Having been trolling around the internet the past few days, weeks, months, well, years now, I’m always interested in reading writing advice. Something about the inspiring words of other writers spurs me on and makes me think at some point I’ll actually finish something that might get published, but on the whole, it’s just nice to read other people who think writing is important enough to want to advise other people about how to do it.
One of the best “Advice to Writers” columns I’ve read is Jennifer Weiner’s. I’ve read all of her books, In Her Shoes being my absolute favourite, and I frequent her blog on a regular basis. Her last book was a bit disappointing, but I have hopes that it was a blip on an otherwise stellar career in chicklit.
A couple of other inspiring things I’ve seen over the last little while is this article about common mistakes many writers make and how to fix them. I love grammar. I love books about grammar, love to read articles about grammar. Now, I don’t necessarily understand grammar, but I do love to learn about it and think that it’s important, and am still stunned that Eats, Shoots and Leaves made me howl out loud. Honestly, it’s a book about grammar that’s intelligent, funny, and easily digestable. Anyway, I like this Holt Uncensored article quite a bit.
The other day I read Diana Gabaldon’s advice to writers. Now, I’ve never read a single one of her books, but she gives sound advice, much like Stephen King’s On Writing. I’ve never read a single Stephen King book of fiction, hate his EW column, and generally can’t stand many of the movies that are made from his books (Stand By Me the obvious exception to the rule), but I’ve recommended On Writing to every single one of my friends who are writers, even bought a few copies for people as gifts—the ultimate recommendation from a girl who tends to be cheap in terms of buying presents for friends. Annnyyywaay, Diana Gabaldon’s web site kind of sucks, but her advice section is sort of interesting, even if she writes tripe (ooops, did I say that out loud?).
Will borrow Eats, Shoots and Leaves please. With English being my second language as a child, I always thought that having a Scarboro immigrant dialect was cool, but my cute ghetto inflections and antonations don’t really come across in my writing. Could use a fun book on grammar.