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McAnally's (The Community Pub) => Author Craft => Topic started by: RobJN on July 17, 2009, 02:50:40 PM
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Do any of ya'll collect/use reference materials?
The missus and I -- both writers -- have two shelves full of various writing reference materials: from time period, to plot/structure, crime references, to the occasional writing lifestyle book.
We've got most (if not all) of the "Elements of Fiction Writing" series from Writer's Digest Books, some of the "Science Fiction Writing Series."
Do any of you use these? If not, what do you use? Can you suggest other good reference materials? I'm not looking for a specific genre, really. I haven't bought a 'writing book' in what feels like an age, and wonder if there is anything out recently that would be a good reference, or even just a good "read."
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I won't be home for about 45 min, but I think I remember most of the stuff I have. I only have a partial shelf, though partly cause I have a tiny room and can't afford most referency type things. But I have Stephen King's On Writing, a how-to for Science Fiction by Orson Scott Card, vampire encyclopedia, werewolf encyclopedia, a mythical creatures thing, a book of Roman-Arthurian myths or something like that, a reference sorta thing for medieval/fantasy information, and specific to the WiP are the Bible and Other Bible(Gnostics, Apocrypha, Quran, etc). Oh, and a behind the science for CSI, Zombie CSI type thing, and Stiffed(about corpses).
There was a link posted somewhere or other on here about a how to kinda thing, I think Reader's Digest, that JB mentioned during a Q&A or somethink, that I want to get. And I'm looking for Kindle equivalents to what I do have so that I can take the reference stuff I'd need with me when I travel without having to lug a lot of very heavy books around.
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Three different editions of "Paradise Lost" and two of Dante, Gustaf Davidson's Dictionary of Angels, some largish history references, 1-3 Enoch, Death and Life of Great American Cities, Designing Freedom, Cities and the Wealth of Nations, there used to be a Guns, Germs and Steel there but I gave it to someone and have not got round to replacing it, and a couple of other things I forget off the top of my head.
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Trauma: A Writer's Guide to Injuries has been invaluable.
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-The first two volumes of the Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang (haven't been able to find #3 yet)
-A number of outdated forensic manuals from the 1930's thru 1950's
-Penal Law and Criminal Code for 1936
-Dining With Rector, a guide to Manhattan restaurants from the late 1930's
-Several "oral history" type books about Manhattan in the 1940's
-old street maps from that era
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Trauma: A Writer's Guide to Injuries has been invaluable.
Thanks for recommending this. I just found a copy on Abebooks for under 2 bucks and ordered it -- it sounds like just what I need (as opposed to asking my doctor things like, "Hey, what would happen if I pushed a guy down five flights of stairs?" and getting a very strange look in return.)
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Self-editing for Fiction Writers.... Priceless
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Thanks for recommending this. I just found a copy on Abebooks for under 2 bucks and ordered it -- it sounds like just what I need (as opposed to asking my doctor things like, "Hey, what would happen if I pushed a guy down five flights of stairs?" and getting a very strange look in return.)
It also encourages you to discover creative ways to kill characters. For example, if you need a character to die of puncture wounds, it's much more interesting to have someone push them from a second-story balcony onto a wrought-iron fence then to find them with a knife sticking out of their back on the floor of the conservatory with Colonel Mustard. :)
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It also encourages you to discover creative ways to kill characters. For example, if you need a character to die of puncture wounds, it's much more interesting to have someone push them from a second-story balcony onto a wrought-iron fence then to find them with a knife sticking out of their back on the floor of the conservatory with Colonel Mustard. :)
I was merely interested in this book upon glancing at the title.
Now I must own a copy.
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I have a plethora of resources on Biblical studies (my Masters lies in NT studies). Including grammars of Biblical Greek and Hebrew, theologies and commentaries on all the commonly accepted books, and the Apocrypha and other works, and a few books on the Septuagint. Then a bunch of cultural resources on the Biblical age.
For history I have Norman Davies' 1 volume histories on the Isles and Europe, Diarmaid McCullolloch's The Reformation, Latourette's two volume history of Christianity, Cantor's Civilization in the Middle Ages. The Rise and Fall of the House of Medici. Sanford's history of Japan. A one volume biography on Churchill and his own The Second World War.
General literature; The Complete works of Shakespeare, a 1 volume anthology of American Literature, Tennyson's Poetry, and a book of Celtic Myths and Legends.
For writing resources I have The Complete Guide to Writing Fantasy; a thesaurus, The American Heritage College Dictionary and my MLA manual to remind me of my English grammar. :P
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My top shelf writing books are:
Roget’s International Thesaurus (Absolutely my most used writing book)
The Pessimist’s Guide to History, by Stuart & Doris Flexner (An awesome source of plot twists)
The Book of the Weird (Also published as The Glass Harmonica) by Barbara Ninde Byfield (A dictionary, sort of, for psudo-medieval fantasy things)
What’s What: A Visual Glossary Of The Physical World by David Fisher & Reginald Bragonier Jr.
And several baby name books picked up cheap at second hand shops - Buy lots, they each have their own bizarre character.
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Writing Science Fiction/Fantasy by Orson Scott Card was a good, info-laden read. Also, Writing the Private Eye Novel had some really great info too, and not just to the mystery field.
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Bible, Book of Mormon, Quran.
Various and sundry works of fantasy and science fiction not limited to but including : The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, The vampire earth books by E.E. Knight, The Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews, The Brothers Leandros series by Rob Thurman, a bunch of Warhammer and Warhammer 40k novels (Eisenhorn, spacewolves, grey knights, gotrek and felix, blackhearts. Gaunts ghosts)
Plus a whollllleeeee lot of sci fi from authors whose names i can't remember off the top of my head. (no more room on the shelves. everthing is stacked, not but away. there are books scattered about the room on every availible surface :) )
Also Stranger in a Strange Land by Heinlein (an original paperback that is in dreadful condition it was my dads, and the unabriged version) and the Forever War by Jon Haldeman. Good stuff.
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Bible, Book of Mormon, Quran.
Various and sundry works of fantasy and science fiction not limited to but including : The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, The vampire earth books by E.E. Knight, The Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews, The Brothers Leandros series by Rob Thurman, a bunch of Warhammer and Warhammer 40k novels (Eisenhorn, spacewolves, grey knights, gotrek and felix, blackhearts. Gaunts ghosts)
Plus a whollllleeeee lot of sci fi from authors whose names i can't remember off the top of my head. (no more room on the shelves. everthing is stacked, not but away. there are books scattered about the room on every availible surface :) )
Also Stranger in a Strange Land by Heinlein (an original paperback that is in dreadful condition it was my dads, and the unabriged version) and the Forever War by Jon Haldeman. Good stuff.
Well now, if we're talking fantasy currently on my shelves...
LoTR, Steven Erickson's Malazan Book of the Fallen, Neal Stephenson's Diamond Age, The Baroque Cycle and Anathem, Steven King's The Dark Tower and The Stand, Martin's ASoIaF, Kay's Tigana, Heard's Otori saga, Glen Cook's The Black Company and The Instrumentalites of the Night, Bakker's Prince of Nothing and the Aspect-Emperor and, of course, Dresden.
Also forgot Shelby Foote's Narrative History of the Civil War in my list yesterday. :P
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Let's see...
The hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy series
The Golden Compass
The Dune Series, all of them except the incredibly recent
Neil Gaiman, the Sandman series, Stardust and American Gods
Lukyanenko's Nightwatch
Both Butcher Series
Adam Ross's Kingdom Come,
Frank Miller's Sin City
Alan Moore's V for Vendetta and Watchmen
Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit
Shakespeare
Ovid
Homer
George RR Martin
incidentally, I need to start making more space
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"Worlds of Wonder: a guide to writing science fiction and fantasy" by David Gerrold, who wrote the scripts for several classic Star Trek episodes, including "The Trouble with Tribbles". It's an awesome read, very conversational yet packed with know-how.
"On Writing" by Stephan King. Another very down-to-earth book with a lot of well-presented information on how to strengthen your technique.
Several thesauruses. I like how Roget's is set up into philosophical categories, but it makes searching a bit of a challenge. Webster's is nicely organized, but not as full of verbal food for thought as Roget's, so I try to use them in tandem.
Strunk and White's "Elements of Style". Full stop. Doesn't get much better for a lot of good tips on writing, in a compact volume.
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"On Writing" by Stephan King. Another very down-to-earth book with a lot of well-presented information on how to strengthen your technique.
Yep, I have this one too. I forgot about it in my first list because I filed it under my "King" books and not my "writing" books on the shelves. Great book.
I also keep a translation page and a visual thesaurus up on my Google page, which is always up when I write. The visual thesaurus is a neat tool.
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There was a link posted somewhere or other on here about a how to kinda thing, I think Reader's Digest, that JB mentioned during a Q&A or somethink, that I want to get.
Love to know what this one is if you ever find it. Thanks!
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Love to know what this one is if you ever find it. Thanks!
It's the Writer's Digest Howdunit series. I found three, I think, on amazon. Poisons, Forensics, and I forget the other. If you do a forum search for howdunit, it should bring up the post with a link to the Poisons one.
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It's the Writer's Digest Howdunit series. I found three, I think, on amazon. Poisons, Forensics, and I forget the other. If you do a forum search for howdunit, it should bring up the post with a link to the Poisons one.
Awesome! Thanks.
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i don't own many books. my sister has, however, turned the living room into a small library (her room is full) so i got books ranging pretty wide. coffee table books about Ireland, Nietzsche, lord of the rings, the Silmarillion, the hobbit harry potter, Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy, some stuff by Jane Austen, Frankenstein, Dracula, the complete collection of Sherlock Holmes (might be my favorite), she also has the Twilight series (she says she wanted to know what all the fuss is about. i got some stuff in there, Sin City, 300, Baltimore, Small Favor, Eragon, Eldest, Cookbooks (Indian, Italian, Home)
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Reference Book: Strunk & White: Elements of Style
Reference movie: I love Stranger than Fiction. I even like Will in the lead (no, this movie isn't a vehicle for him to take his clothes off ::)) A very interesting plot that is hilarious.
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I've got a pretty comprehensive reference library, from the basics like Elements of Style, and various unabridged dictionaries (including the O.E.D. 20vol. compact edition), thesauri, books of quotations, the Encyclopedia Brittanica, and various references on the craft of writing. Also lots of religious texts, including everything from the ancient near East and Asia to the Book of Mormon and Scientology, copies of the Bible in various translations and versions, including in the original Greek and the Latin Vulgate, and Spanish, and various Bible Commentaries and the 12 volume Interpreter's Bible. References on history and philosophy, including the complete multi-volume Story of Civilization by Will and Ariel Durant. I've got references on metaphysics, magic, magick, mythology, Tarot, conjuring, and confidence games. And an extensive selection of books on history, military history, armaments, armor, firearms, and other weaponry from all time periods and locales. I also have some fiction, dictionaries, grammar and reference books in Latin, Greek, Spanish, French, Italian, and German.
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Aside from several reference books already mentioned, I've got a couple dozen GURPS books. They're a rich mine of ideas for pretty much everything you need: characters, plots, locations, and so on. They are also designed to be highly adaptable to any imaginable need. In addition, the sections on advice to the game master adapt very easily to writing suggestions. I'll personally recommend the "Mage" line from White Wolf (both Ascension and Awakening, though the latter is more refined than the former). The advice therein assumes a primary setting rather similar to the Dresdenverse (21st century America, supernatural exists but 'behind the scenes', etc.) but can be adapted with some effort.
I also have a couple of miscellaneous guidebooks, just in case. An older edition of the Boy Scout Handbook for characters lost in the woods, "The Action Hero's Handbook" for miscellaneous action sequences, etc.
You might also consider the "Crime Scene" series of d20 supplements from Greywood Publishing. Six different volumes on crime and the law and how they interact in entertainment. Bonus: one of the six specifically deals with investigating supernatural crimes from a law enforcement point of view.