17 of the Best Books on Writing in 2023: These Books Can Help You Improve Your Craft
Learn from the best and go write your own masterpiece
Any aspiring writers out there have surely heard the common mantras to improve their craft:
- Read as much as you can.
- Write every single day.
- Kill your darlings.
While those are fantastic pieces of advice that have stood the test of time, many of us aspiring authors want to know the nitty-gritty. The in-between small facets of creating a masterpiece that most successful authors don’t (or won’t) share with the rest of us.
But luckily for us, many of them have.
Here’s a helpful list of the best books to teach us how to write better. Whether it's fiction, novels, poetry, or even memoirs, this list should have a book to help you. Good luck!
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17 of the Best Books on Writing in 2021
1. “Bird by Bird” by Anne Lammott
Every writer’s arsenal should include “Bird by Bird.” More than a million readers can attest to this! Lamott shares herself and her skills with readers in this book, which includes tales that weave the pieces together into overall excellent writing advice. If you’re having trouble discovering your voice and passion, Lamott’s counsel is bound to inspire you.
Amazon Stars: 4.6⭐
Amazon Reviews: 4,000+
2. “How to Write Best Selling Fiction” by Dean Koontz
Dean Koontz, the prolific novelist who has sold over 450 million copies of his books, is a perfect candidate to educate people on how to write best-selling fiction. While this book is a bit older, much of the advice stands the test of time. The book gives advice on grammar, style, character/plot dev, as well as bits about working with agents and editors. Note, it was written in 1981 and is out of print now — so maybe check your local library!)
Amazon Stars: 4.7⭐
Amazon Reviews: 30+
3. “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft” by Stephen King
Even those who ignore Stephen King’s renowned horror-packed tales will enjoy this Stephen King classic. King works his magic combining personal stories with lessons learned throughout his super-successful career. He covers his entire path to becoming a great writer as well as shares the essential tools for any other aspiring novelist.
Amazon Stars: 4.9⭐
Amazon Reviews: 9,000+
4. “Writing the Breakout Novel: Insider Advice for Taking Your Fiction to the Next Level” by Donald Maass
Writer and literary agent Donald Maass writes nearly 300 pages of advice on how to write a successful novel — but with the added benefit of being a complete insider. He shares what works, what doesn’t, and gives examples from dozens of successful books. More importantly, he shares insider secrets of the industry that came from being a high-flying literary agent.
Amazon Stars: 4.4⭐
Amazon Reviews: 400+
5. “Plot & Structure” by James Scott Bell
Award-winning author James Scott Bell gives excellent advice in the art of story crafting. From techniques for brainstorming, extensive chapter reviewing, to simplistic plotting diagrams and infographics. The book’s ideas are almost purely focused on fiction writing, but many of these same tools can be carried across to other genres.
Amazon Stars: 4.7⭐
Amazon Reviews: 800+
6. “The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles” by Steven Pressfield
Author Steven Pressfield mixes in a personal memoir based around the extensive troubles he faced as a burgeoning writer while giving solid advice on how to fight the demon inside all of writers — the idea that we aren’t good enough. He outlines each problem dealing with “the obstacles of ambition” and exactly how to conquer them — and achieve great things.
Amazon Stars: 4.6⭐
Amazon Reviews: 9,900+
7. “The Elements of Style” by William Strunk JR. and E.B. White
Writing teachers have assigned “The Elements of Style” to their students for years in order to teach them grammar, structural writing guidelines, and composition concepts. And even for those established writers out there, brushing up on the fundamentals on occasion is incredibly important to keep your writing on the right path. It aims to provide all of the simple truths every writer should learn.
Amazon Stars: 4.6⭐
Amazon Reviews: 6,800+
8. “On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction” By William Zinsser
William Zinsser was a prolific journalist for the New York Herald Tribune. From these strong roots, he went on to write for countless magazines, worked as a featured writer, film critic, and editorials throughout his career. His classic book, On Writing Well, is an aspiring author’s goldmine. It teaches the fundamental principles of writing in the glowingly kind voice of Zinnser. It’s sold over a million copies for a reason.
Amazon Stars: 4.7⭐
Amazon Reviews: 2,700+
9. “Self-Editing for Fiction Writers” By Renni Browne and Dave King
Two career-long professional editors joined swords to explain how to turn promising writing into fantastic novels and short stories. The aim of the book is to teach, from an expert editor’s view, how to revise your own writing in every aspect imaginable. The book is littered with examples, many of them taken from real-life experience working on future bestselling novels..
Amazon Stars: 4.7⭐
Amazon Reviews: 1,000+
10. “Story Genius: How to Use Brain Science to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel” by Lisa Cron
Lisa Cron has spent years breaking down the usual advice given to writers. She shares her eye-opening results in Story Genius, where she combines the science of psychology and adapts it to everyday writers. She attempts to take you step-by-step through the entire novel-writing process — using her own techniques that have been proven to help success.
Amazon Stars: 4.6⭐
Amazon Reviews: 1,000+
11. “The Kick-Ass Writer” by Chuck Wendig
Chuck Wendig explains in his own personal humorous style 1001 different pieces of advice when it comes to writing. It’s an easy-to-read listicle style but covers every possible aspect of a modern novelist’s journey — from story development to dealing with agents and publicists. If you’re pressed for time, this is a great educational book about writing to devour in just a few hours.
Amazon Stars: 4.5⭐
Amazon Reviews: 150+
12. “Hooked: Write Fiction That Grabs Readers at Page One & Never Let’s Them Go” by Les Edgerton
Author Les Edgerton goes into a huge deep dive on crafting the beginning of a successful story. Every good author knows the hidden purpose behind every written line — it’s to get the reader to want to read the next line. When it comes to writing the beginning of a novel, this is especially true. And Edgerton aims to teach us how to do exactly that.
Amazon Stars: 4.5⭐
Amazon Reviews: 200+
13. “Writer’s Market” by Robert Lee Brewer
Mr. Brewer regularly writes extensive guides like this one to help authors in the field gain a much clearer handle on what they’re working with. The Writer’s Market 2020 guide includes thousands of publishing opportunities with book publishers, consumer/trade magazines, contests/awards, and literary agents. It also includes some interesting references for pay rates and which book publishers go by which niches.
Amazon Stars: 4.6⭐
Amazon Reviews: 500+
14. “Naked, Drunk, and Writing” by Adair Lara
This award-winning columnist, author, and writing coach explains in this 256-page piece everything related to a novelist’s career. From overcoming writer’s block to writing great pitches to getting your work in front of people who are willing to pay for it. With a title like that, how couldn’t it be good?
Amazon Stars: 4.5⭐
Amazon Reviews: 100+
15. “The Writing Life: Writers on How They Think and Work” edited by Marie Arana
A curated volume including tidbits of advice from over 50 of the last century’s greatest writers. Adapted from 10-years of a column in the Washington Post called “Book World,” the editor Marie Arana provides amazing rarely told stories from famous writers. It’s an amazing journey inside what it takes to become a successful writer — from their beginning, their struggles, to their thoughts on creativity and writing block. It’s definitely an interesting ride.
Amazon Stars: 4.4⭐
Amazon Reviews: 50+
16. “Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within” by Natalie Goldberg
The famous author Natalie Goldberg wrote this piece 30 years ago. But it’s advice has stood the test of time. She views the act of writing as a battle with practice. The more you do it, the better you get at it. And within this explanation, she deep dives into every single facet you could think of. From choosing which restaurant/cafe to write in (really), to proven techniques to use for productivity and getting pen to paper. Add in her amazingly unique style of humor and you have yourself an awesome learning experience.
Amazon Stars: 4.6⭐
Amazon Reviews: 1,300+
17. “The Art of Memoir” by Mary Karr
Many authors have Mary Karr’s The Liars’ Club to thank for the explosion in popularity of personal memoirs. With two other popular bestsellers, she certainly knows what she’s talking about when it comes to creating a top novel. In this memoir on memoirs, Karr shares her decades of experience as a professor, writer, and former alcoholic. She shares all of her writing process including all of the key elements to make your very own successful memoir.
Amazon Stars: 4.5 ⭐
Amazon Reviews: 700+
Have any more books on writing a novel to share? Let me know in the comments, I love to read new things.
Thanks for reading and good luck in your own writing journey — it’s a fantastic ride full of ups and downs!
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