Best books to help you become a brilliant writer

No matter how good a writer you are, there’s always more knowledge to acquire. All the best writers have drunk from the well of knowledge, are still and will continue to drink from the well. To continue to be good at something, you must refresh your knowledge and never stop learning more about your chosen field.

Here are 5 books on writing that will literally transform your craft. The books listed below are only a fraction of those that are available. So, read, read and read. The more you read, the better you become.

Here we go:

1. Immediate Fiction by Jerry Cleaver

Published in 2002, this book gives writers simple formulae they could follow to write all the good stories they’ll ever write. It takes the form of a professional writing course, complete with exercises. It also deals with important issues like time management and organisation.

2. On Writing by Stephen King

Stephen King is a master at storytelling. Having sold over 350 million books of which some have been adapted into movies, he is a master at his craft. On writing is a memoir as well as a guide to writing stellar stories. Stephen King included lots of writing gems in the book which makes it one of the most loved writing books ever written.

3. On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Non-Fiction by William Zinsser

The author starts the book by talking about the main points of non-fiction: the style, audience, words, proper usage and clutter. It gives gritty details on how authors can better their writing craft. The author also talks about how to find your voice as a writer and different types of non-fiction writing.

4. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott

Bird by Bird is a book about writing and life as a writer. It’s a book that includes the real happenings of life before and after publishing a book. Lamott also included a chapter dedicated to Shitty First Drafts. It focuses on the realities of life as part of writing.

5. How to Write Bestselling Fiction by Dean Koontz

One reason to absolutely trust this book is that it was written by the author before he became famous. It can be deduced that the formulae in the book contributed to Dean Koontz’s later success. The author explains the basic elements of fiction and while a lot of the information in it is outdated. Most importantly, it is still very useful.