misc.writing R e c o m m e n d e d R e a d i n g L i s t
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Last modified: 29 July 2002
[Click on ISBNs to buy these books from Amazon.com]
Curtis, Richard. How to be Your Own Literary Agent: The Business of Getting a Book Published. Revised and expanded ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1996. ISBN 0-395-71819-8, trade paperback, 257 pp., $13.95.
This book is necessarily dated -- I think my version is from 1986, or maybe even 1984 -- but still germane in almost every regard. And it isn't dated much; I found virtually all of the language he discusses in his point-by-point contract review in my own 1991 contract, despite the years that have passed. (And was pleased to discover that the one section I'd made my publisher delete was one Curtis considered extremely disadvantageous.) This book is an absolute must for anyone dealing with book publishers, book contracts, and agents.
Fishman, Stephen. The Copyright Handbook: How to Protect and Use Written Works. 4th ed. Berkeley, CA: Nolo Press, 1997. ISBN 0-87337-414-2, paperback (8.5 x 11 inches), 368 pp., $29.95.
Nolo's order number is (800) 992-6656; (510) 549-1976 for information. They're a well-respected if somewhat irreverent publisher of legal self-help materials, including some volumes that might be relevant to the business side of freelancing and contracting. The book claims to discuss international copyright law. The further you get from the borders of the US, the bigger the grain of salt you should take everythinthe US, the bigger the grain of salt you should take everything with, of course. Note: This review refers to the second edition.
Brown, Renni, and Dave King. Self-editing for Fiction Writers. New York: HarperPerennial, 1993. ISBN 0-06-272046-5, trade paperback, 226 pp., $13.00.
Brown and King's summation of all the usual advice is covered in the first five or six chapters. The suggestions are made well and with excellent examples. The remaining chapters move into some areas that are not typically covered in other "advice" books. Most interesting was the discussion of "beats" -- the stage business of writing; how to handle all of those "he said" and "she said" bits between the dialog. A quick review of this section, and authors should be able to pinpoint and correct any slow or dull sections of their writing. And with a little more attention to the rest of the book, intermediate writers be able to raise their writing skill to a professional level.
Lerner, Betsy. The Forest for the Trees: An Editor's Advice to Writers. Riverhead Books (New York): 2000. ISBN 1-57322-857-5, trade paperback, 277 pp., $12.00.
An editor's-eye view of publishing, Lerner's book is both informative and heartening. If you've ever tried to get your writing published, you already understand the value of knowing how the other half lives, because once you've accumulated a stack of rejection slips these publishing houses resemble nothing more than black boxes. Well, there is life inside the boxes, Lerner shows us, and she is frank in depicting the pressures and constraints that turn a group of book-lovers into editors.
The first half of the book, in which Lerner identifies personality-types of writers she has worked with, stretches on a bit long, but in the end her message is to persevere if you believe you have the need to write (as opposed to fancying yourself "a writer"), because no matter how old or messed-up you are, someone has always accomplished it in even worse shape. Plus you'll get a few laughs along the way.
Plotnik, Arthur. The Elements of Editing: A Modern Guide for Editors and Journalists. MacMillan, 1982, 1977. MacMillan, 1982, 1977. ISBN 0-02-861451-8, trade paperback, 156 pp., $9.95.
Plotnik offers his observations and advice about editing, gained from years of experience in the field. He acknowledges that most editors are cramming six weeks worth of work into four weeks and repeating this accomplishment every four weeks. Plotnik describes the life of a manuscript from acquisition to publication -- an excellent summary for the novice, and an insightful observation to the experienced editor. He lists details for often unexplained processes such as registering the copyright and seeking permissions. He provides detailed information about copyrights and libel giving definitions and some situational examples. These provide an excellent resource for quick reference on these topics.
Rand, Ken. The 10% Solution: Self-editing for the Modern Writer. Seattle: Fairwood Press, 1998. ISBN 0-9668184-0-7, booklet, 64 pp., $5.99.
In The 10% Solution, Ken Rand describes his theory for improved writing. First, youroved writing. First, you wear two hats: the writer's hat and the editor's hat. As a writer, you write quickly, without editorial criticism. As the editor, you revise and attempt to reduce the word count by 10%.
Rand lists words and endings you should question in your writing. For example, you should examine each time of, appears and ask if it expresses your idea in the most accurate, clear, and brief way. If not, then revise or delete. Rand also provides the standard advice to read your prose aloud, read them on paper, and have someone else proofread them.
Rand's advice is mostly sound, but Fairwood Press should have followed Rand's advice and scoured the proofs for numerous annoyances, such as widows, inconsistent font sizes, and a chapter of bulleted paragraphs. Rand's repeated use of, "More on this later," reveals the need to reorganize the material -- something not covered in Rand's advice.
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©1996 - 2002 Terry L Jeffress