The Best Takeaways From Books on Writing

From Stephen King to Elizabeth Gilbert, these are books that have something to say to everyone who loves putting pen to paper

You may be like me — when you start something new you have to devour everything available on the subject. You read all the books, watch all the YouTube videos, and seek out all the gurus and kindred spirits you can find.

Ask me about beekeeping — I only did it for a couple of years but I read a lot of books and watched some amazing videos. Yoga? Yes, got the books on that too. Canning? Gardening? Raising goats and chickens? Check, check check!

It’s no surprise that there are a lot of books written on the art and craft of writing — and I’ve read those too. Writers want to get better at writing and the great writers want to share what they’ve learned because they understand how hard it is to be a beginner. We can glean much from these generous writers.

In no particular order, here are a few books that have impacted me as a writer. I have also included Medium writer reviews when applicable!

On Writing, Stephen King

My takeaway: Avoid -ly words — they weaken your writing. If you need an -ly word, you need a better verb. This advice falls under the category of Show, Don’t Tell. Look over your writing. Cross out all the -ly words and find better action words to show your writer what is happening. Also, get in the habit of taking out really, very, extremely, adamantly, etc. You can put those in as fillers for your first draft but do edit them out before publishing. (Now I’m going to be paranoid about this article and worry if I left in any adverbs!)

Bird by Bird, Anne Lamott

My takeaway: This book could also be titled, Just Write. Just sit down and write and don’t hoard anything. Be a giver and let writing be its own reward.

In this book, Anne offers a lot of advice about fiction writing which I generally don’t write, however, there are a lot of good nuggets in Bird by Bird that I related to, like shitty first drafts. I’m more of an Elizabeth Gilbert, Julia Cameron, Nikki Tate writer — just let the pen float over the page (or the fingers over the keyboard) and see what comes out.

I don’t censor my thoughts or edit as I go. And I rarely look back at what I’m writing until the final thoughts seem to have run their course. Then I go back and fix the typos and shore up the sentences. Once the entire article is written (or the gist of it) I go back and revise, revise, revise. Doing revisions and editing prematurely stops my words from flowing.

I aim to trust my words and let them flow and trust that what’s going to be put on paper is what’s meant to be there in some fashion or form. Many times I’ve started writing a story and once I let go of the control of figuring out where it is supposed to go I’ve found it takes me somewhere else. And always somewhere better than I had set course for when I sat down with the first sentence or a sketched out idea.

I never make outlines and I only vaguely plan ahead, other than getting ideas down on paper, which I agree with Anne about — she keeps (or used to when Bird by Bird was written) note cards with ideas or phrases or memories that might be suitable fodder for future writing ideas.

I use Google docs for saving snippets or story starters. Here’s one, for example, called the big brown truck at the hospital.

This is a reminder for me to write about the time my son was in the ER with asthma and my husband met us there but he was working and drove up in a big brown semi-truck and walked through the double doors all dressed in brown (no-not UPS) and my son saw him from across the room and ran straight to him crying, daddy daddy, and all the people in the ER room looked over and smiled and laughed as my husband scooped him up in his arms while the glow of the sunlight behind him in the entry of those double doors where his big brown truck was parked made him look like a hero to me and my son!*

*This gives you some idea of what Bird by Bird will teach you. Eventually, this snippet found its way into an article called How to Be a Hero to Your Kids.

The Artist’s Way, Julia Cameron

My takeaway: Morning pages, morning pages, morning pages. And did I mention morning pages?

Is it a coincidence that since reading The Artist’s Way and implementing morning pages I’ve had great clarity around what I want to write about, have found a writing coach, joined Medium, been curated several times, and am finally earning money from writing regularly? I think not.

Beyond morning pages, this one is a must-read if you are a creative who hasn’t pursued your creative calling or if you’ve been afraid to do so. It’s also a must-read if you feel like others along your life’s journey have steered you away from a creative life or wounded you to the place where you hid your creative soul. Going through the exercises in The Artist’s Way will help you more than a year’s worth of expensive therapy will.

The Right to Write, also by Julia Cameron

My takeaway: Writing is a gift — take it! Her simple and profound writing advice takes so much of the angst and mystique away from writing for me. It frees me up and gives me permission to just write. There’s no right way, writing roadmap, proper protocol, or sanctioned path to take. It’s our own journey and Julia values the act and gift of writing for every human on the planet whether you call yourself a writer or not. She sees writing as a gift as much as reading and hugs and a gentle spring breeze are gifts. Take it and see where it takes you. With gentle writing prompts in each chapter it’s a book you can return to over and over as a writer.

Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert

My takeaway: There’s something beyond our understanding working in the creative universe and if we can drop the ego and all the angst and pretense about being a starving artist and pained writer who is so misunderstood and underappreciated, the words that want us to write them will find us.

This is a book about listening and trusting. It’s as much about God as it’s about trusting your intuition. And can I admit to you I was afraid to read this book for the longest time? Why? because I believe in God and magic sounded so not like God, or at least not what I’ve been taught to think about God. But can I tell you how glad I am that I read this book? And I will reread it again and again because one thing I’ve learned about being a writer is to not be afraid.

What are your favorite books on writing? Share in the comments below. Oh, and when I’m not reading I am, of course, writing. Here are some articles that may be of interest to you as a writer and a creative.