Recommended books
Writing With Power, by Peter Elbow, Oxford University Press, 1989. Useful ideas for getting unstuck and losing any fear you may have of the writing process.
The Craft of Research, Third Edition, by Wayne Booth, Gregory Colomb, and Joseph Williams, University of Chicago Press, 2008. Aimed more towards an academic audience, but an excellent resource for anyone who wants to improve their grasp of research and rhetoric.
Beyond the Writers’ Workshop, by Carol Bly, Anchor Books, 2001. If you’re writing what is sometimes called “creative non-fiction”—essays, memoir, or in-depth journalism—this book can keep you honest and provoke you into pushing yourself beyond clichés.
Style, Ninth Edition, by Joseph M. Williams, University of Chicago Press, 2006. Not a must-read, but useful for anyone who cares about style and who wants to understand why we have grammar and what it’s really for.
