I have several favorite writing guides on my book shelf, some new and some old. Reading everything these experts have written will put you a step ahead in the difficult world of publishing whether you’re a newbie or a seasoned author.

First, I recommend you read anything by Noah Lukeman, president of Lukeman Literary Management. While his agency no longer accepts new clients (he once represented me), Lukeman has written several essential books on writing and publishing. He founded the agency in 1996, representing a broad range of authors, journalists, politicians and celebrities, among them winners of the Nobel Peace Prize, the Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award finalists, the PEN Award, the American Book Award and many others.

Noah is an accomplished author, playwright and screenwriter himself.

Again, he no longer takes on new clients, but he has always devoted much of his time to giving back to the writing community and to helping aspiring writers in any way he can. To this end, he gives away for free the audiobook editions of two of his bestselling books on the craft of writing (The First Five Pages and The Plot Thickens) to help the writing community. The rights recently reverted for The Plot Thickens, and he has decided to make it free. The Audiobook edition is free, the E-book edition is free, and the paperback edition is now set to a price ($4.99) that just recoups printing costs and nets a $0 profit. (If the publishers ever revert this rights to The First Five Pages and A Dash of Style, he will also make those free in e-book and paperback.) He also gives away for free his two books How to Write a Great Query Letter and How to Land (and Keep) a Literary Agent, along with his book Ask a Literary Agent, a 100 page compendium of questions and answers from his former blog.

Read an excerpt on Authorlink from THE FIRST FIVE PGES 

Another of my favorite guides may have faded from contemporary consciousness, but he should never  be forgotten.

Rudolf Franz Flesch (8 May 1911 – 5 October 1986) was an Austrian-born naturalized American author (noted for his book Why Johnny Can’t Read), and also a readability expert and writing consultant who was a vigorous proponent of plain English in the United States.

Here is a partial list of his books I find still relevant today, especially his work on clear thinking.:

  • The Art of Plain Talk (1946)
  • The Art of Readable Writing (1949)
  • How to Write Better (1951)
  • The Art of Clear Thinking (1951)

One of the best ways to improve one’s writing is to read, read, read. Another rule is to set aside time every day to write. And remember that the first draft will always be crap. It takes a lot of writing to make a novel sing. Never give up.