Can you learn to write? In France, this idea raises eyebrows. However, in English-speaking countries, university courses in ” Creative Writing ” are numerous and respected. Shunned for a long time, the idea of creative writing courses is starting to make headway in France with the appearance, in recent years, of masters in literary writing. The number of former students who have had great literary success suggests that these courses offer real training to improve one’s style and writing. Among them, we can cite writers published by recognized publishing houses such as Anne Pauly ( Avant que double, Verdier, Prix du Livre Inter), Mathilde Forget ( À la demande du tiers, Grasset), Samuel Poisson-Quinton ( Un père à la plancha, Gallimard), Lucie Rico ( Le Chant du poulet sous vide, POL), the list is long…
Influenced by a romantic conception of creation, which erects the author as a demiurge of genius who awaits inspiration with pen in hand, we sometimes come to think that great writers have an innate talent. It is a very pretty illusion that the art world likes to maintain. If they are honest with you, many contemporary writers will nevertheless admit to you that their writing and their success are based on techniques that they have learned over time, by reading, writing, and especially by trying again and again.
Today, we are sharing 10 ideas for books that can help or accompany you in your writing process. We have tried to vary the pleasures: some are testimonies of writers, others writing methods, and many oscillate between the two. Of course, reading this complete list will not transform you into Tolstoy or Hugo. On the other hand, there is a good chance that you will find in these books the boost you needed to launch yourself into this new project that has been running through your head, find the solution to this problem of rebound that you could not resolve and above all, the proof that great writers started like you.
FOR FIRST-TIME NOVELISTS
WRITE YOUR FIRST NOVEL IN 10 MINUTES A DAY, DAVID MEULEMANS, AUX FORGES DE VULCAIN
In this manual with a deliberately provocative title, David Meulemans offers a lot of advice to new novelists. With twenty years of leading writing workshops, as well as his experience as an editor at Aux Forges de Vulcain, he highlights and explains the flaws that are often found in the manuscript of a first novel. This book is a compendium of tips for overcoming the difficulties of writing: how to overcome writer’s block? How to proofread? How to make writing a regular activity? By proposing to replace the idea of inspiration with that of enthusiasm, the author insists above all on one point: the (communicative) joy that writing brings!
WRITING A NOVEL, MARIE VAREILLE, SELF-PUBLISHING
The author of nine books in adult and children’s literature, including the bestseller The Dream Life of Orphan Socks ( Charleston ), returns here to all the stages of writing a novel: from the search for ideas to the search for a publishing house, including the way she creates her character sheets and constructs her stories. In a cheerful tone that plays the difficulties to overcome, Marie Vareille shares her writing tips to accompany aspiring authors step by step.
FIRST NOVEL, INSTRUCTIONS FOR USE, LAURE PÉCHER, ZOÉ EDITIONS
The author starts with a simple observation: most first novels will be rejected by publishers. How can you not be one of them? In this book, she doesn’t just give writing tips but dissects the elements that make a good novel and gives advice on the right questions to ask and the techniques to use to captivate your readers.
WRITING METHODS
THE ANATOMY OF THE SCREENPLAY, JOHN TRUBY, MICHEL LAFON
John Truby is a screenwriter and teaches the art of screenwriting at the university. His book, although focused on cinema, has much to teach writers who want to know more about building a good story. It provides details and explanations of the twenty-two steps that Truby distinguishes in writing a good screenplay (building characters, the world, the plot, writing dialogue, etc.). While questions of writing style are not addressed, it is, on the other hand, a bible regarding the architecture of the story.
WRITE A NOVEL IN 30 DAYS, CHRIS BATY, ÉDITIONS HAUTEVILLE
Chris Baty is the creator of NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, a challenge that encourages authors around the world to set writing goals for November and write every day to achieve them. Starting in the United States, the movement has grown considerably and has given rise to a wonderful community of authors who help each other and share their writing experiences. This book offers some writing advice, but above all, it is a condensed motivation that will boost all authors who are struggling to finish their project, or even to get started.
CHARACTERS AND POINT OF VIEW, ORSON SCOTT CARD, BRAGELONNE
Famous for the best-selling book Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card also writes essays on writing. This book is a wealth of information on how to create interesting characters while avoiding one-dimensional archetypes. The author not only talks about the preparatory work but also studies how to arouse emotion in his reader through characters, writing dialogue, or even the different forms of narration and the interest that each point of view can bring. An interesting reference for authors who are looking to deepen their characters.
WRITERS’ TESTIMONIES
WRITING, MEMOIRS OF A CRAFT, STEPHEN KING, ALBIN MICHEL
Half autobiography, half essay, the master of horror shares in this book a beautiful testimony about his work as a writer. Throughout the pages, he returns to what pushed him to become an author and to write novels. He also slips in advice for budding writers and reassures those who write their stories without structure: he never makes a plan! It is not in this book that you will find the most technical advice to progress in writing, but it is interesting for the glimpse it offers behind the scenes of the writing profession.
YOU ARE THE WRITER, JEAN-PHILIPPE TOUSSAINT, LE ROBERT
This book is one of the first in a collection of advice “Secrets d’écriture” launched by Le Robert, which also includes in its catalog the writing advice of Michel Bussi and soon those of Susie Morgenstern and Franck Thilliez. Jean-Philippe Toussaint, the author of eighteen novels published by Éditions de Minuit, takes his reader into the intimacy of his writing room to share his advice on the art of writing, but also universal considerations on the scope of the gesture.
MY SECRETS AS A WRITER , ELIZABETH GEORGE, LES PRESSES DE LA CITÉ
A great crime writer, Elizabeth George shares her advice and method for writing a novel. While the book focuses in particular on the detective novel genre, it is no less useful for any author who wants to work on the structure of the plot or suspense in the novel. Numerous excerpts from her first novels, but also great texts (Dickens, Shakespeare, Poe, etc.) illustrate her words. A chapter is devoted to each important theme and it is easy to come back to pick up what you need at the time of writing.
THE ART OF FICTION, DAVID LODGE, RAVAGES
David Lodge is a writer, but also an academic and literary critic. More than writing techniques, the author studies literary topos: magical realism, the epistolary novel, the interior monologue… Each chapter is illustrated by an excerpt from English or American literature. If his observations are not as easy to put into practice as those of other works on this list, the book is very interesting for literature lovers who would like to nourish their reflection on writing.
BONUS
FOR ENGLISH-SPEAKING READERS WRITING FICTION FOR DUMMIES, RANDY INGERMANSON
Probably one of the most comprehensive books on the subject, it accompanies the author from preparation to the search for a publishing house. In addition to providing numerous writing tips, it provides valuable assistance for the proofreading stage by highlighting the state of mind to adopt, the elements to review, and how to go about it.
FOR THE CURIOUS THE WRITERS’ LIBRARY , STÉPHANIE KHAYAT, FLAMMARION
In this collection published by Flammarion, 34 contemporary authors share their love of literature through the books that changed their lives and inspired their writing. This book is not a manual and does not aim to give writing advice. However, it will introduce you to magnificent books of all genres that have nourished the imagination and style of successful authors such as Patrick Chamoiseau ( Texaco, Gallimard), Delphine de Vigan ( Rien ne s’oppose à la nuit, JC Lattès) or Marc Dugain ( Avenue des Géants, Gallimard). One more reason to get it: all royalties are donated to the association Bibliothèques Sans Frontières, an NGO that facilitates access to books and reading.
