one I got from Catherine (I think?).
I've also found some advice on proofreading, as well as some tips on grammar if your school days are long gone and you feel a bit rusty.
Writing forums:
Writing can be lonely, so a toolkit wouldn't be complete without a word on writing forums. They can be a great place to meet like-minded people, get feedback on your writing or just get somebody to kick your butt until you finish that goddamn chapter.
Run by the Writers Workshop, it’s full of lovely people, mostly from the UK. Do be careful of your grammar and punctuation, though. You won’t get away with mistakes. Don't worry, though. Cloudies (as they are called) are generally very friendly and the forum is well moderated.
For the Frenchies or French-speaking (don’t want to leave the Quebecois out), Casa is a crazy writing home. With very active members and a chat function (which mostly works), it’s a got a very supportive atmosphere. It’s quite small still, which makes it easy to get to know people and feel included.
The NaNoWriMo also has a forum, but I find I don’t hang out there so much. Still, it has some good discussions and resources, so worth a look.
Names:
As I’ve mentioned before, I’m slightly obsessed with names.
My go-to websites for names are:
Meilleurs Prenoms (in French)
For fantasy, these are also useful:
Other tools:
Scrivener – for organising your writing. It has a number of functions that are quite handy, although you might need some time to explore them all. You can have lots of subfolders and access them easily, and you can have pictures in. You can also have 2 documents side by side, and you can have folders made of a keyword search.
White noise – if you like have background noise when writing. I don't, but you know... You might do.
Write or die – the idea is simple: you enter a target word count and a time limit, and you write in the box the number of words you set yourself within the time limit. Warning: it can be really stressful. It flashes red and it’s scary! Especially in the suicide mode where it starts erasing what you’ve written if you don’t write fast enough…
Now this is my list, and I know there are many other books out there, including the famous one by Stephen King (which I still haven't read). But these are my tools, and I hope you find them useful.
I'll update this page as I collect more resources. The next step of course is finding agents or self-publishing (or putting the manuscript in a drawer – always an option). I’m still torn between the two (I’ve ruled out the bin), so I’ve amassed a load of information and resources on both routes. I’ll try to put some order and share them some time.
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