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10 Best Creative Writing Books to Read in 2023

Introduction:.

The world of creative writing possesses an extraordinary ability to unleash imagination, craft narratives, and evoke emotions that resonate with readers. Whether you're an aspiring writer or simply someone who appreciates the art of storytelling, consider Oxford Summer Courses. Embark on a transformative journey through our Creative Writing summer school, where you will have the opportunity to explore the art of crafting compelling narratives, experimenting with various writing styles, and honing your literary skills.

Disclaimer:

Please note that the following list of books is recommended reading to broaden your knowledge and deepen your appreciation of creative writing and literature. While some of these books may be included in the Oxford Summer Courses curriculum, the specific content of the summer school can vary. If you wish to study these subjects with us, you can apply to our Creative Writing summer school.

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1. On Writing, by Stephen King

  • "Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration; the rest of us just get up and go to work."
  • Published in 2000, "On Writing" by Stephen King is a masterclass in the craft of storytelling. It combines King's personal journey as a writer with practical advice on honing your writing skills during your time at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How can Stephen King's advice on discipline and the writing process benefit aspiring writers at Oxford Summer Courses today?

2. Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott

  • "Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere."
  • Anne Lamott's "Bird by Bird" is an encouraging guide for writers facing the daunting task of putting words on the page. Through humor and personal anecdotes, she offers valuable insights into the writing process during your Creative Writing summer school at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How does Lamott's emphasis on "shitty first drafts" resonate with your own experiences as a writer at Oxford Summer Courses?

3. The Elements of Style, by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White

  • "Omit needless words."
  • A timeless classic, "The Elements of Style" is a concise guide to writing well. It provides essential rules of grammar and composition that every writer should know, especially during their time at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How do the principles outlined in "The Elements of Style" apply to various forms of creative writing, from fiction to poetry, at Oxford Summer Courses?

4. The story, by Robert McKee

  • "Stories are the creative conversion of life itself into a more powerful, clearer, more meaningful experience. They are the currency of human contact."
  • Robert McKee's "Story" is a comprehensive exploration of the principles behind effective storytelling. It's a must-read for anyone looking to understand the structure and elements of compelling narratives during their time at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How can the insights from "Story" enhance your ability to construct engaging and impactful stories during your Creative Writing summer school at Oxford Summer Courses?

5. Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert

  • "Do whatever brings you to life, then. Follow your own fascinations, obsessions, and compulsions. Trust them. Create whatever causes a revolution in your heart."
  • In "Big Magic," Elizabeth Gilbert delves into the creative process and encourages writers to embrace their creativity with courage and curiosity, a valuable lesson during your time at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How can Gilbert's philosophy on creativity inspire you to approach your writing with a sense of wonder and daring at Oxford Summer Courses?

6. The Art of Fiction, by John Gardner

  • "Fiction seeks out truth. The writer has to go into the dark, quiet spaces of himself and feel around for the truth."
  • John Gardner's "The Art of Fiction" offers profound insights into the art and craft of writing fiction. It explores the intricacies of character development, plot, and the writer's role in conveying truth through storytelling during your Creative Writing summer school at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How can Gardner's exploration of truth in fiction inform your own creative writing endeavors at Oxford Summer Courses?

7. Writing Down the Bones, by Natalie Goldberg

  • "Write what disturbs you, what you fear, what you have not been willing to speak about. Be willing to be split open."
  • Natalie Goldberg's "Writing Down the Bones" is a meditative guide to writing practice. It encourages writers to tap into their innermost thoughts and emotions during their Creative Writing summer school at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How can Goldberg's approach to writing as a form of meditation help you access deeper layers of creativity in your work at Oxford Summer Courses?

8. The Elements of Eloquence, by Mark Forsyth

  • "Rhetoric is the art of dressing up some unimportant matter to fool the audience for the moment."
  • "The Elements of Eloquence" explores the art of rhetoric and language play. Mark Forsyth's witty and informative book will inspire you to experiment with language in your writing during your time at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How can a deeper understanding of rhetorical devices enhance your ability to craft persuasive and evocative prose at Oxford Summer Courses?

9. Zen in the Art of Writing, by Ray Bradbury

  • "Every morning I jump out of bed and step on a landmine. The landmine is me. After the explosion, I spent the rest of the day putting the pieces together."
  • Ray Bradbury's "Zen in the Art of Writing" is a collection of essays that celebrate the joy and passion of writing. Bradbury shares his insights on creativity and the writing life during your Creative Writing summer school at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How can Bradbury's enthusiasm for writing infuse your own creative process with energy and purpose at Oxford Summer Courses?

10. The Nighttime Novelist, by Joseph Bates

  • "Writing is an exploration of the heart."
  • "The Nighttime Novelist" by Joseph Bates is a practical guide for writers who balance their craft with busy lives. It offers strategies for maximizing your writing time and making progress on your projects during your time at Oxford Summer Courses.
  • Discussion: How can the techniques outlined in "The Nighttime Novelist" help you maintain a consistent and productive writing practice at Oxford Summer Courses?

Oxford Summer Courses invites you to immerse yourself in the enchanting world of creative writing during your time at our summer school. In this blog post, we present a meticulously curated list of 10 classic books that will ignite your imagination and deepen your understanding of the art of storytelling. From Stephen King's practical wisdom in "On Writing" to Ray Bradbury's celebration of the writing life in "Zen in the Art of Writing," these books will serve as your companions on your creative writing journey at Oxford Summer Courses. Through our Creative Writing program, you will have the opportunity to explore these influential texts, share your insights with fellow writers, and refine your craft. Join us on this literary adventure and embark on a transformative experience that will shape your writing skills and inspire your creative spirit during your time at Oxford Summer Courses. Who knows, you might just discover a newfound passion for the art of storytelling and create narratives that resonate with readers for generations to come.

Apply now to join the Oxford Summer Courses Creative Writing summer school and embark on a journey of self-expression and creativity during your time at Oxford Summer Courses. Join a community of passionate writers from around the world and unlock your potential as a storyteller. Apply here.

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Ignite your passion for creative writing at Oxford Summer Courses. Immerse yourself in a carefully curated list of books that will spark your creativity, refine your storytelling abilities, and help you embark on a transformative journey as a writer.

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 Toni Morrison in 1979.

Top 10 books about creative writing

From linguistics to essays by Zadie Smith and Toni Morrison, poet Anthony Anaxagorou recommends some ‘lateral’ ways in to a demanding craft

T he poet Rita Dove was once asked what makes poetry successful. She went on to illuminate three key areas: First, the heart of the writer; the things they wish to say – their politics and overarching sensibilities. Second, their tools: how they work language to organise and position words. And the third, the love a person must have for books: “To read, read, read.”

When I started mapping out How to Write It , I wanted to focus on the aspects of writing development that took in both theoretical and interpersonal aspects. No writer lives in a vacuum, their job is an endless task of paying attention.

How do I get myself an agent? What’s the best way to approach a publisher? Should I self-publish? There is never one way to assuage the concerns of those looking to make a career out of writing. Many labour tirelessly for decades on manuscripts that never make it to print. The UK on average publishes around 185,000 new titles per year, ranking us the third largest publishing market in the world, yet the number of aspiring writers is substantially greater.

Writers writing about writing can become a supercilious endeavour; I’m more interested in the process of making work and the writer’s perspectives that substantiate the framework.

There’s no single authority, anything is possible. All that’s required are some words and an idea – which makes the art of writing enticing but also difficult and daunting. The books listed below, diverse in their central arguments and genres, guide us towards more interesting and lateral ways to think about what we want to say, and ultimately, how we choose to say it.

1. The Hatred of Poetry by Ben Lerner An intellectual meditation on the cultural function of poetry. Less idealistic than other poetry criticism, Lerner puts forward a richly layered case for the reasons writers and readers alike turn to poetry, probing into why it’s often misconceived as elitist or tedious, and asks that we reconsider the value we place on the art form today.

2. Find Your Voice by Angie Thomas One of the hardest things about creative writing is developing a voice and not compromising your vision for the sake of public appeal. Thomas offers sharp advice to those wrestling with novels or Young Adult fiction. She writes with appealing honesty, taking in everything from writer’s block to deciding what a final draft should look like. The book also comes interspersed with prompts and writing exercises alongside other tips and suggestions to help airlift writers out of the mud.

3. Linguistics: Why It Matters by Geoffrey K Pullum If language is in a constant state of flux, and rules governing sentence construction, meaning and logic are always at a point of contention, what then can conventional modes of language and linguistics tell us about ourselves, our cultures and our relationship to the material world? Pullum addresses a number of philosophical questions through the scientific study of human languages – their grammars, clauses and limitations. An approachable, fascinating resource for those interested in the mechanics of words.

4. Madness, Rack, and Honey by Mary Ruefle The collected lectures of poet and professor Mary Ruefle present us with an erudite inquiry into some of the major aspects of a writer’s mind and craft. Ruefle possesses an uncanny ability to excavate broad and complex subjects with such unforced and original lucidity that you come away feeling as if you’ve acquired an entirely new perspective from only a few pages. Themes range from sentimentality in poetry, to fear, beginnings and – a topic she returns to throughout the book – wonder. “A poem is a finished work of the mind, it is not the work of a finished mind.”

Zadie Smith.

5. Feel Free by Zadie Smith These astute and topical essays dating from 2010 to 2017 demonstrate Smith’s forensic ability to navigate and unpack everything from Brexit to Justin Bieber. Dissecting high philosophical works then bringing the focus back on to her own practice as a fiction writer, her essay The I Who Is Not Me sees Smith extrapolate on how autobiography shapes novel writing, and elucidates her approach to thinking around British society’s tenuous and often binary perspectives on race, class and ethnicity.

6. Threads by Sandeep Parmar, Nisha Ramayya and Bhanu Kapil Who occupies the “I” in poetry? When poets write, are they personally embodying their speakers or are they intended to be emblematic of something larger and more complex? Is the “I” assumed to be immutable or is it more porous? These are the questions posited in Threads, which illuminates the function of the lyric “I” in relation to whiteness, maleness and Britishness. Its short but acute essays interrogate whiteness’s hegemony in literature and language, revealing how writers from outside the dominant paradigm are often made to reckon with the positions and perspectives they write from.

7. Mouth Full of Blood by Toni Morrison An urgent set of essays and lectures from the late Nobel prize winner that collates her most discerning musings around citizenship, race and art, as well as offering invaluable insight into the craft of writing. She reflects on revisions made to her most famous novel, Beloved, while also reflecting on the ways vernaculars can shape new stories. One of my favourite aphorisms written by Morrison sits on my desk and declares: “As writers, what we do is remember. And to remember this world is to create it.”

8. On Poetry by Jonathan Davidson Poetry can be thought of as something arduous or an exercise in analysis, existing either within small artistic enclaves or secondary school classrooms. One of the many strengths of Davidson’s writing is how he makes poetry feel intimate and personal, neither dry or remote. His approach to thinking around ways that certain poems affect us is well measured without being exclusive. A timely and resourceful book for writers interested in how poems go on to live with us throughout our lives.

9. Essays by Lydia Davis From flash fiction to stories, Davis is recognised as one of the preeminent writers of short-form fiction. In these essays, spanning several decades, she tracks much of her writing process and her relationship to experimentalism, form and the ways language can work when pushed to its outer limits. How we read into lines is something Davis returns to, as is the idea of risk and brevity within micro-fiction.

10. Essayism by Brian Dillon Dillon summarises the essay as an “experiment in attention”. This dynamic and robust consideration of the form sheds light on how and why certain essays have changed the cultural and political landscape, from the end of the Middle Ages to the present time. A sharp and curious disquisition on one of the more popular yet challenging writing enterprises.

How to Write It by Anthony Anaxagorou is published by Merky Books. To order a copy, go to guardianbookshop.com .

  • Creative writing
  • Toni Morrison
  • Zadie Smith
  • Lydia Davis

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best creative writing book for 11

The 20+ Best Books on Creative Writing

If you’ve ever wondered, “How do I write a book?”, “How do I write a short story?”, or “How do I write a poem?” you’re not alone. I’m halfway done my MFA program at Vermont College of Fine Arts , and I ask myself these questions a lot, too, though I’m noticing that by now I feel more comfortable with the answers that fit my personal craft. Fortunately, you don’t need to be a Master’s of Fine Arts in Writing candidate, or even a college graduate, in order to soak up the great Wisdom of Words, as I like to call it. Another word for it is craft . That’s because there are so many great books out there on writing craft. In this post, I’ll guide you through 20+ of the most essential books on creative writing. These essential books for writers will teach you what you need to know to write riveting stories and emotionally resonant books—and to sell them.

I just also want to put in a quick plug for my post with the word count of 175 favorite novels . This resource is helpful for any writer.

best creative writing book for 11

Now, with that done… Let’s get to it!

What Made the List of Essential Books for Writers—and What Didn’t

So what made the list? And what didn’t?

Unique to this list, these are all books that I have personally used in my journey as a creative and commercial writer.

That journey started when I was 15 and extended through majoring in English and Creative Writing as an undergrad at UPenn through becoming a freelance writer in 2014, starting this book blog, pursuing my MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults at Vermont College of Fine Arts , and publishing some fiction and nonfiction books myself . My point here is not to boast, just to explain that these books have all helped me better understand and apply the craft, discipline, and business of writing over the course of more than half my life as I’ve walked the path to become a full-time writer. Your mileage my vary , but each of these books have contributed to my growth as a writer in some way. I’m not endorsing books I’ve never read or reviewed. This list comes from my heart (and pen!).

Most of these books are geared towards fiction writers, not poetry or nonfiction writers

It’s true that I’m only one human and can only write so much in one post. Originally, I wanted this list to be more than 25 books on writing. Yes, 25 books! But it’s just not possible to manage that in a single post. What I’ll do is publish a follow-up article with even more books for writers. Stay tuned!

The most commonly recommended books on writing are left out.

Why? Because they’re everywhere! I’m aiming for under-the-radar books on writing, ones that aren’t highlighted often enough. You’ll notice that many of these books are self-published because I wanted to give voice to indie authors.

But I did want to include a brief write-up of these books… and, well, you’ve probably heard of them, but here are 7 of the most recommended books on writing:

The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron – With her guided practice on how to rejuvenate your art over the course of 16 weeks, Cameron has fashioned an enduring classic about living and breathing your craft (for artists as well as writers). This book is perhaps best known for popularizing the morning pages method.

The Art of Fiction by John Gardner – If you want to better understand how fiction works, John Gardner will be your guide in this timeless book.

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott – A beloved writing book on process, craft, and overcoming stumbling blocks (both existential and material).

On Writing by Stephen King – A must-read hybrid memoir-craft book on the writer mythos and reality for every writer.

Reading Like a Writer by Francine Prose – A core writing book that teaches you how to read with a writer’s eye and unlock the ability to recognize and analyze craft for yourself.

Steering the Craft by Ursula K. Le Guin – Many writers consider this to be their bible on craft and storytelling.

Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg – A favorite of many writers, this book takes an almost spiritual approach to the art, craft, and experience of writing.

I’m aiming for under-the-radar books on writing on my list.

These books are all in print.

Over the years, I’ve picked up several awesome books on creative writing from used bookstores. Oh, how I wish I could recommend these! But many of them are out of print. The books on this list are all available new either as eBooks, hardcovers, or paperbacks. I guess this is the right time for my Affiliate Link disclaimer:

This article contains affiliate links, which means I might get a small portion of your purchase. For more on my affiliate link policy, check out my official Affiliate Link Disclaimer .

You’ll notice a lot of the books focus on the business of writing.

Too often, money is a subject that writers won’t talk about. I want to be upfront about the business of writing and making a living as a writer (or not ) with these books. It’s my goal to get every writer, even poets!, to look at writing not just from a craft perspective, but from a commercial POV, too.

And now on to the books!

Part i: the best books on writing craft, the anatomy of story by john truby.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You want to develop an instinctive skill at understanding the contours of storytelling .

All I want to do as a writer, my MO, is tell good stories well. It took me so long to understand that what really matters to me is good storytelling. That’s it—that’s the essence of what we do as writers… tell good stories well. And in The Anatomy of Story , legendary screenwriting teacher John Truby takes you through story theory. This book is packed with movie references to illustrate the core beat points in story, and many of these example films are actually literary adaptations, making this a crossover craft book for fiction writers and screenwriters alike.

How to read it: Purchase The Anatomy of Story on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

The art of memoir by mary karr.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You’re writing a memoir book or personal essays .

Nobody is a better person to teach memoir writing than Mary Karr, whose memoirs The Liar’s Club and Lit are considered classics of the genre. In The Art of Memoir , Karr delivers a master class on memoir writing, adapted from her experience as a writer and a professor in Syracuse’s prestigious MFA program. What I love about this book as an aspiring memoirist is Karr’s approach, which blends practical, actionable advice with more bigger-picture concepts on things like truth vs. fact in memoir storytelling. Like I said in the intro to this list, I didn’t include many nonfiction and poetry books on this list, but I knew I had to make an exception for The Art of Memoir .

How to read it: Purchase The Art of Memoir on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

The emotional craft of fiction by donald maass.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: Plot isn’t your problem, it’s character .

From literary agent Donald Maass, The Emotional Craft of Fiction gives you the skill set you need to master emotionally engaging fiction. Maass’s technique is to show you how readers get pulled into the most resonant, engaging, and unforgettable stories: by going through an emotional journey nimbly crafted by the author. The Emotional Craft of Fiction is a must-have work of craft to balance more plot-driven craft books.

How to read it: Purchase the The Emotional Craft of Fiction on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

How to Write Using the Snowflake Method by Randy Ingermanson

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You need a quick-and-dirty plotting technique that’s easy to memorize .

I first heard of the “Snowflake Method” in the National Novel Writing Month forums (which, by the way, are excellent places for finding writing craft worksheets, book recommendations, and online resources). In How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method , the Snowflake Method is introduced by its creator. This quick yet thorough plotting and outlining structure is humble and easy to master. If you don’t have time to read a bunch of books on outlining and the hundreds of pages that would require, check out How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method for a quick, 235-page read.

How to read it: Purchase How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Meander, spiral, explode: design and pattern in narrative by jane alison.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You want to do a deep dive understanding of the core theory of story, a.k.a. narrative.

A most unconventional writing craft book, Meander, Spiral, Explode offers a theory of narrative (story) as recognizable patterns. According to author Jane Alison, there are three main narrative narratives in writing: meandering, spiraling, and exploding. This cerebral book (chock full of examples!) is equal parts seminar on literary theory as it is craft, and it will make you see and understand storytelling better than maybe any book on this list.

How to read it: Purchase Meander, Spiral, Explode on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

The modern library writer’s workshop by stephen koch.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You’re wondering what it means to be the writer you want to become .

This is one of the earliest creative writing books I ever bought and it remains among the best I’ve read. Why? Reading The Modern Library Writer’s Workshop echoes the kind of mind-body-spirit approach you need to take to writing. The Modern Library Writer’s Workshop doesn’t teach you the nuts and bolts of writing as much as it teaches you how to envision the machine. Koch zooms out to big picture stuff as much as zeroes in on the little details. This is an outstanding book about getting into the mindset of being a writer, not just in a commercial sense, but as your passion and identity. It’s as close as you’ll get to the feel of an MFA in Fiction education.

How to read it: Purchase The Modern Library Writer’s Workshop on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Romancing the beat by gwen hayes.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You write or edit the romance genre and want a trusted plotting strategy to craft the perfect love story .

If you’re writing romance, you have to get Gwen Hayes’s Romancing the Beat . This book breaks down the plot points or “beats” you want to hit when you’re crafting your romance novel. When I worked as a romance novel outliner (yes, a real job), our team used Romancing the Beat as its bible; every outline was structured around Hayes’s formula. For romance writers (like myself) I cannot endorse it any higher.

How to read it: Purchase Romancing the Beat on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Save the cat writes a novel by jessica brody.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You have big ideas for a plot but need to work on the smaller moments that propel stories .

Jessica Brody’s Save the Cat! Writes a Novel adapts Blake Snyder’s bestselling screenwriting book Save the Cat! into story craft for writing novels. Brody reworks the Save the Cat! methodology in actionable, point-by-point stages of story that are each explained with countless relevant examples. If you want to focus your efforts on plot, Save the Cat! Writes a Novel is an excellent place to go to start learning the ins and outs of what makes a good story.

How to read it: Purchase Save the Cat! Writes a Novel on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Story genius by lisa cron.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You’re a pantser and are terrified at outlining yet also realize you might have a “plot problem .”

More than any other book, Lisa Cron’s Story Genius will get you where you need to go for writing amazing stories. Story Genius helps you look at plotting differently, starting from a point of characterization in which our protagonists have a clearly defined need and misbelief that play off each other and move the story forward from an emotional interior and action exterior standpoint. For many of my fellow MFA students—and myself— Story Genius is the missing link book for marrying plot and character so you innately understand the contours of good story.

How to read it: Purchase Story Genius on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Wonderbook: the illustrated guide to creating imaginative fiction by jeff vandermeer.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You’re writing in a speculative fiction genre—like science fiction, fantasy, or horror—or are trying to better understand those genres.

Jeff VanderMeer’s Wonderbook is a dazzling gem of a book and a can’t-miss-it writing book for sci-fi, fantasy, and horror writers. This book will teach you all the skills you need to craft speculative fiction, like world-building, with micro-lessons and close-reads of excellent works in these genres. Wonderbook is also one to linger over, with lavish illustrations and every inch and corner crammed with craft talk for writing imaginative fiction (sometimes called speculative fiction). And who better to guide you through this than Jeff VanderMeer, author of the popular Southern Reach Trilogy, which kicks off with Annihilation , which was adapted into a feature film.

How to read it: Purchase Wonderbook on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Writing picture books by ann whitford paul.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You’re looking to write picture books and/or understand how they work .

This book is the only one you need to learn how to write and sell picture books. As an MFA student studying children’s literature, I’ve consulted with this book several times as I’ve dipped my toes into writing picture books, a form I considered scary and intimidating until reading this book. Writing Picture Books should be on the shelf of any writer of children’s literature. a.k.a. “kid lit.”

How to read it: Purchase Writing Picture Books on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Writing with emotion, conflict, and tension by cheryl st. john.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You need to work on the conflict, tension, and suspense that keep readers turning pages and your story going forward .

Mmm, conflict. As I said earlier, it’s the element of fiction writing that makes a story interesting and a key aspect of characterization that is underrated. In Writing with Emotion, Tension, and Conflict , bestselling romance author Cheryl St. John offers a masterclass on the delicate dance between incorporating conflict, the emotions it inspires in characters, and the tension that results from those two factors.

How to read it: Purchase Writing with Emotion, Tension, and Conflict on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Part ii: the best books on the productivity, mfas, and the business of writing, 2k to 10k: writing faster, writing better, and writing more of what you love by rachel aaron.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You struggle to find the time to write and always seem to be a chapter or two behind schedule .

If you’re struggling to find time of your own to write with competing obligations (family, work, whatever) making that hard, you need Rachel Aaron’s 2k to 10k . This book will get you in shape to go from writing just a few words an hour to, eventually, 10,000 words a day. Yes, you read that right. 10,000 words a day. At that rate, you can complete so many more projects and publish more. Writers simply cannot afford to waste time if they want to keep up the kind of production that leads to perpetual publication. Trust me, Aaron’s method works. It has for me. I’m on my way to 10k in the future, currently at like 4 or 5k a day for me at the moment.

How to read it: Purchase 2k to 10k on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

The 3 a.m. epiphany by brian kitele.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You’re going through writer’s block, have been away from writing for a while, or just want to loosen up and try something new .

Every writer must own an an exercise or prompt book. Why? Because regularly practicing your writing by going outside your current works-in-progress (or writer’s block) will free you up, help you plant the seeds for new ideas, and defrost your creative blocks. And the best book writing exercise book I know is The 3 A.M. Epiphany by Brian Kiteley, an MFA professor who uses prompts like these with his grad students. You’ll find that this book (and its sequel, The 4 A.M. Breakthrough ) go beyond cutesy exercises and forces you to push outside your comfort zone and learn something from the writing you find there.

How to read it: Purchase The 3 A.M. Epiphany on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

The 4-hour workweek by timothy ferriss.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You think being a writer means you have to be poor .

The 4-Hour Workweek changed my life. Although not strictly about writing in the traditional sense, The 4-Hour Workweek does an excellent job teaching you about how passive income can offer you freedom. I first heard about The 4-Hour Workweek when I was getting into tarot in 2013. On Biddy Tarot , founder Brigit (author of some of the best books on tarot ) related how she read this book, learned how to create passive income, and quit her corporate job to read tarot full time. As a person with a total and permanent disability, this spoke to me because it offered a way out of the 9-to-5 “active” income that I thought was the only way. I picked up Ferriss’s book and learned that there’s more than one option, and that passive income is a viable way for me to make money even when I’m too sick to work. I saw this come true last year when I was in the hospital. When I got out, I checked my stats and learned I’d made money off my blog and books even while I was hospitalized and couldn’t do any “active” work. I almost cried.; I’ve been working on my passive income game since 2013, and I saw a return on that time investment when I needed it most.

That’s why I’m recommending The 4-Hour Workweek to writers. So much of our trade is producing passive income products. Yes, your books are products! And for many writers, this means rewiring your brain to stop looking at writing strictly as an art that will leave you impoverished for life and start approaching writing as a business that can earn you a real living through passive income. No book will help you break out of that mindset better than The 4-Hour Workweek and its actionable steps, proven method, and numerous examples of people who have followed the strategy and are living the lifestyle they’ve always dreamed of but never thought was possible.

How to read it: Purchase The 4-Hour Workweek on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Before and After the Book Deal: A Writer’s Guide to Finishing, Publishing, Promoting, and Surviving Your First Book by Courtney Maum

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You’re serious about making a living as a writer and publishing with a Big 5 or major indie publisher .

Courtney Maum’s Before and After the Book Deal addresses exactly what its title suggests: what happens after you sell your first book. This book is for ambitious writers intent on submission who know they want to write and want to avoid common pitfalls while negotiating terms and life after your debut. As many published authors would tell you, the debut is one thing, but following that book up with a sustainable, successful career is another trick entirely. Fortunately, we have Maum’s book, packed with to-the-moment details and advice.

How to read it: Purchase Before and After the Book Deal on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Diy mfa: write with focus, read with purpose, build your community by gabriela pereira.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You’re stressed out wondering if you really need an MFA .

The MFA is under this header “business of writing” because it is absolutely an economic choice you make. And, look, I’m biased. I’m getting an MFA. But back when I was grappling with whether or not it was worth it—the debt, the time, the stress—I consulted with DIY MFA , an exceptional guide to learning how to enrich your writing craft, career, and community outside the structures of an MFA program. I’ve also more than once visited the companion site, DIYMFA.com , to find a kind of never-ending rabbit hole of new and timeless content on the writing life. On DIYMFA.com and in the corresponding book, you’ll find a lively hub for author interviews, writing craft shop talk, reading lists, and business of writing articles.

How to read it: Purchase DIY MFA on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Mfa vs. nyc by chad harbach.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You’re wondering how far an MFA really gets you—and you’re ready to learn the realities of the publishing world .

About a thousand years ago (well, in 2007), I spent the fall of my sophomore year of college as a “Fiction Submissions and Advertising Intern” for the literary magazine n+1 , which was co-founded by Chad Harbach, who you might know from his buzzy novel, The Art of Fielding . In MFA vs NYC , Harbach offers his perspective as both an MFA graduate and someone deeply enmeshed in the New York City publishing industry. This thought-provoking look at these two arenas that launch writers will pull the wool up from your eyes about how publishing really works . It’s not just Harbach’s voice you get in here, though. The book, slim but mighty, includes perspectives from the likes of George Saunders and David Foster Wallace in the MFA camp and Emily Gould and Keith Gessen speaking to NYC’s writing culture.

How to read it: Purchase MFA vs. NYC on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Scratch: writers, money, and the art of making a living – edited by manjula martin.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: a) You’re worried about how to balance writing with making a living; b) You’re not worried about how to balance writing with making a living .

Scratch: Writers, Money, and the Art of Making a Living is alternately one of the most underrated and essential books on writing out there. This collection of personal essays and interviews all revolve around the taboo theme of how writers make their living, and it’s not always—indeed, rarely—through writing alone. Some of the many contributing authors include Cheryl Strayed ( Wild ), Alexander Chee ( How to Write an Autobiographical Novel ), Jennifer Weiner ( Mrs. Everything ), Austin Kleon ( Steal Like an Artist ), and many others. Recently a young woman asked me for career advice on being a professional freelance writer, and I made sure to recommend Scratch as an eye-opening and candid read that is both motivating and candid.

How to read it: Purchase Scratch: Writers, Money, and the Art of Making a Living on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

Write to market: deliver a book that sells by chris fox.

best creative writing book for 11

For you if: You don’t know why your books aren’t selling—and you want to start turning a profit by getting a real publishing strategy

So you don’t have to be an indie author to internalize the invaluable wisdom you’ll find here in Write to Market . I first heard about Write to Market when I first joined the 20Booksto50K writing group on Facebook , a massive, supportive, motivating community of mostly indie authors. Everyone kept talking about Write to Market . I read the book in a day and found the way I looked at publishing change. Essentially, what Chris Fox does in Write to Market is help you learn to identify what are viable publishing niches. Following his method, I’ve since published several successful and #1 bestselling books in the quotations genre on Amazon . Without Fox’s book, I’m not sure I would have gotten there on my own.

How to read it: Purchase Write to Market on Amazon and add it on Goodreads

And that’s a wrap what are some of your favorite writing books, share this:, you might be interested in.

best creative writing book for 11

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Sarah S. Davis is the founder of Broke by Books, a blog about her journey as a schizoaffective disorder bipolar type writer and reader. Sarah's writing about books has appeared on Book Riot, Electric Literature, Kirkus Reviews, BookRags, PsychCentral, and more. She has a BA in English from the University of Pennsylvania, a Master of Library and Information Science from Clarion University, and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts.

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Language » Writing Books

The best books on creative writing, recommended by andrew cowan.

The professor of creative writing at UEA says Joseph Conrad got it right when he said that the sitting down is all. He chooses five books to help aspiring writers.

The best books on Creative Writing - Becoming a Writer by Dorothea Brande

Becoming a Writer by Dorothea Brande

The best books on Creative Writing - On Becoming a Novelist by John Gardner

On Becoming a Novelist by John Gardner

The best books on Creative Writing - On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

The best books on Creative Writing - The Forest for the Trees by Betsy Lerner

The Forest for the Trees by Betsy Lerner

The best books on Creative Writing - Worstward Ho by Samuel Beckett

Worstward Ho by Samuel Beckett

best creative writing book for 11

1 Becoming a Writer by Dorothea Brande

2 on becoming a novelist by john gardner, 3 on writing: a memoir of the craft by stephen king, 4 the forest for the trees by betsy lerner, 5 worstward ho by samuel beckett.

How would you describe creative writing?

Creative writing is an academic discipline. I draw a distinction between writing , which is what writers do, and creative writing. I think most people in the UK who teach creative writing have come to it via writing – they are bona fide writers who publish poems and novels and play scripts and the like, and they have found some way of supporting that vocation through having a career in academia. So in teaching aspirant writers how to write they are drawing upon their own experience of working in that medium. They are drawing upon their knowledge of what the problems are and how those problems might be tackled. It’s a practice-based form of learning and teaching.

But because it is in academia there is all this paraphernalia that has to go with it. So you get credits for attending classes. You have to do supporting modules; you have to be assessed. If you are doing an undergraduate degree you have to follow a particular curriculum and only about a quarter of that will be creative writing and the rest will be in the canon of English literature . If you are doing a PhD you have to support whatever the creative element is with a critical element. So there are these ways in which academia disciplines writing and I think of that as Creative Writing with a capital C and a capital W. All of us who teach creative writing are doing it, in a sense, to support our writing, but it is also often at the expense of our writing. We give up quite a lot of time and mental energy and also, I think, imaginative and creative energy to teach.

It is hugely rewarding, engaging with the students, but it is hugely frustrating as well, because the larger part of it is engaging with an institution. I’m sure I’m not alone in being very ambivalent about what I do!

Your first choice is Dorothea Brande’s Becoming a Writer , which for someone writing in 1934 sounds pretty forward thinking.

Because creative writing has now taken off and has become this very widespread academic discipline it is beginning to acquire its own canon of key works and key texts. This is one of the oldest of them. It’s a book that almost anyone who teaches creative writing will have read. They will probably have read it because some fundamentals are explained and I think the most important one is Brande’s sense of the creative writer being comprised of two people. One of them is the artist and the other is the critic.

Actually, Malcolm Bradbury who taught me at UEA, wrote the foreword to my edition of Becoming a Writer , and he talks about how Dorothea Brande was writing this book ‘in Freudian times’ – the 1930s in the States. And she does have this very Freudian idea of the writer as comprised of a child artist on the one hand, who is associated with spontaneity, unconscious processes, while on the other side there is the adult critic making very careful discriminations.

And did she think the adult critic hindered the child artist?

No. Her point is that the two have to work in harmony and in some way the writer has to achieve an effective balance between the two, which is often taken to mean that you allow the artist child free rein in the morning. So you just pour stuff on to the page in the morning when you are closest to the condition of sleep. The dream state for the writer is the one that is closest to the unconscious. And then in the afternoon you come back to your morning’s work with your critical head on and you consciously and objectively edit it. Lots of how-to-write books encourage writers to do it that way. It is also possible that you can just pour stuff on to the page for days on end as long as you come back to it eventually with a critical eye.

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There are two ways in which you can start to get that wrong and produce bad work. One is where you don’t allow the critic in at all. And so it is just a constant outpouring of unmediated automatic writing, which can become a kind of verbal diarrhoea. And the other side of that is where you allow the critic too much authority and the critic becomes like a bad dad who finds fault with everything and doesn’t allow the child to produce anything. And that results in a sort of self-sabotaging perfectionism, which I have suffered from. I got very blocked, and I read this book and it unblocked me.

Good! Your next book, John Gardner’s On Becoming a Novelist , is described as comfort food for the aspiring novelist.

This is another one of the classics. He was quite a successful novelist in the States, but possibly an even more successful teacher of creative writing. The short story writer and poet Raymond Carver, for instance, was one of his students. And he died young in a motorcycle accident when he was 49. There are two classic works by him. One is this book, On Becoming a Novelist , and the other is The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers . They were both put together from his teaching notes after he died.

On Becoming a Novelist  is the more succinct and, I think, is the better of the two. He talks about automatic writing and the idea, just like Dorothea Brande, of the artist being comprised of two people. But his key idea is the notion of the vivid and continuous dream. He suggests that when we read a novel we submit to the logic of that novel in the same way as we might submit to the logic of a dream – we sink into it, and clearly the events that occur could not exist outside the imagination.

What makes student writing in particular go wrong is when it draws attention to itself, either through bad writing or over-elaborate writing. He suggests that these faults in the aspirant writer alert the reader to the fact that they are reading a fiction and it is a bit like giving someone who is dreaming a nudge. It jolts them out of the dream. So he proposes that the student writer should try to create a dream state in the reader that is vivid and appeals to all the senses and is continuous. What you mustn’t do is alert the reader to the fact that they are reading a fiction.

It is a very good piece of advice for writers starting out but it is ultimately very limiting. It rules out all the great works of modernism and post-modernism, anything which is linguistically experimental. It rules out anything which draws attention to the words as words on a page. It’s a piece of advice which really applies to the writing of realist fiction, but is a very good place from which to begin.

And then people can move on.

I never would have expected the master of terror Stephen King to write a book about writing. But your next choice, On Writing , is more of an autobiography .

Yes. It is a surprise to a lot of people that this book is so widely read on university campuses and so widely recommended by teachers of writing. Students love it. It’s bracing: there’s no nonsense. He says somewhere in the foreword or preface that it is a short book because most books are filled with bullshit and he is determined not to offer bullshit but to tell it like it is.

It is autobiographical. It describes his struggle to emerge from his addictions – to alcohol and drugs – and he talks about how he managed to pull himself and his family out of poverty and the dead end into which he had taken them. He comes from a very disadvantaged background and through sheer hard work and determination he becomes this worldwide bestselling author. This is partly because of his idea of the creative muse. Most people think of this as some sprite or fairy that is usually feminine and flutters about your head offering inspiration. His idea of the muse is ‘a basement guy’, as he calls him, who is grumpy and turns up smoking a cigar. You have to be down in the basement every day clocking in to do your shift if you want to meet the basement guy.

Stephen King has this attitude that if you are going to be a writer you need to keep going and accept that quite a lot of what you produce is going to be rubbish and then you are going to revise it and keep working at it.

Do you agree with him?

Yes, I do. I think he talks an awful lot of sense. There is this question which continues to be asked of people who teach creative writing, even though it has been taught in the States for over 100 years and in the UK for over 40 years. We keep being asked, ‘Can writing be taught?’ And King says it is impossible to make a competent writer out of a bad writer, and equally impossible to make a great writer out of a good one, but what is possible, with lots of hard work and dedication and timely help, is to make a good writer out of a merely competent one. And his book is partly intended to address that, to help competent writers to become good ones. It is inspirational because he had no sense of entitlement. He is not a bookish person and yet he becomes this figurehead.

He sounds inspirational. Your next book, Betsy Lerner’s The Forest for the Trees , looks at things from the editor’s point of view.

Yes, she was an editor at several major American publishing houses, such as Simon & Schuster. She went on to become an agent, and also did an MFA in poetry before that, so she came through the US creative writing process and understands where many writers are coming from.

The book is divided into two halves. In the second half she describes the process that goes from the completion of the author’s manuscript to submitting it to agents and editors. She explains what goes on at the agent’s offices and the publisher’s offices. She talks about the drawing up of contracts, negotiating advances and royalties. So she takes the manuscript from the author’s hands, all the way through the publishing process to its appearance in bookshops. She describes that from an insider’s point of view, which is hugely interesting.

But the reason I like this book is for the first half of it, which is very different. Here she offers six chapters, each of which is a character sketch of a different type of author. She has met each of them and so although she doesn’t mention names you feel she is revealing something to you about authors whose books you may have read. She describes six classic personality types. She has the ambivalent writer, the natural, the wicked child, the self-promoter, the neurotic and a chapter called ‘Touching Fire’, which is about the addictive and the mentally unstable.

It is very entertaining and informative and it is also hugely affirming. I identified myself with each one of the six types. There is a bit in each of them that sounded just like me. And I thought, well if they can get published so can I. You do often worry that you are an impostor, that you are only pretending to be a writer and that real writers are a completely different breed, but actually this book shows they can be just like you.

Your final choice is Worstward Ho by Samuel Beckett .

This is a tiny book – it is only about 40 pages and it has got these massive white margins and really large type. I haven’t counted, but I would guess it is only about two to three thousand words and it is dressed up as a novella when it is really only a short story. On the first page there is this riff: ‘Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.’

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When I read this I thought I had discovered a slogan for the classroom that I could share with my students. I want to encourage them to make mistakes and not to be perfectionists, not to feel that everything they do has to be of publishable standard. The whole point of doing a course, especially a creative writing MA and attending workshops, is that you can treat the course as a sandpit. You go in there, you try things out which otherwise you wouldn’t try, and then you submit it to the scrutiny of your classmates and you get feedback. Inevitably there will be things that don’t work and your classmates will help you to identify those so that you can take it away and redraft it – you can try again. And inevitably you are going to fail again because any artistic endeavour is doomed to failure because the achievement can never match the ambition. That’s why artists keep producing their art and writers keep writing, because the thing you did last just didn’t quite satisfy you, just wasn’t quite right. And you keep going and trying to improve on that.

But why, when so much of it is about failing – failing to get published, failing to be satisfied, failing to be inspired – do writers carry on?

I have a really good quote from Joseph Conrad in which he says the sitting down is all. He spends eight hours at his desk, trying to write, failing to write, foaming at the mouth, and in the end wanting to hit his head on the wall but refraining from that for fear of alarming his wife!

It’s a familiar situation; lots of writers will have been there. For me it is a kind of obsessive-compulsive disorder. It is something I have to keep returning to. I have to keep going back to the sentences, trying to get them right. Trying to line them up correctly. I can’t let them go. It is endlessly frustrating because they are never quite right.

You have published four books. Are you happy with them?

Reasonably happy. Once they are done and gone I can relax and feel a little bit proud of them. But at the time I just experience agonies. It takes me ages. It takes me four or five years to finish a novel partly because I always find distractions – like working in academia – something that will keep me away from the writing, which is equally as unrewarding as it is rewarding!

September 27, 2012

Five Books aims to keep its book recommendations and interviews up to date. If you are the interviewee and would like to update your choice of books (or even just what you say about them) please email us at [email protected]

Andrew Cowan

Andrew Cowan

Andrew Cowan is Professor of Creative Writing and Director of the Creative Writing programme at UEA. His first novel, Pig , won the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award, the Betty Trask Award, the Ruth Hadden Memorial Prize, the Author’s Club First Novel Award and a Scottish Council Book Award. He is also the author of the novels Common Ground , Crustaceans ,  What I Know  and  Worthless Men . His own creative writing guidebook is  The  Art  of  Writing  Fiction .

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best creative writing book for 11

The 50 Best Books for 11- and 12-Year-Olds

By melissa taylor.

Eleven and twelve is a time of big change for kids, both emotionally and physically. Which is why reading coming-of-age books becomes very relevant at this age. Just like the characters in the books they’re reading, 11- and 12-year-olds are experiencing emotional mood swings and physical changes from puberty that can lead to increased feelings of self-consciousness. Kids this age are also highly influenced by friends, wanting more independence from parents, and making improvements in their abstract thinking abilities. Preteens need good books that both resonate with their complex lives as well as educate and entertain them.

Which brings us to this book list — our 50 best books for 11- and 12- year-olds, curated by a panel of children’s literature experts . You’ll find a wide variety here, excellent books that appeal to a range of preteen interests, backgrounds, and even moods.

You can download the entire printable list here.

uniE601 Fantasy, Magic, and Horror  

Fantasy, magic, and horror provide tech-free escapism for kids. Readers can travel to other worlds to experience illusions, ghosts, dragons, and more.

Circus Mirandus

Circus Mirandus

by Cassie Beasley

Dealing with Dragons

Dealing with Dragons

by Patricia C. Wrede

Doll Bones

by Holly Black, illustrated by Eliza Wheeler

Impyrium

by Henry H. Neff

Eragon

by Christopher Paolini

Furthermore

Furthermore

by Tahereh Mafi

The Girl Who Drank the Moon

The Girl Who Drank the Moon

by Kelly Barnhill

His Dark Materials Trilogy

His Dark Materials Trilogy

by Philip Pullman

The Hobbit

by J.R.R. Tolkien

best creative writing book for 11

Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase

by Jonathan Stroud

The Phantom Tollbooth

The Phantom Tollbooth

by Norton Juster, illustrated by Jules Feiffer

uniE601 Mystery and Adventure  

Kids love to imagine themselves as the main characters, especially in kids-can-do-anything adventure and mystery stories like these selections. These books are great confidence boosters and great fun.

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library

by Chris Grabenstein

Hoot

by Carl Hiaasen

The Nameless City

The Nameless City

by Faith Erin Hicks, color by Jordie Bellaire

Princess Academy

Princess Academy

by Shannon Hale

Spaced Out

by Stuart Gibbs

The Westing Game

The Westing Game

by Ellen Raskin

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

by Grace Lin

uniE601 Coming-of-Age  

These characters grow and change by facing life’s challenges. Readers will connect with the struggles of daily life and growing up. What’s more, you’re more likely to develop empathy and understanding after walking a mile in someone else’s story.

Al Capone Does My Shirts

Al Capone Does My Shirts

by Gennifer Choldenko

American Born Chinese

American Born Chinese

by Gene Luen Yang

Because of Mr. Terupt

Because of Mr. Terupt

by Rob Buyea

The Best Man

The Best Man

by Richard Peck

As Brave As You

As Brave As You

by Jason Reynolds

Counting by 7s

Counting by 7s

by Holly Goldberg Sloan

The Crossover

The Crossover

by Kwame Alexander

Flying Lessons & Other Stories

Flying Lessons & Other Stories

edited by Ellen Oh

Goodbye Stranger

Goodbye Stranger

by Rebecca Stead

The House on Mango Street

The House on Mango Street

by Sandra Cisneros

Mockingbird

Mockingbird

by Kathryn Erskine

Okay for Now

Okay for Now

by Gary D. Schmidt

Pax

by Sara Pennypacker, illustrated by Jon Klassen

Return to Sender

Return to Sender

by Julia Alvarez

The Seventh Most Important Thing

The Seventh Most Important Thing

by Shelley Pearsall

Stargirl

by Jerry Spinelli

Touching Spirit Bear

Touching Spirit Bear

by Ben Mikaelsen

When You Reach Me

When You Reach Me

Wolf Hollow

Wolf Hollow

by Lauren Wolk

uniE601 Inspired by History  

Few things stick with you as much as a deeply memorable story. These historical fiction books bring history to life through their dynamic characters and plots, and will stay with readers long after the last page.

Before We Were Free

Before We Were Free

Boxers & Saints Series

Boxers & Saints Series

Echo

by Pam Muñoz Ryan

The Inquisitor’s Tale

The Inquisitor’s Tale

by Adam Gidwitz, illustrated by Hatem Aly

Little Women

Little Women

by Louisa May Alcott

The Mighty Miss Malone

The Mighty Miss Malone

by Christopher Paul Curtis

uniE601 Page-Turning Nonfiction  

Unforgettable and often unbelievable, these well-written nonfiction books inspire and educate readers. Learn more about significant people and specific periods of history in one of these compelling book choices.

Bomb

by Steve Sheinkin

Hidden Figures (Young Readers' Edition)

Hidden Figures (Young Readers' Edition)

by Margot Lee Shetterly

I Am Malala (Young Readers' Edition)

I Am Malala (Young Readers' Edition)

by Malala Yousafzai

Isaac the Alchemist: Secrets of Isaac Newton, Reveal'd

Isaac the Alchemist: Secrets of Isaac Newton, Reveal'd

by Mary Losure

Some Writer! The Story of E.B. White

Some Writer! The Story of E.B. White

by Melissa Sweet

What Color Is My World? The Lost History of African-American Inventors

What Color Is My World? The Lost History of African-American Inventors

by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Raymond Obstfeld, illustrated by Ben Boos and A.G. Ford

Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World

Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World

by Rachel Ignotofsky

Learn more about the experts behind this reading list .

Get the printable version of the list.

Explore our 50 Best series to get great recommendations for other ages.

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11 Best Creative Writing Books (Fiction & Non-Fiction Picks)

Writing is a craft, and like any craft, it requires practice. Aspiring writers need to hone their skills to express their ideas and imagination in a meaningful way. Creative writing books can be a great instrument in helping newbie writers grow and succeed. In this article, we will highlight the best creative writing books for aspiring writers, with fiction and non-fiction genres shown separately below.

Why Creative Writing Books Are Essential for Aspiring Writers

Aspiring writers sometimes struggle to find their voice and develop their skills. It’s essential to understand that writing is a lifelong learning process. Creative writing books can offer guidance and insights into the craft, providing an opportunity for writers to expand their knowledge and develop their skills. These books can help you learn writing techniques, inspire your creativity, and guide you through the publishing process.

Enhancing your writing skills

Have you ever read something and became mesmerized by the prose? Acclaimed authors have developed their writing skills through years of practice. Yet, with the right tools and guidance, aspiring authors can master these skills much faster. Some of the best creative writing books offer insights on grammar and style that can enhance your writing skills.

For example, sifting through “ The Elements of Style ” by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White can help in grammar and guide you in using figures of speech appropriately. This classic book teaches you how to structure your sentences and essays, ideal for writers looking to add a polished finish to their writing skills. Similarly, “ On Writing Well ” by William Zinsser guides writers on how to develop their voice, rhythm, and flow – which are all vital elements in improving writing skills.

Another excellent book that can help you enhance your writing skills is “ Bird by Bird ” by Anne Lamott. This book is full of practical advice and exercises that can help you develop your writing skills. Lamott’s humorous and engaging style makes it an enjoyable read, making it easier to digest the information and apply it to your writing.

Expanding your imagination

Creative writing books not only help you develop your writing skills, but they can also expand your imagination, which is the heart of any great piece of writing. They allow you to explore different worlds and narratives, learn how to describe settings and characters, and master the art of symbolism and metaphor. A great example of a book that can help with this is “ Writing Down the Bones ” by Natalie Goldberg. In this book, Goldberg shares effective techniques to free your mind of any mental barriers and open up your imagination. Through her prompts and writing exercises, Goldberg encourages writers to explore their creative ideas and urges them to take their writing to new heights.

Another book that can help you expand your imagination is “ The Creative Habit ” by Twyla Tharp. Tharp is a renowned choreographer, but her book is not just for dancers. It’s a practical guide to cultivating creativity in any field, including writing. Tharp shares her methods for developing creative habits, such as setting aside time for creativity and finding inspiration in unexpected places.

Learning from the experts

One of the best ways to improve your writing is to read works from successful authors. However, in addition to reading books, you can also learn from the writers themselves by reading their experiences and insights on writing. Through their personal journeys, published writers can offer insight into the industry and what it takes to become a successful author.

For instance, the book “ The Writing Life ” by Annie Dillard delves into the raw and honest realities of being a writer. It’s a must-read for aspiring writers looking for inspiration and guidance, as Dillard offers a unique perspective on the craft of writing. Similarly, “ The Art of Memoir ” by Mary Karr details how to write vivid memoirs, with honest and sometimes painful hints of Karr’s own journey.

Another book that can offer insights into the publishing industry is “ On Writing” by Stephen King. In this memoir, King shares his journey to becoming a successful writer and offers practical advice on writing and publishing. King’s candid and straightforward approach makes it an entertaining and informative read.

Overall, creative writing books are essential for aspiring writers who want to develop their skills, expand their imagination, and learn from successful authors. With the right guidance and tools, you can improve your writing and take your craft to the next level.

Top Fiction Writing Books

Writing fiction is an art that requires skill, creativity, and dedication. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced writer, there are always ways to improve your craft. Reading books on writing can be a great way to gain new insights and techniques that can help you become a better writer. Here are the top 5 fiction writing books that every aspiring writer should read:

“On Writing” by Stephen King

“ On Writing ” by Stephen King is a must-read for any aspiring writer. King shares his personal journey as a writer, from his early struggles to his eventual success. He provides practical advice on everything from grammar and style to the importance of reading and revision. King’s candid and humorous writing style makes this book an enjoyable read that will leave you feeling inspired and motivated to write.

“Bird by Bird” by Anne Lamott

In “ Bird by Bird ,” Anne Lamott offers a refreshing and honest perspective on the writing process. She emphasizes the importance of taking things one step at a time and encourages writers to embrace their imperfections. Lamott’s witty and relatable anecdotes will make you feel like you’re chatting with a friend who understands the struggles of being a writer.

“The Elements of Style” by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White

“ The Elements of Style ” is a classic writing guide that has stood the test of time. Written by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White, this book offers practical advice on grammar, style, and usage. It’s a concise and easy-to-read guide that will help you improve your writing skills and make your prose more polished and professional.

“Writing Down the Bones” by Natalie Goldberg

If you’re looking for a book that will help you tap into your creativity, “ Writing Down the Bones ” is the perfect choice. Natalie Goldberg’s book is a collection of short essays that offer practical advice on writing and creativity. She encourages writers to let go of their inhibitions and write freely, without worrying about perfection. Goldberg’s exercises and prompts will help you develop a daily writing practice that can unlock your full creative potential.

“The War of Art” by Steven Pressfield

“ The War of Art ” is a book that every writer should read. Steven Pressfield’s book is a powerful manifesto on the creative process and the obstacles that writers face. He identifies the internal forces of resistance that can prevent writers from pursuing their dreams and offers practical advice on how to overcome them. Pressfield’s book is a call to action for writers who want to take their craft to the next level.

Reading these books will not only improve your writing skills but also provide you with the inspiration and motivation you need to keep writing. Remember, writing is a journey, and every step you take will bring you closer to your goal of becoming a successful writer.

Top Non-Fiction Writing Books

If you’re looking to improve your non-fiction writing skills, you’re in luck. There are many excellent books out there that can help you sharpen your craft and take your writing to the next level. Here are five of the best non-fiction writing books, each with its unique insights and tips.

“The Art of Memoir” by Mary Karr

“ The Art of Memoir ” by Mary Karr is a must-read for anyone interested in writing memoirs. Karr is a master of the genre, and she draws on her own experiences to provide invaluable guidance on how to craft compelling and vivid stories. In this book, Karr explores the dynamics of memory, the challenges of writing about real people, and the importance of honesty and vulnerability in memoir writing. Whether you’re a seasoned writer or just starting, “The Art of Memoir” is an excellent resource for anyone looking to improve their memoir writing skills.

“The Writing Life” by Annie Dillard

“ The Writing Life ” by Annie Dillard is a classic book on the challenges and rewards of being a writer. Dillard shares her own experiences and insights, offering honest and encouraging guidance to anyone looking to make a career out of writing. In this book, Dillard explores the difficulties and struggles involved in the writing process, as well as the joys and rewards of creating something new. Whether you’re a novice or an experienced writer, “The Writing Life” is an inspiring and insightful read.

“On Writing Well” by William Zinsser

“ On Writing Well ” by William Zinsser is one of the best books out there on writing non-fiction. Zinsser lays out guidelines for clear, concise writing, using excellent examples and insights to help writers craft engaging and compelling pieces. In this book, Zinsser covers everything from grammar and syntax to style and voice, offering practical tips and advice for anyone looking to improve their non-fiction writing skills.

“The Right to Write” by Julia Cameron

“ The Right to Write ” by Julia Cameron is an excellent resource for anyone looking to develop a consistent writing habit. Cameron offers practical tips and exercises to help writers find their voice and develop their writing skills. In this book, Cameron explores the importance of cultivating a writing practice, overcoming writer’s block, and finding inspiration in everyday life. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced writer, “The Right to Write” is an inspiring and practical guide to the writing life.

“The Writer’s Journey” by Christopher Vogler

“ The Writer’s Journey ” by Christopher Vogler is an essential guide for anyone looking to craft engaging non-fiction. Vogler teaches writers how to develop character arcs, build tension, and create compelling stories that keep readers engaged from beginning to end. Whether you’re working on a memoir, a journalistic piece, or any other type of non-fiction, “The Writer’s Journey” is a valuable resource for learning the essential elements of storytelling.

So there you have it – five of the best non-fiction writing books on the market today. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced writer, these books offer invaluable insights and tips for improving your craft and taking your writing to the next level. So pick up a copy, start reading, and get ready to take your writing to new heights!

The Verdict

There you have it, the best creative writing books for aspiring writers out there. Whether you’re passionate about writing fiction or non-fiction, these books offer valuable tips and insights into how to approach the craft. These books aren’t magical solutions to becoming a writer but are incredibly useful aids in the ongoing process of developing your skills and finding your voice. Investing time in studying these books is worth it for anyone looking to grow and develop as a writer.

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  • Nov 19, 2020
  • 14 min read

10 Best Books to Boost Your Writing and Creativity

10 Best Books to Boost Your Writing and Creativity

Great writers have two things in common: They practice, always working to get better at it, and they read—a lot. Why not do both at the same time? These are some of the best books to read about writing. The advice, exercises and examples you’ll find will help you become better at your craft.

The books listed below cover different aspects of writing, from creativity and inspiration, to advice from the experts, to grammar and style :

Writing Down the Bones , by Natalie Goldberg

Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative , by Austin Kleon

Big Magic , by Elizabeth Gilbert

On Writing , by Stephen King

Bird by Bird , by Anne Lammott

Stein on Writing , by Sol Stein

On Writing Well (30th Anniversary Edition) , by William Zinsser

It was the best of sentences, it was the worst of sentences. , by June Casagrande

Dreyer’s English , by Benjamin Dreyer

The Elements of Style , by Strunk and White

Creativity and inspiration

These are my top three picks for books that’ll encourage you to write and live more creatively . If you only have time to read one, I suggest Big Magic —it’s the most inspiring of the bunch. If you’re looking for something with more exercises and concrete tips, start with Writing Down the Bones or Steal Like an Artist . Looking for more books on creativity? Check out The Artist’s Way or anything else by Julia Cameron.

01. Writing Down the Bones , by Natalie Goldberg

Best for: Writers from all backgrounds, genres and levels.

Read it when: You’re feeling stuck with your writing career, need some inspiration, or just have good ol’ writer’s block.

Writing Down the Bones, by Natalie Goldberg

Fondly called ‘ Bones ’ by other writers, this book is like taking your inner writer to therapy. Explore not just how you write, but why . Become mindful of your unique pain points as a writer, think about what being a writer means to you, and find the best way to move forward from where you are now—even if you’re feeling like you’ll never make it as a writer.

Goldberg herself had her share of rejection: Writing Down the Bones was turned down by seven big publishing houses, before being accepted by a new and small publisher called Shambhala. Now, there’s a 30th edition with a foreword by Julia Cameron.

The author sprinkles writing prompts and creativity exercises throughout the book—the goal is to help you explore and get connected to yourself. One exercise I had a lot of fun with was to take ten minutes and write about a meal you love. In no time, I was deep in nostalgia about my mom’s baked salmon and leafy-green salad. It can be tempting to skip the exercises, especially once you enter “reading mode”, but you’ll get a lot more out of the book by taking a few minutes to try them.

Goldberg’s main mission is to encourage you to simply write . Not to go out and find a writing class, not to force yourself to “just write” for 10 minutes a day—but to really sit down and put your whole self into it. If you’re watching the clock and writing because you heard somewhere that you need to write every single day, then your heart isn’t really in it. So go deep and speak your truth—with your writing and also in your life.

“That is the challenge: to let writing teach us about life and life about writing.”

Buy Writing Down the Bones and read more reviews on goodreads .

02. Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative , by Austin Kleon

Best for: Writers looking to jumpstart creative thinking.

Read it when: You’re short on time and feeling unsure of how to start your next project.

Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative, by Austin Kleon

Kleon, a self-described “writer who draws”, authored multiple best-selling books about creativity. In this New York Times hit, he gives ten tips for getting in touch with your inner artist. It’s quick and fun to read (I read it in about an hour). Even if you’ve already read many books in the genre, this one still delivers.

The author starts out by calling out obstacles that get in the way of being creative—the pressure to be “original” and the all-too familiar imposter syndrome . Kleon wants you to get inspired by work you admire, because there isn’t anything out there that’s truly original. Everything is based on something that already exists. Even if you don’t feel ready, just start making things. “Ask anybody doing truly creative work, and they’ll tell you the truth: They don’t know where the good stuff comes from. They just show up to do their thing. Every day.”

What resonated with me the most in this book is the importance of movement and using your hands when being creative. For his first book, the author used a newspaper and a black marker to write a best-selling book of poetry. His writing process was hands-on, engaging most of his senses - touching the newspaper, the sound and smell of the marker, the sight of words being blacked out. Bringing this practice into my own life, I’ve finally taken my new Paint by Numbers kit out of its packaging.

“Draw the art you want to see, start the business you want to run, play the music you want to hear, write the books you want to read, build the products you want to use—do the work you want to see done.”

Buy Steal Like an Artist and read more reviews on goodreads .

03. Big Magic , by Elizabeth Gilbert

Best for: Anyone who wants to live a more creative life.

Read it when: Anytime, but it’s an especially great pick-me-up if you’ve just gotten a rejection letter.

Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert

In Big Magic , Gilbert gives her take on what creativity is, how to bring more of it into your life, and how fear of rejection stands in the way. It’s obvious how much Gilbert enjoys writing and putting her work out there—and that’s what makes it so fun to read. I just didn’t want this book to end.

My personal takeaway here is learning how to cope with my own feelings of failure as a writer. Hearing her stories of rejection and success is inspiring, and makes me want to rewire my own reactions to criticism I get at work.

“I decided to play the game of rejection letters as if it were a great cosmic tennis match: Somebody would send me a rejection, and I would knock it right back over the net, sending out another query that same afternoon.”

Speaking of cosmic tennis matches—if you’ve read other books by Gilbert, you may already be familiar with the way she plays with anthropomorphism. It’s one of my favorite things about her writing style. In Big Magic , she gives ideas (artistic, scientific, religious, etc.) their own persona, turning abstract concepts into concrete companions that can go a long way helping writers.

“Ideas spend eternity swirling around us, searching for available and willing human partners…When an idea thinks it has found somebody—say, you—who might be able to bring it into the world, the idea will pay you a visit...The idea will not leave you alone until it has your fullest attention. And then, in a quiet moment, it will ask, 'Do you want to work with me?'”

Buy Big Magic and read more reviews on goodreads .

Advice from the experts

These are my top four picks for general writing tips from the pros. If you only have time to read one book in this category, I’d go for On Writing Well by William Zinsser because it touches on many different aspects of writing that’s relevant to most writers—or Stein on Writing , if you want to improve your storytelling skills.

04. On Writing , by Stephen King

Best for: (Mostly) fiction writers.

Read it when: You want quality advice from a writer, but also want to read a memoir.

On Writing, by Stephen King

Stephen King’s On Writing is a classic, and was highly recommended to me by other writers. He starts off by telling us about how he got to be a writer, his early struggles, and how he eventually found success.

Personally, I didn’t LOVE the memoir-ish first half of the book. I included it because so many others have enjoyed it, and, you know—classic and all that. If I wasn’t writing an article about writing books, I’m not sure I would have finished it—but I’m glad I did, because the good stuff really comes towards the end.

His advice focuses mostly on how to build a story and develop characters, as well as some more technical, grammar-related tips. I especially enjoyed his passion for grammar: “I believe the road to hell is paved with adverbs, and I will shout it from the rooftops.”

Two lessons I’m taking with me into my writing life are to not show anyone my work until after my first draft (so that I have space to come up with my own feelings about it), and a formula for cutting words: Second draft = First draft - 10%. I already try to remove any unnecessary fluff from my writing when I revise, but I never thought about it in such a structured way. King suggests moving onto other projects before going in for a second draft—the time away helps distance you from the words, making it less “yours”—and that’s what makes it easier to cut.

No one said writing was easy—so it’s comforting to know that even best-selling authors struggle with it.

“Writing fiction, especially a long work of fiction, can be a difficult, lonely job; it’s like crossing the Atlantic Ocean in a bathtub.”

Buy On Writing and read more reviews on goodreads .

05. Bird by Bird , by Anne Lammott

Best for: Fiction writers, memoir writers.

Read it when: You feel stuck or frustrated with your writing, and want to know you’re not alone.

Bird by Bird, by Anne Lammott

As with King’s On Writing , this one came highly recommended by both Google and other writers. And just like King’s book, it was hard for me to get into it—but the rest of the book made it worth it.

Reading this book was like sitting down with an accomplished writer and hearing the real deal about the writing process—the failures, the hopes, that letter from her editor that made her cry, and everything in between. It felt nice to know that even “real” writers don’t get it right the first time.

My favorite advice from Lammot is her wise words about getting feedback on your work from people you trust, before you show it to editors. She compares it to when you’re getting ready for a party: If there’s someone there to gently let you know that maybe that specific dress isn’t so flattering, you might be disappointed for a minute, but then you’re relieved that at least you’re still at home and have a chance to change before showing up in public.

This advice is very timely for me, because I’ve just been thinking about why it’s so easy for me to take criticism from specific colleagues, while the same feedback from others makes me question my decision to even be a writer.

Lammot’s encouraging words throughout the book are here to remind that you’re not alone in your struggle, that many writers struggle with self-doubt, and the importance of not giving up.

“Writing a first draft is very much like watching a Polaroid develop. You can’t - and in fact, you’re not supposed to - know exactly what the picture is going to look like until it has finished developing.”

Buy Bird by Bird and read more reviews on goodreads .

06. Stein on Writing , by Sol Stein

Best for: All writers (fiction and nonfiction) who want to engage readers with a captivating narrative.

Read it when: You want to improve your storytelling.

Stein on Writing, by Sol Stein

The art of storytelling isn’t just for fiction—it’s what makes people interested enough to keep reading, whether you’re writing a novel or reporting on local politics . The key to engaging readers and providing them with an emotional experience is to show, not tell.

Using his experience as an editor and publisher, Stein provides a guide in sharpening your storytelling skills, from creating suspense, developing compelling characters, writing good dialogue, coming up with a title that intrigues readers—and offers a new approach to revising your first draft. He calls it “triage” and advocates for looking at major parts of your story (like characters, scenes, and actions) before doing a thorough revision. Even nonfiction writers can apply this to their work—the idea being that you should find and fix major issues in your work before you start going line by line.

By the time your project is done, you want each word to have a purpose. My professional writing life usually consists of trying to cut words wherever possible—I’m always looking for ways to make sentences shorter, tighter, simpler. But sometimes extra words are necessary to make your writing memorable and give your readers a clear visual. Here’s an example Stein gives:

“Vernon was a heavy smoker” vs. “ When a waitress heard Vernon’s voice she always guided him to the smoking section without asking.”

The second version gives you a tactile experience of what Vernon sounds like, and is more interesting to read. Even though it adds quite a few more words, it engages readers more and brings them into the story. Which is really the whole purpose of writing, isn’t it?

“You wouldn’t feed cardboard meals to guests. Don’t feed cardboard meals to your characters. Make your reader’s taste buds pop, even if he's from outer space.”

Buy Stein on Writing and read more reviews on goodreads .

07. On Writing Well (30th Anniversary Edition) , by William Zinsser

Best for: Everyone, especially nonfiction writers.

Read it when: You’re looking for a straightforward guide to improving your writing.

On Writing Well (30th Anniversary Edition), by William Zinsser

Zinsser is a writer, editor, and teacher - and he has great advice for anyone looking to sharpen their writing skills. You’ll learn how to start and end your writing piece, how to revise, and how to write clearly and concisely. Some parts of the book are geared towards nonfictions writers—like the chapters dedicated to specific types of writing (e.g., culture, sports, and travel), but a lot of his advice is helpful to all writers, like his philosophy of revisions:

“I don’t like to write; I like to have written. But I love to rewrite. I especially like to cut: to press the DELETE key and see an unnecessary word or phrase or sentence vanish into the electricity. I like to replace a humdrum word with one that has more precision or color...With every small refinement I feel that I’m coming nearer to where I would like to arrive, and when I finally get there I know it was the rewriting, not the writing, that won the game.”

Two tips from Zinsser that I’m already putting into practice: not visualizing the end result, and removing qualifiers from my writing. The first one resonates with me right now because I’m three years into working on a family memoir, and visualizing the final result has kept me paddling in the “research” and “interviewing” phase—now I put my focus back on the writing itself. As for the second one, I always scan my work now to check for qualifiers that make my words seem less confident, like: a bit , sort of , rather , quite , pretty much , etc. These phrases take away from the impact your words can have on the reader.

“Readers want a writer who believes in himself and in what he is saying. Don’t diminish that belief. Don’t be kind of bold. Be bold.”

Buy On Writing Well and read more reviews on goodreads .

Grammar and style

Your idea of fun probably isn’t to spend your weekends cozying up with tea and a stack of grammar books. Most grammar books are dry and not what I’d describe as light, fun reading. That’s why my goal was to find ones that are educational, but not boring. Only have time to read one book in this category? I’d go for It was the best of sentences, it was the worst of sentences. —it’s entertaining, and the author makes grammar fun.

08. It was the best of sentences, it was the worst of sentences. , by June Casagrande

Who is this book for: Anyone looking to write better sentences or brush up on their grammar.

Read it when: You want a quick guide to grammar that gets you back to basics.

It was the best of sentences, it was the worst of sentences., by June Casagrande

A journalist and editor, Casagrande breaks down the basics of grammar in a way that’s easy to understand, and explains how to use it to improve each sentence you write. And with a touch of humor and wit, she makes it fun to read, too. For example, as writers we may instinctively know that these sentences are bad, but Casagrande digs into the grammar to explain why:

“Running down the street in high heels, my dog was too fast for me to catch.” (Dangling participle—sounds like your dog was wearing the heels!)

“She was awarded a national book award in fiction as well as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.” (Faulty parallelism—award and finalist don’t match.)

This book changed how I looked at grammar. Until now, I mostly got my words down and then made sure everything was grammatically correct. Now I think about how I use the principles of grammar as I work, rather than something to just check off my list.

“Yet, all great writing has one thing in common. It starts with a sentence. The sentence is a microcosm of any written work, and understanding it means understanding writing itself - how to structure ideas, how to emphasize what’s important, how to make practical use of grammar, how to cut the bull, and, above all, how to serve the almighty Reader.”

Buy It was the best of sentences, it was the worst of sentences. and read more reviews on goodreads .

09. Dreyer’s English , by Benjamin Dreyer

Read it when: You want to indulge in some grammar-snobbery and read about common writing mistakes.

Dreyer’s English, by Benjamin Dreyer

As a copyeditor, Dreyer has seen it all, and he’s sharing the most common writing mistakes even experienced writers have made. I started reading for the grammar and style advice, and I kept reading for the author’s wit and pop-culture references:

“At some point in your life, perhaps now, it may occur to you that the phrase ‘aren’t I’ is a grammatical trainwreck. You can, at that point, either spend the rest of your life saying ‘am I not?’ or ‘amn’t I?’ or embrace yet another of those oddball constructions that sneak into the English language and achieve widespread acceptance, all the while giggling to themselves at having gotten away with something.”

Insights like that made this book both informative and fun to read. A warning, though: At times his cleverness does get the better of him. His elitist tone can get a bit grating, and sometimes I had to reread sentences multiple times to understand what he was saying (which I felt was ironic for a book about improving your writing skills).

My favorite part of this book was his section on phrases with redundant words. I tend to overexplain and that probably means I use redundant phrases more often than I should. Here’s what he says about “fetch back”:

“To fetch something is not merely to go get it but to go get it and return with it to the starting place. Ask a dog.”

This book doesn’t have the same cult status as The Elements of Style (the next one in the list), but its humor made it a lot more enjoyable to read.

Buy Dreyer’s English and read more reviews on goodreads .

10. The Elements of Style , by Strunk and White

Read this book when: Anytime, but mostly just so you can say you’ve read it.

The Elements of Style, by Strunk and White

This book is a classic, and appears on almost any list of “books that writers should read”. Strunk published the first edition of this guide in 1918, and it’s been a must-have for writers ever since. More recent editions have been edited and updated by White, a student of Strunk.

In a straightforward, no-nonsense style, Strunk and White lay out the basics to grammar and good writing—everything from using hyphens properly to writing concise sentences. Just note that some rules outlined in the book might not apply to writing that’s more informal.

The parts of this book I enjoyed most was when a bit of humor peeked through:

“The hyphen can play tricks on the unwary, as it did in Chattanooga when two newspapers merged - the News and the Free Press . Someone introduced a hyphen into the merger, and the paper became The Chattanooga News-Free Press , which sounds as though the paper were news-free, or devoid of news.”

Tip: If you’re planning to read this one, I recommend getting the version that’s illustrated by Maira Kalman—the beautiful paintings add a nice touch.

Buy The Elements of Style and read more reviews on goodreads .

After reading all of these great books (and a few others that didn’t make it to this list), I noticed one thing that came up over and over again: Learn the rules before you decide whether you want to follow them. Read as much as you can about the art of writing. Once you’ve got the basics down, once you know all the “writing rules”, that’s when you can have fun and start breaking them —with confidence.

What’s your favorite book on writing? Share your top picks in the comments below.

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Lana Raykin, UX Writer at Wix

Lana Raykin, UX Writer at Wix

From New York, now lives in Tel Aviv. Loves good food, good books, and her golden retriever.

best creative writing book for 11

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Ten 11+ & 13+ Creative Writing Tips For Excellent Exam Stories

When my students get the hang of these techniques, it makes an enormous difference to their creative writing – but it takes practice.

M y advice for 11 plus stories in this article applies just as well to 8 plus, 13 plus or GCSE … in fact, although I have written with 11 plus creative writing in mind, my suggestions should be relevant at any level.

I’ve been teaching these things to young people for many years, and I hope you also find them useful. Please write a comment if you do!

The creative writing materials offered by 11 Plus Lifeline teach students to use all the techniques explained on this page.

Every writing paper has full example answers, as well as detailed step-by-step discussions, marking guidelines and story-planning advice. Papers are structured to help students develop high-level skills – and just as importantly, to enjoy themselves!

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Creative Writing Exam Tips Infographic

1 – Before you write, daydream

If you can see your story’s world in your head, you will be able to describe it powerfully.

If you can’t, your descriptions risk being superficial and your writing uninteresting.

After a little daydream, your next step is to turn it into a simple plan:

THE STORY PLANNING PROCESS

1) the main event.

The first thing to write in your plan is the main event in your story (see point 2 , below). Keep this simple for now.

2) Your Main Character

Next, jot down a few notes about your main character (see point 3 ). What is interesting about them? Try to imagine them sitting in the place next to you. See them clearly in your mind. Who are they, really?

3) Getting There

Now note down some ideas for how you will get to the main event. Make this simple too: don’t write more than a couple of lines.

4) … And Getting Out Of There!

Finally, write a few thoughts about what will happen after the event: why does it matter, and – above all else – how does it affect your characters?

The reason I suggest this order of planning is that when you only have a short time to write, there are two important things which will hold your story together: the main event (what it is about ) and your central character (who gives us a reason to care ).

Everything else should be very simple, allowing you to focus on describing beautifully.

In fact, you can probably guess what the next of my 11 plus tips is …

2 – Keep things simple! In an 11 plus exam story, choose  one main plot event & bring it to life.

If there are too many things happening, your descriptive skills may get lost.

What’s more, once there are lots of dramatic events in a story, many students struggle to write about all of them properly.

Look at this example:

As they walked through the forest a tree fell and nearly crushed them. That was close , thought Claudia. Then they sat down to scrutinise the map.

It’s good to describe the small details of life – and especially with an interesting verb like “scrutinise”.

But if you forget to fully describe big events, such as a tree almost killing your characters, the effect is very peculiar. It implies that a near-death experience is no more interesting than reading a map!

Either give dramatic events their due importance, by describing them powerfully and giving a clear sense of your characters’ reactions, or steer clear of them altogether.

This is often a problem in exam stories with too much action, or with too many plot events in general.

It’s best to structure your story around one main event, which isn’t too extreme. Spend the rest of your time building up to it and showing its after-effects.

3 – Focus on one character

Just as it’s best to focus your writing around one main event, it makes sense to have one core character.

You probably won’t have time to make more than one person interesting and believable in a thirty minute writing exam. If you try, you’re at risk of coming unstuck.

(If you feel really confident, you might manage to develop two characters: a brother and sister, for example. But in the exam itself, ask yourself: Is it worth the risk? )

Make your main character really interesting, and only refer to others in passing.

4 – Put a little dialogue in … but don’t write a play script!

“Because writing dialogue is easier than thinking,” he said.

“That makes sense,” I said, “because otherwise I can’t explain why we’ve been chatting pointlessly for two full pages.”

Dialogue is excellent in an exam piece, and you should aim to include some in every story. However, there are risks, demonstrated by the example above!

Don’t let your story turn into a play script.

Use a little dialogue in 11+ creative writing, but focus on your descriptions of the setting, characters and events.

When you do write conversations, don’t stop describing. Avoid repeating “I said”, “she said”, “Mum answered”, and so on.

Instead, add little details which help the reader to imagine the scene as the characters talk.

Describe how people move around between saying things, the expressions on their faces, and so on:

“Because writing dialogue is easier than thinking,” he replied, a hint of a smile twitching like a worm at the edge of his mouth.

A quick note about paragraphing:

Examiners are likely to expect that a new speaker begins on a new line, if somebody else has already spoken in the paragraph.

This doesn’t happen in every book you’ll read, but it’s a convention – a normal way of doing things – which you are supposed to know about.

Look at this way of writing the example at the top, and think about where a sentence should begin a new line :

“Why are we still talking?” I said. “Because writing dialogue is easier than thinking,” he said. “That makes sense,” I said, “because otherwise I can’t explain why we’ve already been talking for two full pages.”

Now check the original again, to see whether you were right!

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It’s perfect for Key Stages 2 and 3 and for 11+ exam preparation, at home or in the classroom. It’s also ideal for anybody aged 9 or above who enjoys writing and wants to do it better.

Click on the covers to learn more and view sample pages from the books:

RSL Creative Writing: Book 1

Rsl creative writing: book 2, rsl creative writing: book 3, the rsl creative writing collection (£40.47), 5 – short stories don’t need an introduction.

Robert was 33. He lived in a small flat with his cat and his wife. One day, he decided to go for a walk to the shops. The shops weren’t very far away: it took about ten minutes to get there. It was a cloudy day. It was the middle of February and it was a bit cold but not cold enough for a scarf. The road was in need of some repairs. He was wearing a blue jumper and black shoes and some fairly old jeans.

You don’t need to introduce your story as though it is a 300 page novel!

The reader doesn’t have to know everything about the main character, and especially not at the start. This way you waste a paragraph, when you might only have time for four or five in your whole story.

Anything that really matters about your characters can be mentioned along the way. In creative writing for 11 plus exams, everything else can be left out.

Get into the main business of your story from the very first line.

6 – Show, don’t tell … Whether you’re writing an 11 plus story, or whether you’re a famous novelist!

In real life, we can’t see what is in other people’s minds.

We have to work it out from what they do – and sometimes from what they say, although this can be very misleading!

For this reason, other people’s creative writing is often most interesting when we have to work out what characters are thinking and feeling.

This makes the characters seem like real people whose thoughts we can’t immediately know.

It also helps to get us – the readers – involved in the story by making us do some thinking for ourselves!

You might initially want to write this:

Simon looked up. He was angry.

But this is much more interesting to read:

As Simon looked up I could see his jaw muscles flexing.

Have a go at re-writing the following paragraph to make it more interesting . You can change things around as much as you like.

I admit: this is the sort of thing which you will sometimes read in a book. It isn’t necessarily  always bad writing, in itself.

However, it is a missed opportunity to bring a character to life. In a time-limited 11-plus exam story, you need to take advantage of such moments.

The rule is:

Where possible,  show me  what a character is feeling … don’t  tell me .

Have a look at my way of re-writing the paragraph above:

All Anna’s thoughts have gone.

Instead, there are some strong clues which steer you towards a particular idea about what she thinks and how she feels: but you still have to decide for yourself.

This forces you to imagine Anna clearly in your own mind.

How does my answer compare to your approach?

7 – Use a range of senses throughout your story

This is good writing. The trees may be “green” (which is a bit dull), but they are “swaying”, which is an effective detail and more than makes up for it.

The simile in the second sentence (“like wisps of cigar smoke”) is vivid and well planned.

The sandwich bag is “crumpled”, and “bag of bacon” is a nice moment of alliteration to emphasise this robust, commonplace item of food.

But imagine a story which continues in the same way, all the way through.

Everything is visual: a sight image.

For the reader, it is like being in a world without the ability to hear, smell, touch or taste.

Furthermore, the narrator seems to be looking around constantly, noticing everything. Is this normal behaviour?

It’s an unrealistic way of seeing the world, and after a while it becomes exhausting to read.

For a student, there are two simple but very useful lessons:

1) Always think about the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell).

2) Sometimes avoid the most obvious sense when describing a thing (see point 8 below).

These tips are easy to apply in your creative writing for 11+, but they make a huge difference.

What’s more, unlike a clumsy simile (see point 9 ), a sensory description rarely ends up  harming  your writing. It can be effective or ineffective, but that’s another matter!

Take the example above:

“The trees were green and swaying”  could become:  “The trunks were groaning, and overhead I heard the dull rustle of a thousand fresh leaves slapping against one another.”

There’s nothing startlingly original here, but because it is a slightly less obvious way of describing trees, it creates a much more powerful atmosphere.

If you want a metaphor as well, try turning  “dull rustle”  into  “distant applause” , which makes the leaves seem like a mass of enthusiastic people.

Similarly,  “I looked at the bag of bacon sandwiches crumpled on the seat next to me”  takes on more life like this:

I smelt something like old sick; then I remembered the bag of bacon sandwiches crumpled on the seat next to me.

Notice how easily similes (“like old sick”) and metaphors happen, almost by themselves, when you focus on describing with a range of senses .

This is one of my most important 11 plus writing tips.

8 – Sometimes describe things using a less obvious sense

Using a range of senses, as I discussed in point 7 , is really, really important.

But how can you come up with surprising, powerful descriptions – descriptions to make the marker stop ticking your work for a second, raise their eyebrows and smile?

Imagine that you are just about to write the following sentence:

It was a cold morning.

But you stop yourself, think for a second, and write this:

I could hear the crackle of thawing ice on car windscreens.

This is much more interesting. Rather than using the sense of touch (a “cold” feeling), you are using a sound: “the crackle of thawing ice”.

There’s a good chance that the reader will think:  “Yes! I never considered it before, but you really do hear a sound when ice thaws quickly.”

This version also tells you much more about the weather:

The reader can work out that the night has been exceptionally cold, but also that the temperature is now rising quickly.

The thought process to produce descriptions like this is much simpler than it seems:

1) Think of the sense which is most obvious to describe the thing you are writing about.

3) Think of the second most obvious sense.

4) Ban that too!

5) From the three remaining senses, pick the one which is most useful.

6) Ask yourself how the thing would sound, feel, smell or taste – whichever three of these you have left (you’ve almost certainly banned sight!).

7) Write about it.

9 – Use similes and metaphors carefully in your creative writing

Similes and metaphors are useful (and can be impressive), but they have to make things clearer for the reader, not create confusion.

“She won the sprint like a racing car” asks more questions than it answers.

Was she noisy? Was she travelling at 150 miles per hour?

On the other hand, “She ducked her head and slipped across the line as cleanly as a racing car” helps me to picture the event exactly as intended.

Here’s another simile for speed, which I’ve seen a great many times (you’d hardly believe how many) in 11-plus stories:

Donald wrote like a cheetah.

Does this mean that Donald wrote savagely and meaninglessly, like a wild animal with a pencil jammed between its claws ?

Or perhaps that he wrote largely about the themes of hunting and sleeping ?

My guess is that Donald wrote quickly , but I’m not sure … because if that’s all you meant, WHY DIDN’T YOU JUST SAY IT?

This sort of thing is not really the fault of a young writer, who after all is (hopefully!) doing their best.

It is the fault of those dastardly teachers who advise children to include, for example, “at least one metaphor and two similes” in each story.

The result of this, for most children, is a succession of poorly chosen descriptive tricks, which add nothing.

Indeed, we’ve seen how these things can end up making a story comical for all the wrong reasons!

The right approach to creative writing doesn’t start with the need to include a simile: it starts with the need to describe effectively .

To me, this means allowing the reader to imagine the situation fully, and helping them care what happens.

Let’s play around with the image of Donald writing “like a cheetah”.

What happens if we just get rid of the simile?

Donald wrote quickly.

OK, but it doesn’t tell us much: did he write quickly because he wanted to finish his story before  Newsnight , or because he was really excited by his work?

Let’s say that it was the first reason: he wanted to get his work out of the way. Perhaps he was feeling annoyed, given that it might interrupt his favourite TV show.

When somebody is writing rapidly while annoyed, what might this look like?

I imagine Donald’s arm wiggling as the pen moves — especially the elbow. The movement is fast and constant because he is worried about getting the work finished, and because in his irritation he doesn’t much care about its quality.

So I ask myself: What moves to and fro constantly, performing a task in an unimaginative way?

And the first thing I think of is a machine in a factory:

Donald hunched over the page, his arm jerking to and fro with the quick, regular movements of a factory robot.

This sentence by itself would go some way to making your story the best in the exam room.

I hope I’ve persuaded you that with a well-organised thought process, a good simile isn’t too difficult to write!

Because children have been taught to work in this way, a story will often contain the required two similes, a metaphor, a personification, even an interesting alliteration …

… but everything in between is lifeless.

What students need is a different sort of checklist, to help them make the rest of their writing interesting .

I hope this article will give you some ideas!

10 – Stephanie was writing a beautiful story in the 11-plus exam hall. Or was she …?

Suspense is good if it’s appropriate to the story, but don’t jack-knife it in clumsily!

“It was a calm, sunny day. Or was it?” doesn’t really make me curious.

It makes me think that you’re trying to pester me into being excited, rather than persuading me to feel that way through your excellent writing.

If you write in a way that builds suspense by making me interested in the characters and events in the story – while keeping some important information hidden from me, just out of sight – this will speak for itself.

However, not every piece of creative writing needs it!

If you found these story writing tips useful or if you have a question, please leave a comment below! I’d love to have your feedback. (Tick the “Receive email updates” box to receive an email when I reply.)

For the most comprehensive range of resources to help with preparation for the 11+ exam,  you might like to try 11 Plus Lifeline (with a money-back guarantee in the first month). Every practice paper has full example solutions, with a detailed discussion and explanation for every question – like being taught by an excellent private tutor. There’s lots of material to help develop creative, high-scoring exam stories!

According to Tutorful, it’s “ the gold standard for independent and grammar school 11-plus preparation ”.

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Watch your first free 11-plus video straight away. Videos 2 & 3 will reach you by email within a few days.

At the same time, you’ll receive 121 Pages of award-winning RSL practice material, with step-by-step solutions – for free!

I'll also send you some useful information about RSL Educational resources and more advice for exam preparation. You’ll be able to unsubscribe from my emails any time you like.

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89 Comments

If you have any questions, feel free to ask me here. I’ll do my best to help you out!

Hi, I’m preparing my son for 11+. His story ideas are good but he needs to add more details/depth. How can I encourage that? Thanks

That’s a very difficult question to answer, because there is so much that I could say! Many of my suggestions are in the article above. The sample at http://digioh.com/em/27284/164929/84za5s4g4u may offer more ideas. If this is useful, then 11 Plus Lifeline offers many further resources.

What’s the syllabus of creative writing for 11plus. I understand there is no definitive one, it varies with target school as well, but still I’d like to know the min types of writing children should be knowing end of year 6 e.g. story writing, descriptive writing, poetry writing, persuasive writing, diary, reconnect, fiction, non fiction writing, script writing, book/film review, blog writing etc. Really confused with the list of categories and subcategories under each. I just need a good structure with every details. Please help with a detailed table of contents.

Hi Jay. I’m afraid I don’t have such a list – because there isn’t one. Schools can set anything that they like! However, I think getting children used to responding to a range of formats is more important than covering everything. The most common formats are probably: 1) A story based on a title or topic 2) A continuation of a passage (usually the passage already used as a comprehension text) 3) A story based on a picture

You provide excellent tips that we can use to guide our children. Done in a very simple but effective way. Even more – as times are hard and money is tight your generosity shows you truly do wish to help children and not just make money out of them. Thank you

Thank you Alison. I’m glad you found the article useful. Robert

Thank you ever so much for your very useful tips. Would you have some advice (or a sample essay) on writing a descriptive essay based on a given image?

Hi Aparna, There is some relevant content in 11 Plus Lifeline. For more along these lines, keep an eye on the website in the autumn …

Hi Robert, I found the article above very helpful. My daughter is in year 5 and we have just started our 11 plus journey. She seems to be struggling air with creative writing. She has such great ideas and an amazing imaginative mind, however she struggles to express this on paper as compared to her peers also studying for the 11 plus. How can I help her become a better writer?

Speaking as she writes might help: perhaps she will write more fluently if she just thinks of it as a way to record her verbal ideas.

My RSL Creative Writing books might help her to develop her ideas.

What is a good range for the word count for a “continue the story” creative writing task at 10+? I see suggestions of 4-5 paragraphs, but paragraphs vary hugely in length. My son is only writing around 150 words, and I fear this is taking “quality not quantity” to the extreme!

It really depends! Sometimes you’ll be given an 8-10 line answer space, in which case that would be appropriate. On the other hand, if you have 30-40 minutes, you should be pitching for 1 to 1.5 pages. Robert

Thank you so much! Very informative

I’m glad to help!

how much your fees for creative writing, and how many lesson? please let me know [email protected]

Hello Hemang. I’m afraid I don’t work as a tutor these days. However, you might be interested in my creative writing books at https://www.rsleducational.co.uk/rsl-creative-writing . These will take your child through their skills step by step, much as I would if I was teaching them. Good luck! Robert

Hi Sir! Sir, you suggestions are greatly useful. Sir, can you assist me on how to incorporate Strong Verbs in my writings as I do not know many and I struggle on account of it ?

There’s no easy answer, but the best starting point is to look for specific ways of describing things. For instance, instead of “he talked”, you might say “he muttered”, for example. You’ll learn more verbs if you look out for them as you read things, and perhaps note interesting ones down in a book. Good luck!

Dear Robert Hope you are doing well , my son is in year 5 and he is going to set for 11 plus exam for very highly competitive grammar schools , he need help for is creative writing . I advice that you are the best , I’m seeking help from you ,please . Yours sincerely Saha Mcewan

Hello. Have a look at 11 Plus Lifeline , perhaps, and my RSL Creative Writing books. I do intend to release some new things for creative writing in the future: watch this space!

Hi Robert. These are great tips. My question is how to come with effective descriptions that vary. When I do descriptive writing, I describe with only the five senses and often run out of ideas. Also, how can we write in a way that will make a clear image in the readers mind. Thanks for the time

Hi Yatharth! My video at https://youtu.be/LKnvrad6jpw is all about this, so why not have a look at that? If that’s useful, look at https://www.rsleducational.co.uk/product/rsl-creative-writing-1

I completely agree with your article, and as a teacher who prepares children for GCSE and the 11 tests, I employ a lot of the ‘strategies’ you mention. What children need ultimately is time to read, digest and above all enjoy stories and poems and then to talk about what they’ve read and in some ( or maybe a lot of cases) relate the themes and ideas etc in what they have read to their own lives. This I feel, can give a greater sense of ‘reality’ to what they can eventually write; and then we as teachers (and parents) can model how to write ‘good’ creative stories (and include all the SPAG) which can go a long way to ensuring children actually begin to feel that they themselves can be imaginative and write great stories.

Thank you for taking the time to comment, Molly. I very much agree with you.

What children need ultimately is time to read, digest and above all enjoy stories and poems and then to talk about what they’ve read and in some ( or maybe a lot of cases) relate the themes and ideas etc in what they have read to their own lives.

The only thing I’d add to this is that it works both ways: reading informs writing, but the very best way to develop critical reading skills is to become more sophisticated as a writer!

Hi Robert,l am a Creative Writing teacher for 8+ Do you think 6+ can be taught Creative Writing that will yield excellent result? I asked this question from my experience of teaching Creative Writing,I observe that more 6+ struggle with understanding and implementing Creative Writing stages than 8+ Also,I teach Creative Writing easily because I believe I have the skills to teach it but how can I come up with a special syllabus to teach my colleagues how to teach Creative Writing in the class that will be result oriented.

Hello Soremi.

I would not think too much about results, if by that you mean percentage scores, when children are 6 or so and developing their writing. I would focus on their enjoyment and on encouraging them to explore their imagination, creating interestingly described characters and environments. It’s a different situation in 11+ exams, where children must demonstrate certain skills and perform well in comparison with their peers.

However, it is very important to encourage the development of accurate and clear English from an early stage. Creative writing is a good opportunity to uncover and address problems.

I found this very useful and straightforward, and also very funny… The tips will take me flying in my writing!

Thanks Lily-Grace. The work you sent for me to look at this week was very impressive: you’re already flying!

Thanks Robert this description is very helpful

I’m very glad it’s useful. Thanks for commenting!

Hola me gustaria hacer unas infografias mas dinamicas

Thank you for the topic

It’s a pleasure. I hope the advice helps.

I thought that this was a brilliant summary. Thank you very much. Engaging and thoughtful. Very much appreciated.

I’m delighted to hear it. Thank you!

I found your creative writing tips very insightful, a real shame for us it was right at the end of our 11+/13+ preparation.

Thank you Sara. I hope they made some difference, even at a late stage.

Very useful tips! I like the way you have broken down the advice into bite-sized chunks! Thanks Robert

I’m glad you found them helpful! Thanks for commenting.

Great tips, thanks Robert. Do you have tips on non fictional writing as well? E.g. how a child can do a stellar job when asked to write a suggestion letter to the council. My child struggles with writing on everyday things that she deems uninteresting like describing everday things but is flying when writing on imaginary topics. Thanks in advance.

Hi Tolu. I have some resources for less creative subject matter in 11 Plus Lifeline .

I think the best way to add interest to potentially unexciting things, like letters, is with examples. “I think you should do more to reduce bullying, because it discourages children from studying” is not interesting. “Last week, a boy trudged towards me across the playground, clenching and unclenching his fists, with the dead-eyed look of meaningless aggression that I’ve come to know so well. This is happening too often in our school!” is much more impressive.

Thanks for these tips . Would you suggest any topics for DS to practice .

There are a great many writing topics with fully explained example answers in 11 Plus Lifeline . I might add a blog post with some suggested topics in the coming months. Robert

These SPECTACULAR tips helped me a lot when I was planning and writing a story. I think that these AMAZING tips will help me a lot when I am doing the exam. THANKS Robert!!!!

Thanks Raon! I hope you’ll share the link. Good luck in your exam. Robert

Thanks for the tips to improve the writing skill for the content writers and the students.

Thank you Nihal – I’m glad my advice is useful.

What can I Say?

My son is about to take the 11 + and part of the material is creative writing,

Can you recommend any good material please?

The key is reading and I don’t think he reads as much as he should do

Please advise

Hi Fazal. I would of course recommend my own creative writing material in 11 Plus Lifeline . There’s a free sample here .

Reading is certainly important, but it won’t do any magic without good writing practice alongside it.

If your son isn’t keen on reading, trying to push him to read more may not work. However, you can help to improve the quality of the reading he does do, by discussing it whenever possible in a way that encourages him to think about it in more depth. You can also introduce new vocabulary into your conversations, and so on.

Also, the reading list here may help him to find books that he does want to read!

Hi, my son 11, is really struggling with creative writing, the main problem being he can’t think of anything to write about. he’s a clever boy but more into science and computers. He thinks he can’t do it and I’m worried he’s going to freeze in the exam. how can i get him to access his imagination and not panic. Thanks

Practice is certainly the main thing. If he can start to “access his imagination” (a nice phrase) without exam pressure, he is more likely to be able to do so in the test.

When you say that he can’t think of anything to write about, you’re describing a problem that I can relate to. However, it should not be a big concern at 11+, for the simple reason that the best stories tend to be about very little! If he can construct a simple plot, focused on one event – even something very ordinary and apparently dull – then he has what he needs. From that point, all his effort should be focused on describing well, so that the story creates atmosphere and has a believable main character.

The real problem at 11+ is when children have too many creative ideas. They construct complex, overwhelming plots, about which it is impossible to write well – or even plausibly – in the time available.

Hi Robert Have you got any tips for the CSSE style quick 10 mins Continuous Writing tasks please. These have included instructions, descriptions and this year the exam paper included a picture to write about- what’s happening- story /description?

Many thanks for your help.

This is very difficult to answer in a brief comment. I do have some specially designed resources for these CSSE writing tasks in 11 Plus Lifeline , if that is of interest.

If writing creatively, keep the plot to an absolute minimum. Imagine that you are describing a ten second scene from a movie – not writing the plot for a whole film. Focus on effective use of the senses, in particular – very much as I outline in this article. Don’t waste any space introducing your writing.

If describing a picture, the same applies. Focus on details from it, and try to find a logical structure. For example, a character might move around the image, finding things; or you might imagine the scene changing over a period of time.

For instructions, try to visualise the activity as precisely as you can, then use words to convey your thoughts exactly. This will lead to good vocabulary. Rather than saying “Screw the lightbulb into the socket”, say something like this: “Steadying the socket with your spare hand, twist the bulb gently in a clockwise direction until you encounter resistance.” This doesn’t come from trying to be fancy: it comes from very clearly imagining the action before I write.

There is a great deal more to be said, but I hope these pointers are useful.

Great tips and advice here. I have 4 boys, all at different levels of education. This has helped me to help them. Thanks!

That makes me very happy. Good luck to your sons!

Anybody who found this useful might like to read more of my creative advice at https://www.rsleducational.co.uk/creative-writing-less-is-more .

This article is very helpful. Thank you.

Thanks for taking the time to say so!

I found this very helpful, thank you

I’m glad!

Hello Good Afternoon and thank you very much for my help. I am a young child preparing the eleven plus. I don’t necessarily have any questions i just don’t have any questions. Good luck on your educative journey.

Good luck to you, Lukas! Well done for taking the initiative and researching your exams.

I am a 8 years old child and I am doing your 11+ RSL comprehension, do you have any tips that might help me improve my writing? Thank you for your help!

Hi Kate! I’d like to help, but I’m not sure how to. You’ve written this under an article about improving your writing, and you’re working on a book that also helps with this. I don’t know what tips to add here. If you could be more specific, perhaps I’ll be able to say something. Good luck with your work! Robert

Hi Robert! I really like your tips and they did improve my daughter’s writing! Thank you so much!

I’m so glad! Well done to her.

Hi Richard, Does cursive or printed handwriting affect the writing score a 11+ level? Thanks in advance.

No, it shouldn’t make any difference. All that matters is that the writing should be easy to read, and that the student can write reasonably quickly.

Hi there, I am doing 13+, My tutor says that I should not use metaphors or similes, but I think I should. Do you have any advice for me on descriptive writing? And can you explain what a metaphor is?

I think you are probably misinterpreting your tutor. A good simile or metaphor, in the right place, is a good thing, but I would guess that your tutor is concerned that you are over-using these things and that this is distracting you from simply writing well. An alternative is that you haven’t quite understood how to use them effectively. A misjudged simile can look odd: using no simile (or metaphor) is better than using a bad one!

For a good explanation of what a metaphor is, see https://www.grammarly.com/blog/metaphor/ .

Hi, I’m currently helping a student prepare for entrance exams, and I just wondered if you could help me with a question. He was struggling with the timed element of creative writing and wanted to know if he DID run out of time, what would a marker prefer? To just leave the piece unfinished, or to quickly make an ending for the story, even if it meant it was quite an abrupt ending that didn’t necessarily do the story justice?

I think it depends on the marker. I’d prefer an unfinished piece to one with something actively bad in it, like a bad ending. However, can they leave an unfinished ending that nonetheless has something final about it: for instance, zoom out and describe the trees swaying in the distance, or the waves, so that there’s a sense of the world rolling on, despite the events in the story? If this is done well, it might even appear that they intended to finish this way.

great work, keep it up.

Amazing website! The content is wonderful. Highly informative indeed.

That’s brilliant to hear. Thank you!

Do you have to pay to get your work marked?

Yes, that’s right. Most people do it via an 11 Plus Lifeline Platinum subscription .

My daughter is not good at creative writing and I am apprehensive as she writes her pre-tests on 11th November . How do I help her with the following formats?

1) A story based on a title or topic 2) A continuation of a passage (usually the passage already used as a comprehension text) 3) A story based on a picture

Hello! I cover all these things in my RSL Creative Writing books – see https://www.rsleducational.co.uk/rsl-creative-writing You will also find creative writing videos covering these things at https://go.easy11plus.org/VIDEOLIST Good luck! Robert

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Beyond the Chapter

Best Books on Creative Writing

A silhouette centre, with a pen in hand, surrounded by books, the sun in the foreground - representation of best creative writing books

Written by Eira Edwards

21 january 2024, creative writing.

This post may include affiliate links. That means we may earn a commission if you buy through recommended links. See our full disclaimer policy . 

Whether you’re an experienced writer or a beginner, there’s always something new to discover about creativity and storytelling. That’s where books on creative writing come in.

Reading books about creative writing is a great way to broaden your knowledge and get insights into both the technical and philosophical sides of story. Plus, they can motivate, inspire and ignite your imagination. 

Here, I’ve curated a list of the best creative writing books that are sure to take your craft to the next level. Covering a diverse range of approaches, from practical guidelines to personal anecdotes from revered authors, these literary gems are clear creativity winners. Let’s dive in!

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

By stephen king.

Blending autobiography and writing guide, this book delves into King’s writing journey, revealing his challenges, inspirations and techniques. From focusing on the importance of reading to the art of crafting compelling narratives, ‘On Writing’ is a must-read for both King fans and writers looking to improve their craft.

Stephen King's book On Writing

By Elizabeth Gilbert

This delightful book is filled with heartfelt anecdotes and personal insights. Gilbert unpacks the concept of creativity throughout, outlining the attitudes, approaches and habits we need to live our most creative lives. The book presents a concept that I still think about regularly: ideas are living entities and choose you to write them.

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert, book cover

zen in the art of Writing

By ray bradbury.

If you’re an aspiring writer, you’d have heard about the legendary author, Ray Bradbury. Did you know he was a student of Zen? Bradbury found inspiration in Zen philosophy and often incorporated it into his writing, like being present and trusting your intuition. This book is not just about writing, it’s also about unleashing your creativity and imagination

Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury, book cover

Into The Woods

By john yorke.

Yorke explores the creative brilliance behind our favourite fairy tales and how the storytelling structure of these timeless tales can be applied to modern-day writing. The book is a treasure trove of creative insights and an essential read for writers, covering archetypes, character arcs, setting and plot twists.

John Yorke's Into the Woods book cover

By Jeff VanderMeer

This remarkable book is overflowing with creativity and will have you bursting with inspiration in no time. Whether you’re a seasoned professional or a beginner in the world of writing, this guide will take you on an artistic journey filled with colourful graphics, practical advice and imaginative storytelling.

Wonderbook book cover

The Artist's Way

By julia cameron.

Looking to unleash your creative potential? Or have you been stuck in a creative rut, unable to come up with new ideas? If so, you might want to pick up this iconic book. It’s helped artists tap into their inner creativity and find their unique voice, featuring exercises to overcome creative blocks and morning pages to clear your mind.

The Artist's Way book cover

Writing Down the Bones

By natalie goldberg.

This book teaches you how to unleash your creativity and let your words flow onto paper, as well as how to overcome writer’s block, find your voice and hone your skills. It will inspire you to cultivate a lifelong habit of writing and let you discover your unique voice. 

Writing Down the Bones book cover

Bird by Bird

By anne lamott.

This is an excellent resource for any writer looking to enhance their creativity. Lamott encourages writers to focus on writing the first draft and not worry about perfection, take time to observe and embrace one’s unique voice. Ultimately, the book helps you discover the joys of creativity and improve your craft.

Bird by Bird book cover

The Art of Fiction

By john gardner.

In The Art of Fiction, Gardner has so much to offer writers, from his creative writing exercises to his advice on character development, authenticity and narration. Gardner encourages you to take risks and explore the many ways that imagination can influence storytelling.

The Art of Fiction book cover

Steering the Craft

By ursula k. le guin.

Discover how to improve your writing skills by learning from the masterful techniques of one of the greatest science fiction writers, Ursula K. Le Guin. Focusing on structure, language and dialogue, Le Guin offers practical exercises and advice to help writers of all levels achieve their goals.

Steering the Craft book cover

The Emotion Thesaurus

By becca puglisi and angela ackerman.

Want something to spark your creativity and accurately portray your characters’ emotions ? Good news, there’s a tool that can help: The Emotion Thesaurus. This book provides writers with a comprehensive guide of emotions, body language and sensory cues to help master the art of emotion and bring your characters to life.

Emotion Thesaurus book cover

Characters and Viewpoint

By orson scott car.

Orson Scott Card, renowned sci-fi and fantasy writer, approaches characters and viewpoints in an interesting way. Rather than building his characters from scratch, Card takes existing archetypes and gives them a unique twist to make them memorable. There’s lots to learn from Orson Scott Card’s creativity. Why not apply it to your own writing?

Characters and viewpoint book cover

The Writer's Journey

By christopher vogler.

This book offers a comprehensive guide for writers looking to tap into their creativity and create stories that are both engaging and impactful. One of Vogler’s central ideas is how every story is essentially a hero’s journey, and he outlines the fundamental elements of a successful narrative. It’s an ideal book for anyone who wants to create a compelling story (that would be all of us, right?).

The Writer's Journey book cover

The Anatomy of Story

By john truby.

This book has helped many writers understand the architecture of a great story. From creating multi-dimensional characters to developing a plot, Truby helps you to enhance your creativity and write better stories.

John Truby's Anatomy of Story book cover

Story Genius

By lisa cron.

This book is perfect for writers looking to unlock their creative potential and approach writing in a whole new way. Cron’s approach to writing centres around the idea that our brains are wired for storytelling. So if you’re a writer struggling to put pen to paper, give Story Genius a read and see how it can transform your approach to writing.

Story Genius book cover

Written By Eira Edwards

Eira is a writer and editor from the South of England with over five years of experience as a Content Manager, helping clients perfect their copy.

She has a degree in English Literature and Language, which she loves putting to work by working closely with fiction authors.

When she’s not working on manuscripts, you can find her in the woods with her partner and dog, or curling up with a good book.

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How To Prepare For 11 Plus (11+) Creative Writing — A Complete Guide

best creative writing book for 11

A creative writing exam is always a daunting prospect for 11 Plus students. Writing creatively under pressure, with strict time constraints and an unfamiliar prompt , is a significant challenge. However, it doesn’t have to be. With the right guidance and plenty of practice, students can develop their creative writing skills, learning to showcase their creativity and originality whilst also hitting every key part of a mark scheme .

Creative writing is a key component of some 11 Plus exams, which are used to determine entry to some of the UK's most prestigious independent and grammar schools . A creative writing test is designed to evaluate students' writing skills, including their ability to structure a narrative, create vivid characters and settings, and use descriptive language effectively to convey their ideas.

In this blog post, we will explore how to effectively prepare your child for an 11+ creative writing exam. We’ll give you plenty of practical tips and strategies, as well explaining how we can improve your child’s writing skills to the best of their ability.

The Exam Coach delivers the best online learning experience for children studying to sit the 11+ in the UK. If you have a child about to take the 11 Plus, please read on to discover more about how we can work with you to ensure your child’s success.

Contents 

What is creative writing, how is creative writing tested in the 11 plus exams, what does your child need to succeed in 11 plus creative writing, how can you prepare your child, how can we prepare your child, creative writing courses - what we cover, bonus resources, free practice papers and 11+ preparation workshops.

We’ll send you a new English or maths practice paper every week as well as our 11+ workshop schedule. There is always at least one 11+ workshop a week.

We respect your privacy.

Thank you! Please check your email inbox and confirm your free subscription to our email newsletter.

Creative writing is the practice of using English to express an imaginative and original idea , story or concept. It involves using words to create narratives, descriptions, characters, and worlds based on a given prompt. Unlike academic or persuasive writing, which is usually focused on conveying information and facts, creative writing is more concerned with evoking emotions, entertaining the reader and showing a perfect grasp of written English.

Creative writing skills are tested by most independent schools and some grammars as part of their entry exams, including:

The Kent Test

The Sutton Second Stage Exam

Tiffin/Tiffin Girls’ Stage Two Exams

Most independent schools’ exams

best creative writing book for 11

Creative writing tasks can take many forms in an 11 plus exam, but students must always follow a given prompt when writing. They may be asked to write about a given topic or given an extract/ image to help spark their creativity. The writing task is always timed and students are usually given between 20–40 minutes to plan, write and check their work . Writing must be completed by hand, unless your child has special permission to use a computer.

Creative writing questions usually fall into three categories:

1. Story writing

Asks you to write a story or description of a given topic or image prompt.

You must answer the exact question you are given, using deep description.

E.G - Describe going on a safari.

2. Continuing a story

Asks you to continue writing from the end of a given extract.

You must continue exactly from the end of the extract, while keeping the style and key elements consistent.

E.G - Continue the given extract.

3. Diary entries

Asks you to write a diary entry on a given topic.

You must begin with “Dear diary,” and the date, describing a day relating to the given prompt.

E.G - Write a diary entry describing your birthday.

When answering the question, students must ensure they are working towards hitting all areas of the mark scheme. This mark scheme differs slightly depending on the school and question given, however, mostly they look for the same skills.

In assessing a student's creative writing skills, examiners typically look for the following:

1. Purpose and organisation

Fully answering the given question.

Using paragraphs to for a beginning, middle, end.

Including full descriptions throughout.

2. Language

Using varied and interesting vocabulary.

Using and sticking to the correct tenses.

Including character speech.

Using various writer’s tricks correctly (such as metaphors, alliteration and similes).

Varying sentence length and styles.

Starting sentences with different words.

Using the correct format (E.G - diary entry).

4. Spelling, punctuation and grammar

Using a range of simple and complex punctuation (E.G - commas, exclamation marks and semicolons).

Using accurate spelling throughout.

Writing in properly formed sentences with few mistakes.

Students must write and work aiming to hit all elements of this mark scheme in order to score highly in a creative writing task.

Check out an example creative writing mark scheme below.

Copy of 5. 11+ Creative Writing Booster Course_Mark Scheme-2.jpg

To succeed at an 11 Plus comprehension task, students need a range of skills, including:

best creative writing book for 11

1. Imagination and creativity

One of the most important skills for creative writing is the ability to come up with an original idea which fully answers the given question and uses imaginative language. Your child must be able to read any given prompt and be able to come up with at least a few ideas that they could write about in an exam situation.

In the clip below, tutor Katherine discusses using creativity and your imagination when creating characters for a creative writing piece.

2. Vocabulary knowledge

A strong, wide and complex vocabulary is something examiners will be looking for. Your child must be able to demonstrate this in their writing, using tricky words and phrases in context. The more words your child knows and understands, the more likely they’ll be able to use them in their writing task.

3. Spelling, punctuation and grammar

Good writing requires a strong grasp of English spelling, punctuation and grammar (SPAG). Make sure your child understands the basic rules of grammar and punctuation, so that they can avoid making small mistakes in their writing. Encourage them to practice their writing skills by creating stories or writing letters as often as possible. Practice makes perfect.

Watch the video below for help on using semicolons from top tutor James!

4. Understanding and use of writers’ tricks

Examiners are looking for students to be able to recognise, understand and use literary techniques such as metaphors, similes, personification, and the five senses. These help deepen a description and should be showcased in a writing exam.

5. Adaptability

Students need to be able to approach an unseen question with confidence and a plan. They might be asked to write in a specific format or about a specific topic. Your child should be able to adapt their writing style and tone to fit the task at hand.

6. Planning and organisation

Students must effectively plan and organise their writing. At The Exam Coach, we encourage all students to quickly plan out their writing before they start, using notes or an outline to help structure their ideas. This can then be referred back to as they write.

7. Editing and revision

Similarly, good writing requires some editing and revising. Students must practice rereading and checking their own work, making revisions as needed to improve the overall quality of their writing (specifically with their spelling, punctuation and grammar).

8. Time management

One of the biggest challenges of the 11 Plus. Students are usually given between 20–40 minutes to plan, writing and check their answer. Therefore, it's essential for students to develop effective strategies to maximize their speed and efficiency.

By developing all of these skills, students can approach an 11+ creative writing question with confidence and increase their chances of success. Not sure how to improve your child’s skills in these areas? Read on…

Preparing for an 11+ creative writing exam can be a challenge for both you and your child. Parents can play a crucial role in supporting their child's education and helping them develop the skills they need to succeed, but sometimes it’s difficult to know where to begin…

Firstly, parents should encourage their child to use as many practice papers as they can to develop their skills. Practice papers can help students familiarize themselves with the format and style of a writing exam, as well as giving them an idea of what to expect. Practice papers give students experience working through exam style questions, meaning they won’t be surprised by anything on exam day.

Working through practice papers with your child can also be beneficial, as this allows you to identify areas of weakness and provide targeted feedback and guidance.

Parents can also help their child develop their creative writing skills by encouraging them to read. Reading widely and regularly exposes children to a variety of texts and genres and helps them build their creativity, vocabulary, and critical thinking skills. Parents can support their child's reading by providing them with a range of age-appropriate books, magazines, and newspapers, and encouraging them to read for pleasure and information. Make sure your child is reading daily in order to develop these skills.

Finally, parents can help their child expand their vocabulary by exposing them to a range of words in daily life. Try to encourage your child to be inquisitive (meaning having or showing an interest in learning things ) and to always ask you or other adults if they ever use words your child does not understand. Hearing and learning new words will allow your child to eventually use them in their speech and writing.

Playing word games, using flashcards, and creative a vocabulary list/book can all be effective strategies for developing a child’s vocabulary. By creating a language-rich environment at home, parents can help their child develop the linguistic skills they need to succeed in an 11+ creative writing exam and beyond.

At The Exam Coach, we are 11 Plus exam experts, focusing on our specialisms:

11+ Creative Writing

11+ Persuasive Writing

11+ Comprehension

11+ Verbal Reasoning

To help students master these subjects, we offer the following services:

5-Day Courses

2-Hour Refresher Courses

Free Taster Sessions

Practice Papers

Our Vocabulary Podcast

👨‍💻 5-Day courses 👩‍💻

Our full 5-day 11+ courses focus on teaching the key concepts and exam techniques for each of the 11+ disciplines we specialise in:

These courses help students develop the critical foundation needed for each of their 11 Plus exams — for example, understanding effective exam technique and the mark scheme. We provide clear explanations, give students easy-to-remember exam techniques and show worked examples. Our courses are designed to ensure that students master the skills they need in order to achieve their full potential in their 11 Plus.

Types of courses currently offered:

📝 Creative Writing

Suitable for the following exam boards: Kent Test, Sutton Stage 2 and independent/school written exams.

📝 Persuasive Writing

🤔 Verbal Reasoning

Suitable for the following exam boards: GL Assessment, CEM, CAT4, ISEB Common Pre-Test, Kent Test and Sutton SET.

📚 English Comprehension (Multiple Choice Style)

Suitable for the following exam boards: GL Assessment, CEM, ISEB Common Pre-Test, Kent Test and Sutton SET.

📚 English Comprehension (Written Answer Style)

Suitable for the following exam boards: Independent or school written exams.

£250 per child.

5x 90-minutes of expert 11+ tuition by an experienced tutor/teacher over 5 days.

Interactive video and microphone access via Zoom.

Detailed class notes, worksheets and other resources for each session.

Key concept explanations and demonstrations.

Exam style question practice and walkthrough.

Competitive class tests.

Self-assessed and marked testing.

Full walkthroughs of answers.

Fun examples and stories.

Detailed and effective exam preparation in chosen 11+ area.

Exam and memory technique explanations.

Model answer explanations (where applicable).

Homework set after each session.

Detailed essay/homework marking and feedback after each session.

When they take place:

Weekends during school term time.

School holidays.

How to register:

👨‍💻 2-HOUR REFRESHER COURSES 👩‍💻

Our 2-hour refresher courses focus on recapping the key concepts and exam techniques taught in our 5-day courses before your child’s 11+ exams.

These refresher courses act as a final boost before exam day to help students remember the critical exam techniques taught in our courses. We provide a recap of all key content as well as walkthroughs of tricky example questions. Students are then provided with a mock exam as homework, which is marked in detail and returned by our team.

Our refresher courses ensure that our students feel confident on exam day and have all the skills they will need fresh in their minds.

Types of refresher courses currently offered:

📚 English Comprehension

£90 per child.

1x 120 minutes of expert 11+ tuition by an experienced tutor/teacher.

Detailed class notes, a worksheet and other resources.

6-10 students .

Recap of key concept explanations and demonstrations.

Tricky exam style question practice and walkthrough.

Competitive class test.

Detailed and effective final exam preparation in chosen 11+ area.

Exam and memory technique explanations recap.

Mock exam set as homework after the session.

Detailed mock exam marking and feedback.

Weekends during late August and September.

📚 FREE TASTER WORKSHOPS 📚

In our free taster workshops , your tutor will share some background information about themselves and our workshops with new students. This is followed by 40 minutes of teaching time. Free taster workshops are available once a week . The dates and times of these workshops change each week to ensure everyone can benefit from them.

The content within each free workshop is always basic 11+ Verbal Reasoning or English vocabulary . These taster workshops are a great way to experience our workshops and let your child learn something new before booking one of our courses. Each workshop is standalone, meaning you do not need to have attended any previous sessions. Class notes are sent out 24 hours after the workshop.

Check out some clips from one of our free tasters below!

Types of taster workshop:

Tricky Vocabulary Workout

Verbal Reasoning Synonyms/Antonyms

45 minutes.

Introduction to The Exam Coach.

Competitive class testing.

Self-assessed testing.

Walkthrough answers.

Class notes.

Once a week (date and time announced on Mondays via our email newsletter ).

📝 11 Plus Practice Papers 📝

We have plenty of practice papers available for various 11+ exam boards to help your child prepare. We provide papers for CEM, GL, ISEB, Kent, Sutton, and Independent School exams.

We send out one free English or maths paper every Friday via our email newsletter. These papers are free in order to help support your child’s 11 Plus preparation consistently throughout the year.

🎙️ Our Vocabulary Podcast 🎙️

Our 11+ Daily Vocab Show podcast is available on our website and all major streaming platforms. In each episode, we teach children a new word, expanding their vocabulary one word at a time.

Every podcast episode focuses on one tricky piece of vocabulary, ensuring that your child’s vocabulary is built up slowly, fully understanding each word.

All podcast episodes can be found using the links below:

Apple Podcasts

Amazon Music

Listen to the first episode, featuring the word ‘siege’, by clicking the image below. 🏰

In our creative writing course, we teach students the creative writing exam techniques and thought processes our students have used successfully in the past. Students then practise these skills on exam style questions, looking at model answers and working through prompts. By the end of the course, students will be completing creative writing questions confidently, efficiently and accurately.

In the five sessions, we focus on:

Creative writing basics (part 1)

Creative writing basics (part 2)

Types of creative writing

Features of creative writing

Mark schemes and our recommended creative writing system

All our courses are delivered by The Exam Coach’s team of tutors. All of our tutors have:

Passed competitive exams such as the 11 Plus.

Attended a Russell Group University within the last 5-10 years.

Received two weeks of training to deliver expertly within our online workshop format.

Taught our 11 Plus exam preparation curriculum on a regular basis within the last two years.

KEY COMPREHENSION SKILLS COVERED

1. Understanding and answering the question. Students will be taught how to understand and answer different types of creative writing question, ensuring they give the examiner exactly what will be rewarded highly in the exam. Mark schemes and model answers will be studied.

Check out the clip below! Tutor Katherine breaks a paragraph from a model answer for the question ‘ Write a diary entry describing a day aboard a pirate ship’.

2. Planning and timing. Leaving enough time for planning, writing and checking is key for a creative writing task but difficult to master for the 11+! We will teach students how to effectively do this.

3. The basics of creative writing. Students will take an in depth look at the basics of storytelling and description, including character, setting, plot, beginnings and endings. Students will be given a variety of prompts, allowing them to use their new knowledge and skills to craft their own sentences and passages of writing.

4. Complex creative writing. Moving on from the basics, students will then be taught how to master the more complex parts of storytelling and description, including narration, tenses, sentence variation and complex punctuation.

5. Types of creative writing. We will explain how to identify and answer the different types of creative writing question that could come up in the 11+ exam. We will look at model answers for story writing, continuous writing, diary entries and image-based writing.

Take a look at the clip below where tutor James talk through the three main types of creative writing question.

6. Vocabulary expansion. 11+ creative writing tests a student’s knowledge of both creative writing and complex English vocabulary. As part of this course, we will focus on expanding your child’s vocabulary, to ensure they can showcase their knowledge of the English language in their creative writing exam. We will work through some complex synonyms and antonyms for more common words, as well as identifying the meanings of tricky words in our model answers.

7. Writer’s tools and literary devices. Students will be taught the key literary devices (or writer’s tricks) they will need for their creative writing exam. They will be taught how and when to use devices such as metaphors, alliteration, similes, personification and onomatopoeia, as well as how to come up with their own examples of these in an exam situation. Students will be provided with easy ways to remember these techniques under exam conditions.

In the clip below, tutor James explains what a metaphor is and how students can use them in their exam.

COURSE RESOURCES

Worksheets, model answers, homework and class notes are sent out before the start of the course. These can either be printed or viewed digitally. For all workshops, students receive:

A worksheet to complete in the workshop.

One or two new model answers per workshop.

Class notes to help consolidate learning and give students an opportunity to recap some of what was covered in the workshop.

A homework task.

HOMEWORK AND MARKING

A 25-minute writing task is set for all students after each workshop. They complete this task after the workshop has finished and then send it to us via email ([email protected]). Each piece of homework is then individually marked and reviewed by one of our tutors (usually within 2 working days). For each homework submission, parents receive:

An annotated copy of the homework, marking highlights and areas for improvement.

A 5-minute-long voice note from the tutor to your child, celebrating successes, correcting any mistakes and highlighting areas for improvement. Importantly, our tutors will show your child how they could have improved, as opposed to just where their writing was weaker.

Got any questions about our courses? Fill in the form below and we’ll be in touch!

Thanks for reading this far! Click the links below to access some of our free 11+ resources. We hope you find them useful.

All Free 11 Plus Exam Practice Papers and Answers

Free 11 Plus English and Verbal Reasoning Taster Sessions

11 Plus English Vocabulary Podcast

11 Plus Exam Help: A Detailed 18 Point Guide

11 Plus Exam Syllabus — GL, CEM, Kent, Sutton SET, ISEB, CAT4 & Independent

11 Plus Tricky Vocabulary List 2023

11 Plus Recommended Reading List

11 Plus Creative and Persuasive Writing: Student Model Answers and Feedback

11 Plus Independent Schools’ Entrance Exams Explained

The Exam Coach's Guide to the ISEB Common Pre-Test

The Best 11 Plus Online Tuition - The Exam Coach Way

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Blog • Perfecting your Craft

Last updated on May 31, 2022

The 40 Best Books About Writing: A Reading List for Authors

For this post, we’ve scoured the web (so you don’t have to) and asked our community of writers for recommendations on some indispensable books about writing. We've filled this list with dozens of amazing titles, all of which are great — but this list might seem intimidating. So for starters, here are our top 10 books about writing:

  • On Writing by Stephen King
  • The Kick-Ass Writer by Chuck Wendig
  • Dreyer’s Englis h by Benjamin Dreyer
  • The Elements of Style by Strunk, White, and Kalman
  • The Story Grid by Shawn Coyne
  • A Swim in a Pond in the Rain by George Saunders
  • Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
  • Mouth Full of Blood by Toni Morrison
  • How to Market a Book by Ricardo Fayet
  • On Writing Well by William Zinsser

But if you're ready to get into the weeds, here are 40 of our favorite writing books.

Books about becoming a writer

1. on writing by stephen king.

best creative writing book for 11

Perhaps the most-cited book on this list, On Writing is part-memoir, part-masterclass from one of America’s leading authors. Come for the vivid accounts of his childhood and youth — including his extended "lost weekend" spent on alcohol and drugs in the 1980s. Stay for the actionable advice on how to use your emotions and experiences to kickstart your writing, hone your skills, and become an author. Among the many craft-based tips are King’s expert takes on plot, story, character, and more.

From the book: “Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work.” 

2. The Kick-Ass Writer by Chuck Wendig

If you haven’t checked out Wendig’s personal blog, head over there now and bookmark it. Unfiltered, profane, and almost always right, Wendig’s become a leading voice among online writing communities in the past few years. In The Kick-Ass Writer , he offers over 1,000 pearls of wisdom for authors, ranging from express writing tips to guidance on getting published. Written to be read in short bursts, we’re sure he’d agree that this is the perfect bathroom book for writers.

From the book: “I have been writing professionally for a lucky-despite-the-number 13 years. Not once — seriously, not once ever — has anyone ever asked me where I got my writing degree… Nobody gives two ferrets fornicating in a filth-caked gym sock whether or not you have a degree… The only thing that matters is, Can you write well? ” 

3. Find Your Voice by Angie Thomas

Taking advice from famous authors is not about imitation, but about finding your own voice . Take it from someone who knows: Thomas is the New York Times #1 Bestselling author of The Hate U Give , On the Come Up , and Concrete Rose . While she’s found her calling in YA literature , she has plenty of insight into finding your own voice in your genre of choice. Written in the form of a guided journal, this volume comes with step-by-step instructions, writing prompts, and exercises especially aimed at helping younger creatives develop the strength and skills to realize their vision.

From the book: “Write fearlessly. Write what is true and real to you.” 

4. The Forest for the Trees by Betsy Lerner

Since its publication in 2000, The Forest for the Trees has remained an essential resource for authors at various stages in their careers. As an editor, Lerner gives advice not only on producing quality content, but also on how to build your career as an author and develop a winning routine — like how writers can be more productive in their creative process, how to get published , and how to publish well . 

From the book: “The world doesn't fully make sense until the writer has secured his version of it on the page. And the act of writing is strangely more lifelike than life.”

best creative writing book for 11

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Meet the top book editors, designers, and marketers on Reedsy

Learn how Reedsy can help you craft a beautiful book.

5. How to Write Like Tolstoy by Richard Cohen

best creative writing book for 11

From the book: “Great writers can be inhibiting, and maybe after one has read a Scott Fitzgerald or Henry James one can’t escape imitat­ing them; but more often such writers are inspiring.”

6. Feel Free: Essays by Zadie Smith

Smith is well-known for her fiction, but she is also a prolific essay writer. In Feel Free , she has gathered several essays on recent cultural and political developments and combined them with experiences from her own life and career. In “The I Who Is Not Me”, she explores how her own lived experience comes into play in her fiction writing, and how she manages to extrapolate that to comment on contemporary social contexts, discussing race, class, and ethnicity.

From the book: “Writing exists (for me) at the intersection of three precarious, uncertain elements: language, the world, the self. The first is never wholly mine; the second I can only ever know in a partial sense; the third is a malleable and improvised response to the previous two.”

Books about language and style 

7. dreyer’s english by benjamin dreyer.

A staple book about writing well, Dreyer’s English serves as a one-stop guide to proper English, based on the knowledge that Dreyer — a senior copy editor at Random House — has accumulated throughout his career. From punctuation to tricky homophones, passive voice, and commas, the goal of these tools should be to facilitate effective communication of ideas and thoughts. Dreyer delivers this and then some, but not without its due dosage of humor and informative examples. 

From the book: “A good sentence, I find myself saying frequently, is one that the reader can follow from beginning to end, no matter how long it is, without having to double back in confusion because the writer misused or omitted a key piece of punctuation, chose a vague or misleading pronoun, or in some other way engaged in inadvertent misdirection.”

8. The Elements of Style (Illustrated) by William Strunk, Jr., E. B. White, and Maira Kalman

best creative writing book for 11

A perfect resource for visual learners, this illustrated edition of The Elements of Style has taken the classic style manual to a new, more accessible level but kept its main tenet intact: make every word tell. The written content by Strunk and White has long been referred to as an outline of the basic principles of style. Maira Kalman’s illustrations elevate the experience and make it a feast for both the mind and the eye. 

From the book: “A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.”

9. Sin and Syntax by Constance Hale

If you’re looking to bring a bit of spunk into your writing, copy editor Constance Hale may hold the key . Whether you’re writing a work-related email or the next rap anthem, she has one goal: to make creative communication available to everyone by dispelling old writing myths and making every word count. Peppered with writing prompts and challenges, this book will have you itching to put pen to paper.

From the book: “Verbose is not a synonym for literary.”

10. The Sense of Style by Steven Pinker

Combining entertainment with intellectual pursuit, Pinker, a cognitive scientist and dictionary consultant, explores and rethinks language usage in the 21st century . With illustrative examples of both great and not-so-great linguistic constructions, Pinker breaks down the art of writing and gives a gentle but firm nudge in the right direction, towards coherent yet stylish prose. This is not a polemic on the decay of the English language, nor a recitation of pet peeves, but a thoughtful, challenging, and practical take on the science of communication. 

From the book: “Why is so much writing so bad, and how can we make it better? Is the English language being corrupted by texting and social media? Do the kids today even care about good writing—and why should we care?”

11. Eats, Shoots, & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss

best creative writing book for 11

From the book: “A panda walks into a cafe. He orders a sandwich, eats it, then draws a gun and fires two shots in the air. "Why?" asks the confused waiter, as the panda makes towards the exit. The panda produces a badly punctuated wildlife annual and tosses it over his shoulder. "I'm a panda," he says, at the door. "Look it up." The waiter turns to the relevant entry and, sure enough, finds an explanation. Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves.”

Books about story structure

12. save the cat by blake snyder.

Best known as a screenwriting manual, Save the Cat! is just as often named by authors as one of their most influential books about writing. The title comes from the tried-and-true trope of the protagonist doing something heroic in the first act (such as saving a cat) in order to win over the audience. Yes, it might sound trite to some — but others swear by its bulletproof beat sheet. More recently, there has been Save the Cat! Writes a Novel , which tailors its principles specifically to the literary crowd. (For a concise breakdown of the beat sheet, check this post out!)

From the book: “Because liking the person we go on a journey with is the single most important element in drawing us into the story.” 

13. The Story Grid by Shawn Coyne

Shawn Coyne is a veteran editor with over 25 years of publishing experience, and he knows exactly what works and what doesn’t in a story — indeed, he’s pretty much got it down to a science. The Story Grid: What Good Editors Know outlines Coyne’s original “Story Grid” evaluation technique, which both writers and editors can use to appraise, revise, and ultimately improve their writing (in order to get it ready for publication). Coyne and his friend Tim Grahl also co-host the acclaimed Story Grid podcast , another great resource for aspiring writers.

From the book: “The Story Grid is a tool with many applications. It pinpoints problems but does not emotionally abuse the writer… it is a tool to re-envision and resuscitate a seemingly irredeemable pile of paper stuck in an attack drawer, and it can inspire an original creation.”

14. Story Structure Architect by Victoria Schmidt

For those who find the idea of improvising utterly terrifying and prefer the security of structures, this book breaks down just about every kind of story structure you’ve ever heard of. Victoria Schmidt offers no less than fifty-five different creative paths for your story to follow — some of which are more unconventional, or outright outlandish than others. The level of detail here is pretty staggering: Schmidt goes into the various conflicts, subplots, and resolutions these different story structures entail — with plenty of concrete examples! Suffice to say that no matter what kind of story you’re writing, you’ll find a blueprint for it in Story Structure Architect .

From the book: “When you grow up in a Westernized culture, the traditional plot structure becomes so embedded in your subconscious that you may have to work hard to create a plot structure that deviates from it… Understand this and keep your mind open when reading [this book]. Just because a piece doesn’t conform to the model you are used to, does not make it bad or wrong.”

15. The Writer's Journey  by Christopher Vogler

Moving on, we hone in on the mythic structure. Vogler’s book, originally published in 1992, is now a modern classic of writing advice; though intended as a screenwriting textbook, its contents apply to any story of mythic proportions. In The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers , Vogler takes a page (literally) from Joseph Campbell’s Hero of a Thousand Faces to ruminate upon the most essential narrative structures and character archetypes of the writing craft. So if you’re thinking of drawing up an epic fantasy series full of those tropes we all know and love, this guide should be right up your alley.

From the book: “The Hero’s Journey is not an invention, but an observation. It is a recognition of a beautiful design… It’s difficult to avoid the sensation that the Hero’s Journey exists somewhere, somehow, as an external reality, a Platonic ideal form, a divine model. From this model, infinite and highly varied copies can be produced, each resonating with the essential spirit of the form.”

16. Story Genius by Lisa Cron

best creative writing book for 11

From the book: “We don't turn to story to escape reality. We turn to story to navigate reality.”

17. A Swim in a Pond in the Rain by George Saunders

More than just a New York Times bestseller and the winner of the Booker Prize, A Swim in a Pond in the Rain is a distillation of the MFA class on Russian short stories that Saunders has been teaching. Breaking down narrative functions and why we become immersed in a story, this is a must-read for anyone wanting to understand and nurture our continued need for fiction.

From the book: “We’re going to enter seven fastidiously constructed scale models of the world, made for a specific purpose that our time maybe doesn’t fully endorse but that these writers accepted implicitly as the aim of art—namely, to ask the big questions, questions like, How are we supposed to be living down here? What were we put here to accomplish? What should we value? What is truth, anyway, and how might we recognize it?”

Books about overcoming obstacles as a writer

18. bird by bird by anne lamott .

Like Stephen King’s book about writing craft, this work from acclaimed novelist and nonfiction writer Anne Lamott also fuses elements of a memoir with invaluable advice on the writer’s journey. Particularly known for popularizing the concept of “shitty first drafts”, Bird by Bird was recently recommended by editor Jennifer Hartmann in her Reedsy Live webinar for its outlook take on book writing. She said, “This book does exactly what it says it will do: it teaches you to become a better writer. [Lamott] is funny and witty and very knowledgeable.”

From the book: “Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor, the enemy of the people. It will keep you cramped and insane your whole life, and it is the main obstacle between you and a shitty first draft.”

19. Take Off Your Pants by Libbie Hawker 

best creative writing book for 11

From the book: “When it comes to the eternal quandary of pantsing or plotting, you can keep a foot in each camp. But if your goals will require you to write with speed and confidence, an effective outline will be your best friend.”

20. Writing into the Dark by Dean Wesley Smith 

And for those who eschew structure altogether, we’ll now refer you to this title from profile science fiction author Dean Wesley Smith . Having authored a number of official Star Trek novels, he definitely knows what he’s talking about when he encourages writers to go boldly into the unknown with an approach to writing books that doesn’t necessarily involve an elaborate plan. It might not be your action plan, but it can be a fresh perspective to get out of the occasional writer’s block .

From the book: “Imagine if every novel you picked up had a detailed outline of the entire plot… Would you read the novel after reading the outline? Chances are, no. What would be the point? You already know the journey the writer is going to take you on. So, as a writer, why do an outline and then have to spend all that time creating a book you already know?”

21. No Plot, No Problem by Chris Baty

If you’re procrastinating to the point where you haven’t even started your novel yet, NaNo founder Chris Baty is your guy! No Plot, No Problem is a “low-stress, high-velocity” guide to writing a novel in just 30 days (yup, it’s great prep for the NaNoWriMo challenge ). You’ll get tons of tips on how to survive this rigorous process, from taking advantage of your initial momentum to persisting through moments of doubt . Whether you’re participating in everyone’s favorite November write-a-thon or you just want to bang out a novel that’s been in your head forever, Baty will help you cross that elusive finish line.

From the book: “A rough draft is best written in the steam-cooker of an already busy life. If you have a million things to do, adding item number 1,000,001 is not such a big deal.”

22. The 90-Day Novel by Alan Watt

And for those who think 30 days is a bit too steam cooker-esque, there’s always Alan Watt’s more laid-back option. In The 90-Day Novel , Watt provides a unique three-part process to assist you with your writing. The first part provides assistance in developing your story’s premise, the second part helps you work through obstacles to execute it, and the third part is full of writing exercises to unlock the “primal forces” of your story — aka the energy that will invigorate your work and incite readers to devour it like popcorn at the movies.

From the book: “Why we write is as important as what we write. Grammar, punctuation, and syntax are fairly irrelevant in the first draft. Get the story down… fast. Get out of your head, so you can surprise yourself on the page.”

23. The War of Art by Steven Pressfield

If you feel like you’re constantly in the trenches of your “inner creative battle,” The War of Art is the book for you. Pressfield emphasizes the importance of breaking down creative barriers — what he calls “Resistance” — in order to defeat your demons (i.e. procrastination, self-doubt, etc.) and fulfill your potential. Though some of his opinions are no doubt controversial (he makes repeated claims that almost anything can be procrastination, including going to the doctor), this book is the perfect remedy for prevaricating writers who need a little bit of tough love.

From the book: “Most of us have two lives. The life we live, and the unlived life within us. Between the two stands Resistance.”

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Books about writing as a lifestyle and career

24. steal like an artist by austin kleon.

As Kleon notes in the first section of Steal Like an Artist , this title obviously doesn’t refer to plagiarism. Rather, it acknowledges that art cannot be created in a vacuum, and encourages writers (and all other artists) to be open and receptive to all sources of inspiration. By “stealing like an artist,” writers can construct stories that already have a baseline of familiarity for readers, but with new twists that keep them fresh and exciting .

From the book: “If we’re free from the burden of trying to be completely original, we can stop trying to make something out of nothing, and we can embrace influence instead of running away from it.”

25. Mouth Full of Blood by Toni Morrison

best creative writing book for 11

From the book: “A writer's life and work are not a gift to mankind; they are its necessity.”

26. Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg

No matter what stage you’re at in your writing career, Goldberg’s Writing Down the Bones will help you write more skillfully and creatively. With suggestions, encouragement, and valuable advice on the many aspects of the writing craft, Goldberg doesn’t shy away from making the crucial connection between writing and adding value to your life. Covering a range of topics including taking notes of your initial thoughts, listening, overcoming doubt, choosing where to write, and the selection of your verbs, this guide has plenty to say about the minute details of writing, but excels at exploring the author life.

From the book: “Write what disturbs you, what you fear, what you have not been willing to speak about. Be willing to be split open.”

27. Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury

What does it take to become a great author? According to the beloved writer Ray Bradbury , it takes zest, gusto, curiosity, as well as a spirit of adventure. Sharing his wisdom and experiences as one of the most prolific writers in America, Bradbury gives plenty of practical tips and tricks on how to develop ideas, find your voice, and create your own style in this thoughtful volume. In addition to that, this is also an insight into the life and mind of this prolific writer, and a celebration of the act of writing. 

From the book: “Every morning I jump out of bed and step on a land mine. The land mine is me. After the explosion, I spend the rest of the day putting the pieces back together. Now, it's your turn. Jump!”

28. The Kite and the String by Alice Mattison

One of the most common dilemmas an author faces is the struggle between spontaneity and control. Literary endeavors need those unexpected light-bulb moments, but a book will never be finished if you rely solely on inspiration. In The Kite and the String , Mattison has heard your cry for help and developed a guide for balancing these elements throughout the different stages of writing a novel or a memoir. Sure, there may be language and grammar rules that govern the way you write, but letting a bit of playfulness breathe life into your writing will see it take off to a whole new level. On the other hand, your writing routine, solitude, audience, and goal-setting will act as the strings that keep you from floating too far away. 

From the book: "Don’t make yourself miserable wishing for a kind of success that you wouldn’t enjoy if you had it."

29. How to Become a Successful Indie Author by Craig Martelle

This one’s for all the indie authors out there! Even if you’ve already self-published a book , you can still learn a lot from this guide by Craig Martelle , who has dozens of indie books — “over two and a half million words,” as he puts it — under his belt. With patience and expertise, Martelle walks you through everything you need to know: from developing your premise to perfecting your writing routine, to finally getting your work to the top of the Amazon charts.

From the book: “No matter where you are on your author journey, there’s always a new level you can reach. Roll up your sleeves, because it’s time to get to work.”

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30. How to Market a Book by Ricardo Fayet 

best creative writing book for 11

From the book: “Here’s the thing: authors don’t find readers; readers find books . [...] Marketing is not about selling your book to readers. It’s about getting readers to find it.”

31. Everybody Writes by Ann Handley

The full title of Handley’s all-inclusive book on writing is actually Everybody Writes: Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content — which should tell you something about its broad appeal. Not only does Handley have some great ideas on how to plan and produce a great story, but she also provides tips on general content writing, which comes in handy when it’s time to build your author platform or a mailing list to promote your book. As such, Everybody Writes is nothing like your other books on novel writing — it’ll make you see writing in a whole new light.

From the book: “In our world, many hold a notion that the ability to write, or write well, is a gift bestowed on a chosen few. That leaves us thinking there are two kinds of people: the writing haves — and the hapless, for whom writing well is a hopeless struggle, like trying to carve marble with a butter knife. But I don’t believe that, and neither should you.” 

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Books on writing poetry 

32. madness, rack, and honey by mary ruefle.

With a long history of crafting and lecturing about poetry, Ruefle invites the reader of Madness, Rack, and Honey to immerse themselves into its beauty and magic. In a powerful combination of lectures and musings, she expertly explores the mind and craft of writers while excavating the magical potential of poetry. Often a struggle between giving and taking, poetry is, according to Ruefle, a unique art form that reveals the innermost workings of the human heart.

From the book: “In one sense, reading is a great waste of time. In another sense, it is a great extension of time, a way for one person to live a thousand and one lives in a single lifespan, to watch the great impersonal universe at work again and again”

33. Threads by Sandeep Parmar, Nisha Ramayya, and Bhanu Kapil

If you’re looking for something that explores the philosophical aspects of writing, Threads asks big questions about writing and the position of the writer in an industry that has largely excluded marginalized voices. Where does the writer exist in relation to its text and, particularly in the case of poetry, who is the “I”? Examining the common white, British, male lens, this collection of short essays will make it hard for you not to critically consider your own perceptions and how they affect your writing process.

From the book: “It is impossible to consider the lyric without fully interrogating its inherent promise of universality, its coded whiteness.”

34. The Hatred of Poetry by Ben Lerner

Despite its eye-catching title, this short essay is actually a defense of poetry . Lerner begins with his own hatred of the art form, and then moves on to explore this love-hate dichotomy that actually doesn’t seem to be contradictory. Rather, such a multitude of emotions might be one of the reasons that writers and readers alike turn to it. With its ability to evoke feelings and responses through word-play and meter, poetry has often been misconceived as inaccessible and elitist; this is a call to change that perception. 

From the book: “All I ask the haters — and I, too, am one — is that they strive to perfect their contempt, even consider bringing it to bear on poems, where it will be deepened, not dispelled, and where, by creating a place for possibility and present absences (like unheard melodies), it might come to resemble love.”

35. Poemcrazy by Susan G. Wooldridge

If you’ve ever felt that the mysterious workings of poetry are out of your reach and expressly not for you, Wooldridge is here to tell you that anyone who wants to can write poetry . An experienced workshop leader, she will help you find your inner voice and to express it through the written word. Giving you advice on how to think, use your senses, and practice your writing, Wooldrige will have you putting down rhyme schemes before you know it. 

From the book: “Writing a poem is a form of listening, helping me discover what's wrong or frightening in my world as well as what delights me.”

36. Writing Better Lyrics by Pat Pattison

best creative writing book for 11

From the book: “Don't be afraid to write crap — it makes the best fertilizer. The more of it you write, the better your chances are of growing something wonderful.”

Books about writing nonfiction

37. on writing well by william zinsser.

Going strong with its 30th-anniversary edition, On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction is an evergreen resource for nonfiction writers which breaks down the fundamental principles of written communication. As a bonus, the insights and guidelines in this book can certainly be applied to most forms of writing, from interviewing to camp-fire storytelling. Beyond giving tips on how to stay consistent in your writing and voice, how to edit, and how to avoid common pitfalls, Zinsser can also help you grow as a professional writer, strengthening your career and taking steps in a new direction. 

From the book: “Don’t try to visualize the great mass audience. There is no such audience—every reader is a different person.”

38. Essays by Lydia Davis

Ironically enough, this rather lengthy book is a celebration of brevity. As one of the leading American voices in flash-fiction and short-form writing, Davis traces her literary roots and inspirations in essays on everything, ranging from the mastodonic work of Proust to minimalism. In both her translations and her own writing, she celebrates experimental writing that stretches the boundaries of language. Playing with the contrast between what is said and what is not, this collection of essays is another tool to the writing shed to help you feel and use the power of every word you write.

From the book: “Free yourself of your device, for at least certain hours of the day — or at the very least one hour. Learn to be alone, all alone, without people, and without a device that is turned on. Learn to experience the purity of that kind of concentration. Develop focus, learn to focus intently on one thing, uninterrupted, for a long time.”

39. Essayism by Brian Dillon

In this volume, Dillon explores the often overlooked genre of essay writing and its place in literature’s past, present, and future. He argues that essays are an “experiment in attention” but also highlights how and why certain essays have directly impacted the development of the cultural and political landscape, from the end of the Middle Ages until the present day. At its heart, despite its many forms, subject areas, and purposes, essayism has its root in self-exploration. Dip in and out of Dillon’s short texts to find inspiration for your own nonfiction writing.

From the book: “What exactly do I mean, even, by 'style'? Perhaps it is nothing but an urge, an aspiration, a clumsy access of admiration, a crush.”

40. Naked, Drunk, and Writing by Adair Lara

best creative writing book for 11

From the book: “Write it down. Whatever it is, write it down. Chip it into marble. Type it into Microsoft Word. Spell it out in seaweeds on the shore. We are each of us an endangered species, delicate as unicorns.”

With a few of these books in your arsenal, you’ll be penning perfect plots in no time! And if you’re interested in learning more about the editing process, check these books on editing out as well!

ZUrlocker says:

11/03/2019 – 19:46

I'm familiar with several of these books. But for new authors, I urge you caution. It is very tempting to read so many books about writing that you never get around to writing. (I did this successfully for many years!) So I will suggest paring it down to just two books: Stephen King on Writing and Blake Snyder Save the Cat. Snyder's book is mostly about screenwriting, so you could also consider Save the Cat Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody. Best of luck!

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11 Of The Best Writing Prompts Books

What writer wouldn’t love a writing prompts book?

If you’re reading this article, you’d probably like to know more about the options available and why you should consider any of them.

For the writer who already has a stockpile of journals , pens, and snacks, a book of writing prompts is the perfect gift to say, “I’m so proud of you, my writer friend, and since I can’t buy you coffee every day, this will help light up that brain of yours and get those fingers tapping out words.”

For those days when you’d like an easily accessible book full of unique writing prompts — either printed or available on your e-reader app — the following five options are ideal.

And since they don’t depend on continuous internet access, you can use them anywhere.

  • Paperback or Ebook?

The first three books listed are available in paperback only since they provide writing space after each prompt.

The great thing about a print book of writing prompts is when you fill the entire book with your writing, you have a journal of sorts to save for future inspiration.

The ebook options have their advantages, too, as you’ll see with the fourth and fifth books listed.

Whatever you choose, the following books will help you keep the words flowing even on those days when your brain feels as empty as your coffee cup.

So, refill that cup and consider the following writer-tested options.

1. 500 Writing Prompts by Picadilly

2. 300 writing prompts by picadilly, 3. 400 writing prompts by picadilly, 4. 1,000 awesome writing prompts by ryan andrew kinder, 5. 1,000 creative writing prompts box set by bryan cohen and jeremiah jones.

  • 6. A Year of Creative Writing Prompts by Love in Ink 
  • 7. Prompt Me: Creative Writing Journal & Workbook 
  • 8. 642 Things To Write About (Guided Journal, Creative Writing, Writing Prompt Journal 
  • 9. Dare To Write: Creative Writing Prompts for Young People and Word Rebels Everywhere 
  • 10. 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts to Unstick Your Brain – Volume 1 
  • 11. Writing Prompts for Romance: Creative Writing Journal (Story Starters Workbook) 

Inspiration & Gratitude

Create a writing prompts group, be the spark, what writing prompts books grabbed your attention, 11 of the best writing prompts books.

500 Writing Prompts writing prompts books

With 204 pages, this 8” by 10” book has enough writing prompts to keep you busy for well over a year, if you only tackle one a day.

The lay-flat binding makes it easier to write on the wood-free and acid-free archive-quality paper, which will probably last long enough to allow your grandkids to enjoy (and possibly publish ) the ramblings of your younger self.

300 Writing Prompts writing prompts books

With 300 writing prompts, this one has the same number of pages but comes in a smaller size (5.6” by 8.5”).

It has the same lay-flat binding and archive-quality paper but will more easily fit into a purse or laptop bag.

best creative writing book for 11

If 300 writing prompts aren’t quite enough, but you like the smaller size, this book is the one to get. At 5.9” by 8.4”, it’s still small enough to easily fit into a handbag but large enough to provide ample writing space.

It has the same lay-flat binding, so you won’t have to make an ugly crease in the cover it to make it stay open while you write.

best creative writing book for 11

If you want your writing prompts grouped by type, and you’d rather write or type your responses into a print journal or digital page of your own choosing, this book provides an organized list of 1,000 writing prompts in either ebook or paperback form.

The paperback is 6” by 9” and has 84 pages, which makes it easy to take it anywhere with your journal or laptop.

best creative writing book for 11

With five books in this digital box set, you actually get 5,000 unique writing prompts.

Unlike any of the former options, you can get this only in ebook form.

As long as you keep it downloaded to your e-reader app on your phone or tablet , you’ll have easy access to it (even without WiFi) when you need inspiration for your next journal entry, blog post, character sketch, flash fiction challenge, or book idea.

Plus, you have a great excuse to buy extra journals and pens (and snacks), thanks to the cognitive benefits of writing by hand.

However you get those words out, though, the important thing is that you make it a habit to write every day — even if it’s only a one-sentence answer to a writing prompt .

Your brain will thank you for it.

6. A Year of Creative Writing Prompts by Love in Ink  

best creative writing book for 11

Two passionate authors got together to create this collection of hand-picked and hand-crafted writing prompts — hundreds for each of the genres included. It also has a special section of writing challenges using a variety of rhetorical techniques. 

With a year’s worth of fresh, carefully-crafted writing prompts — from writing exercises to book ideas —  this creative workbook will banish writer’s block and make “writing for fun’ a regular part of your day. 

7. Prompt Me: Creative Writing Journal & Workbook  

best creative writing book for 11

Clean enough for teens and challenging enough for seasoned writers, this option gives you plenty of variety to keep you both busy and entertained — from “ self-discovery topics ” to “fill in the blank” exercises to “ dialogue prompts ,” among many others. 

This journal/workbook is designed for writers, teachers, homeschooling parents, screenwriters, and anyone who wants to beat writer’s block and hone their storytelling skills. 

8. 642 Things To Write About (Guided Journal, Creative Writing, Writing Prompt Journal  

best creative writing book for 11

This prompt journal is the brainchild of 35 writers from a creative community/workspace known as the San Francisco Writer’s Grotto. 

Along with various writing exercises — from the absurd to the philosophical — you’ll have plenty of space to write as the prompts inspire you. 

Designed to look like a fresh notebook (and what writer isn’t drawn to that?), this journal makes an ideal gift for novice and seasoned writers alike. 

9. Dare To Write: Creative Writing Prompts for Young People and Word Rebels Everywhere  

best creative writing book for 11

If you’re a young writer or a rebel in your own right, use this workbook to break through writer’s block and get you writing in ways you never have before. 

Look through the generous selection of prompts and writing exercises for each genre to develop your characters, brainstorm plots and subplots, and ask thought-provoking questions to reinvigorate your story. 

This book is all about doing things your way — but with fresh inspiration. 

10. 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts to Unstick Your Brain – Volume 1  

best creative writing book for 11

This one keeps it simple with 1,000 prompts to get you writing and thinking about your current project in new ways. As the title says, the goal is to “unstick your brain” with prompts generated by the online Writerspark creative writing group. 

Start at the beginning or choose prompts at random to give your brain an exciting mini-project for the day. You never know what ideas will come to mind as a result. 

11. Writing Prompts for Romance: Creative Writing Journal (Story Starters Workbook)  

best creative writing book for 11

The prompts in this journal are all about romance and everything this genre demands. Sometimes you run out of ideas for witty banter or how to introduce the love interest. 

How do you build tension and keep the reader curious about the will-they-or-won’t-they question? If you’re stumped, look through the prompts in this book and write directly on the page to get your story started or craft your best bit of dialogue yet. 

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Now that you know more about five great options for writing prompt books, I hope you’ll give yourself (or a writer friend) the gift of inspiration by buying one or more.

They make great bedside table gifts or surprise packages for any occasion.

And do you really need an occasion to bless yourself or a writing buddy with a gift that makes it easier to get your words out and improve your writing skills?

Think of it as a way to express gratitude for the gift of writing and to further develop that gift with every day you have.

Let each writing prompt act as a wand that draws magic from that messy but glorious mind of yours.

You could even start a writing prompts group to work through one of the books listed.

Why argue a chance to meet and write at a coffee shop or another favorite meeting place?

If that’s not feasible, you can check in on each other regularly by phone or messaging to ask questions like “What was your favorite writing prompt this week?” or to say things like “Today’s writing prompt gave me the perfect idea for my next book!”

Having an accountability partner or team will help keep you going at the pace that best fits your life.

Ultimately, anything that helps you create and keep the habit of writing every day is worth sharing with others.

Just as you value your own emotional health and mental clarity, you know that whatever helps you and others to safeguard and strengthen those gifts is something that should be readily available.

This is the whole reason for articles like this one. It doesn’t make sense to discover something that renews or gives a boost to our creative energy and then to keep to ourselves.

We want as many people out there as possible exercising their creative genius . It’s a survival thing. It’s also about thriving.

And we want you to thrive – creatively and in every other way!

Now that you have so many inspiring options, which ones are in your top three? That’ll depend, of course, on which descriptions made you think, “That’s what I need!” 

If you can write in them as well as read them, you won’t even need a separate notebook. The more you write in it, the more valuable it becomes.

Choose something you’ll use every day. Make it a daily treat for your brain. 

Who knows what other treats it could lead to. 

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12 Best Creativity Books for Your Library

With the best creativity books in hand, you can inspire your creativity and learn to live the creative lifestyle to the fullest.

Are you a creative person? Many aspiring writers and artists feel they don’t have what it takes to express themselves. I felt the same way for years. The funny thing is that all creatives have felt this at some point during their careers. It’s a common theme found in many of the best books about creativity. Other themes include procrastination, fear of failure, and even a fear of success!

I’ve read dozens of creativity books over the years. This guide profiles the best creativity books for the modern writers and artists, so you can start writing, creating and publishing your best works. You may also be interested in learning about the different types of creativity .

  • 1. Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative by Austin Kleon
  • 2. The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
  • 3. Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull
  • 4. The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron
  • 5. The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp
  • 6. Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert

7. Flow: The Psychology Of Optimal Experience By Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

  • 8. It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want to Be by Paul Arden
  • 9. Lateral Thinking: Creativity Step by Step by Edward De Bono
  • 10. Show Your Work! 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered by Austin Kleon

11. The Power of Creativity By Bryan Collins

  • 12. The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin

A Final Word On The Best Creativity Books

What are the best creativity books for writers, what are the best creative thinking books, further reading.

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Best creativity books for your library

1.  Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative  by Austin Kleon

Published in 2012 as part of a three-part series, in  Steal Like an Artist,  Austin Kleon  explores the idea that no artistic work is an original idea. Creative people understand that art is everywhere, and the key to creating it is taking ideas from multiple sources, combining them, and adding your own voice. This book touches on the impact of the digital age on creativity. 

Steal Like an Artist is a quick read with fun visual illustrations for developing a creative mindset . Kleon is an illustrator, after all! You can read this book in one sitting too.

“Draw the art you want to see, start the business you want to run, play the music you want to hear, write the books you want to read, build the products you want to use – do the work you want to see done.” Austin Kleon

2.  The War of Art  by Steven Pressfield

Published in 2002, in  The War of Art , Pressfield explores how aspiring and even professional artists, creatives, and writers face demons like procrastination and self-doubt. Pressfield recounts his own creative struggles and explores how creatives can find their muse more easily. If you find it hard to get your creative ideas out and onto paper or canvas, this book will teach you how to express yourself.

“Are you paralyzed with fear? That’s a good sign. Fear is good. Like self-doubt, fear is an indicator. Fear tells us what we have to do. Remember one rule of thumb: the more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.” Steven Pressfield

3.  Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull

Published in 2014, Creativity, Inc . is by  Ed Catmull, co-founder of the Pixar Animation Studio. This creative genius shows what it takes to transform a team of creative talents into a working culture that inspires greatness. This book explores creative thinking and how to capitalize on it in a group and build a successful business.

It’s a good read because it combines creativity with entrepreneurship and business. Catmull recounts how his team built Pixar and created many of its hit films. It’s also a revealing insight into how Pixar and its creative teams write and work together.

“You are not your idea, and if you identify too closely with your ideas, you will take offense when they are challenged.” Ed Catmull

4.  The Artist’s Way  by Julia Cameron

Published in 1992, novelist and playwright Julia Cameron explores what makes an artist in  The Artist’s Way. It outlines what living the artist’s life looks like and is a must-read for the creative person.

Cameron’s book is perhaps most famous for its concept of the morning pages. She encourages a daily writing practice whereby creatives free write about whatever is on their mind first thing. Cameron also proposes the concept of artist dates: taking a day or an afternoon to visit a museum, gallery or see a show by someone you admire. 

“Leap, and the net will appear.” Julia Cameron

5.  The Creative Habit  by Twyla Tharp

Published in 2003, The Creative Habit by noted American choreographer Twyla Tharp is part autobiographical and part self-help. Tharp writes about how she finds inspiration for her hit shows and also the habits and routines she and other creatives rely on. 

She believes people aren’t born “creatives.” Instead, you can develop creativity with the right education and habits. If you feel that you just “aren’t creative,” this book is a good primer. It may challenge your thinking and show you that there is potential inside everyone.

“I read for growth, firmly believing that what you are today and what you will be in five years depends on two things: the people you meet and the books you read.” Twyla Tharp

6.  Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert

For most people, fear is a big thing that holds them back from being creative. Big Magic teaches readers how to tackle their fears and rise above them. Author Elizabeth Gilbert believes this is where creativity’s “big magic” takes place. 

Published in 2015, this book is so effective at teaching you how to become creative that it instantly jumped to the top spot on the New York Times bestseller list.

“The universe buries strange jewels deep within us all, and then stands back to see if we can find them.” Elizabeth Gilbert

Published in 1990, this book explores the psychological idea of flow, a state of optimal experience that inspires the best creative potential in an individual. Csikszentmihalyi believes this state is something an individual can control.

This book will teach you what flow is and how you can reach and sustain that state. This will help you build your own creative process more effectively by keeping you in the right psychological state to get creative work done. I used this book to develop triggers that help me get into a state of creative flow much faster and more easily. Learn how to  get into flow state

“Control of consciousness determines the quality of life.” Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

8. It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want to Be  by Paul Arden

Grab this book if you believe creativity is a set state and something you are born with. Paul Arden believes everyone has the potential to be more creative and better at their work.

He explores problem-solving strategies in this book that can help you achieve greater things. This book is an easy read because it is funny and short. You will finish it inspired to be better, inspiring more creativity.

“If you can’t solve a problem, it’s because you’re playing by the rules” Paul Arden

It's Not How Good You Are, It's How Good You Want to Be: The world's best-selling book by Paul Arden

  • Used Book in Good Condition
  • Arden, Paul (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 128 Pages - 06/01/2003 (Publication Date) - Phaidon Press (Publisher)

9.  Lateral Thinking: Creativity Step by Step by Edward De Bono

Most people learn how to solve problems by facing them head-on. This is vertical thinking, according to De Bono. He uses  Lateral Thinking  to teach a more creative approach to problem-solving First published in 1967, it’s considered one of DeBono’s best works and a creativity classic. 

This book explores the idea of lateral thinking instead of vertical thinking and takes the reader step-by-step through learning to think outside the box.

“A problem is simply the difference between what one has and what one wants.” Edward De Bono

Lateral Thinking: Creativity Step by Step

  • De Bono, Edward (Author)
  • 300 Pages - 02/24/2015 (Publication Date) - Harper Colophon (Publisher)

10.  Show Your Work! 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered by Austin Kleon

Being creative is great, but if you want to earn money from your creative works, you need people to find you. Show Your Work! gives 10 practical ways to get your creative work seen by others. Published in 2014, this book explores everything from the balance between sharing and oversharing to getting over the fear of putting yourself out there.

Show Your Work! is particularly valuable today because it discusses the digital age and the Internet and how you can find an audience for your work.

“Make stuff you love and talk about stuff you love and you’ll attract people who love that kind of stuff. It’s that simple.” Austin Kleon

Show Your Work!: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered (Austin Kleon)

  • Binding: paperback
  • Workman publishing
  • Language: english
  • Kleon, Austin (Author)

Struggling to come up with your next great idea? Or do you find it impossible to get your creative juices flowing? Or perhaps you don’t think your creative talent will ever be strong enough to succeed? Desperate to make your next idea your big break?

Published in 2015, award-winning author, copywriter, and blogger Bryan Collins has had a lifelong fascination with creativity and the genesis of amazing ideas. After learning how to unleash his creative dreams, Collins is now ready to share his hidden secrets with you.

“You are more creative than you can imagine.” Bryan Collins

The Power of Creativity: A Three-Part Series for Writers, Artists, Musicians and Anyone In Search of Great Ideas

  • Collins, Bryan (Author)
  • 338 Pages - 05/23/2018 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)

12.  The Creative Act: A Way of Being  by Rick Rubin

Rick Rubin differs from most other music producers who have a trend-based sound. He creates a supportive environment where artists can express their true selves and unleash their full potential and has worked with everyone from U2 to Johnny Cash to the Red Hot Chill Peppers.

Published in 2023, in this book, Rubin recounts how being an artist is not solely about output but rather a deep connection with the world. He believes creativity is a vital aspect of life that can be nurtured and expanded by all. It’s an enlightening guide that showcases the journey of an artist and musician.

“If you have an idea you’re excited about and you don’t bring it to life, it’s not uncommon for the idea to find its voice through another maker. This isn’t because the other artist stole your idea, but because the idea’s time has come.” Rick Rubin

The best creativity books help you get past a hurdle like procrastination and are inspiring. Keep these choices in mind as you build a library of inspirational books. Each one will bring something to the table to help you become just a little more creative.

If you are in a creative rut, having a library on hand will help you break past that rut and start creating again. However, to do so, you must have the books on hand, so start building that creativity library today. If you want more information on this topic, check out our list of essays about creativity .

FAQs on the Best Creativity Books

The best creativity books for writers are those that help them get past writer’s block and their own fears about writing to continue creating beautiful works. Some that should be on your shelf include: 1. The Artist’s Way 2. The Creative Habit 3. Steal Like an Artist

The best books to learn more about creative thinking include: 1. Lateral Thinking 2. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience 3. Creativity, Inc.

Want more? Check out our book recommendations .

Our Always Up-to-Date List of Great Books to Read

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The Best Writing Books

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best creative writing book for 11

Nicole Harms has been writing professionally since 2006. She specializes in education content and real estate writing but enjoys a wide gamut of topics. Her goal is to connect with the reader in an engaging, but informative way. Her work has been featured on USA Today, and she ghostwrites for many high-profile companies. As a former teacher, she is passionate about both research and grammar, giving her clients the quality they demand in today's online marketing world.

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Griffin Teaching

11+ creative writing guide with 50 example topics and prompts

by Hayley | Nov 17, 2022 | Exams , Writing | 0 comments

The 11+ exam is a school entrance exam taken in the academic year that a child in the UK turns eleven.

These exams are highly competitive, with multiple students battling for each school place awarded.

The 11 plus exam isn’t ‘one thing’, it varies in its structure and composition across the country. A creative writing task is included in nearly all of the 11 plus exams, and parents are often confused about what’s being tested.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that the plot of your child’s writing task is important. It is not.

The real aim of the 11+ creative writing task is to showcase your child’s writing skills and techniques.

And that’s why preparation is so important.

This guide begins by answering all the FAQs that parents have about the 11+ creative writing task.

At the end of the article I give my best tips & strategies for preparing your child for the 11+ creative writing task , along with 50 fiction and non-fiction creative writing prompts from past papers you can use to help your child prepare.

Do all 11+ exams include a writing task?

Not every 11+ exam includes a short story component, but many do. Usually 3 to 5 different prompts are given for the child to choose between and they are not always ‘creative’ (fiction) pieces. One or more non-fiction options might be given for children who prefer writing non-fiction to fiction.

Timings and marking vary from test to test. For example, the Kent 11+ Test gives students 10 minutes for planning followed by 30 minutes for writing. The Medway 11+ Test gives 60 minutes for writing with ‘space allowed’ on the answer booklet for planning.

Tasks vary too. In the Kent Test a handful of stimuli are given, whereas 11+ students in Essex are asked to produce two individually set paragraphs. The Consortium of Selective Schools in Essex (CCSE) includes 2 creative writing paragraphs inside a 60-minute English exam.

Throughout the UK each 11+ exam has a different set of timings and papers based around the same themes. Before launching into any exam preparation it is essential to know the content and timing of your child’s particular writing task.

However varied and different these writing tasks might seem, there is one key element that binds them.

The mark scheme.

Although we can lean on previous examples to assess how likely a short story or a non-fiction tasks will be set, it would be naïve to rely completely on the content of past papers. Contemporary 11+ exams are designed to be ‘tutor-proof’ – meaning that the exam boards like to be unpredictable.

In my online writing club for kids , we teach a different task each week (following a spiral learning structure based on 10 set tasks). One task per week is perfected as the student moves through the programme of content, and one-to-one expert feedback ensures progression. This equips our writing club members to ‘write effectively for a range of purposes’ as stated in the English schools’ teacher assessment framework.

This approach ensures that students approaching a highly competitive entrance exam will be confident of the mark scheme (and able to meet its demands) for any task set.

Will my child have a choice of prompts to write from or do they have to respond to a single prompt, without a choice?

This varies. In the Kent Test there are usually 5 options given. The purpose is to gather a writing sample from each child in case of a headteacher appeal. A range of options should allow every child to showcase what they can do.

In Essex, two prescriptive paragraphs are set as part of an hour-long English paper that includes comprehension and vocabulary work. In Essex, there is no option to choose the subject matter.

The Medway Test just offers a single prompt for a whole hour of writing. Sometimes it is a creative piece. Recently it was a marketing leaflet.

The framework for teaching writing in English schools demands that in order to ‘exceed expectations’ or better, achieve ‘greater depth’, students need to be confident writing for a multitude of different purposes.

In what circumstances is a child’s creative writing task assessed?

In Essex (east of the UK) the two prescriptive writing tasks are found inside the English exam paper. They are integral to the exam and are assessed as part of this.

In Medway (east Kent in the South East) the writing task is marked and given a raw score. This is then adjusted for age and double counted. Thus, the paper is crucial to a pass.

In the west of the county of Kent there is a different system. The Kent Test has a writing task that is only marked in appeal cases. If a child dips below the passmark their school is allowed to put together a ‘headteacher’s appeal’. At this point – before the score is communicated to the parent (and probably under cover of darkness) the writing sample is pulled out of a drawer and assessed.

I’ve been running 11+ tutor clubs for years. Usually about 1% of my students passed at headteacher’s appeal.

Since starting the writing club, however, the number of students passing at appeal has gone up considerably. In recent years it’s been more like 5% of students passing on the strength of their writing sample.

What are the examiners looking for when they’re marking a student’s creative writing?

In England, the government has set out a framework for marking creative writing. There are specific ‘pupil can’ statements to assess whether a student is ‘working towards the expected standard,’ ‘working at the expected standard’ or ‘working at greater depth’.

Members of the headteacher panel assessing the writing task are given a considerable number of samples to assess at one time. These expert teachers have a clear understanding of the framework for marking, but will not be considering or discussing every detail of the writing sample as you might expect.

Schools are provided with a report after the samples have been assessed. This is very brief indeed. Often it will simply say ‘lack of precise vocabulary’ or ‘confused paragraphing.’

So there is no mark scheme as such. They won’t be totting up your child’s score to see if they have reached a given target. They are on the panel because of their experience, and they have a short time to make an instant judgement.

Does handwriting matter?

Handwriting is assessed in primary schools. Thus it is an element of the assessment framework the panel uses as a basis for their decision.

If the exam is very soon, then don’t worry if your child is not producing immaculate, cursive handwriting. The focus should simply be on making it well-formed and legible. Every element of the assessment framework does not need to be met and legible writing will allow the panel to read the content with ease.

Improve presentation quickly by offering a smooth rollerball pen instead of a pencil. Focus on fixing individual letters and praising your child for any hint of effort. The two samples below are from the same boy a few months apart. Small changes have transformed the look and feel:

11+ handwriting sample from a student before handwriting tutoring

Sample 1: First piece of work when joining the writing club

Cursive handwriting sample of a boy preparing for the 11+ exam after handwriting tutoring.

Sample 2: This is the same boy’s improved presentation and content

How long should the short story be.

First, it is not a short story as such—it is a writing sample. Your child needs to showcase their skills but there are no extra marks for finishing (or marks deducted for a half-finished piece).

For a half hour task, you should prepare your child to produce up to 4 paragraphs of beautifully crafted work. Correct spelling and proper English grammar is just the beginning. Each paragraph should have a different purpose to showcase the breadth and depth of their ability. A longer – 60 minute – task might have 5 paragraphs but rushing is to be discouraged. Considered and interesting paragraphs are so valuable, a shorter piece would be scored more highly than a rushed and dull longer piece.

I speak from experience. A while ago now I was a marker for Key Stage 2 English SATs Papers (taken in Year 6 at 11 years old). Hundreds of scripts were deposited on my doorstep each morning by DHL. There was so much work for me to get through that I came to dread long, rambling creative pieces. Some children can write pages and pages of repetitive nothingness. Ever since then, I have looked for crafted quality and am wary of children judging their own success by the number of lines competed.

Take a look at the piece of writing below. It’s an excellent example of a well-crafted piece.

Each paragraph is short, but the writer is skilful.

He used rich and precisely chosen vocabulary, he’s broken the text into natural paragraphs, and in the second paragraph he is beginning to vary his sentence openings. There is a sense of control to the sentences – the sentence structure varies with shorter and longer examples to manage tension. It is exciting to read, with a clear awareness of his audience. Punctuation is accurate and appropriate.

Example of a high-scoring writing sample for the UK 11+ exam—notice the varied sentence structures, excellent use of figurative language, and clear paragraphing technique.

11+ creative writing example story

How important is it to revise for a creative writing task.

It is important.

Every student should go into their 11+ writing task with a clear paragraph plan secured. As each paragraph has a separate purpose – to showcase a specific skill – the plan should reflect this. Built into the plan is a means of flexing it, to alter the order of the paragraphs if the task demands it. There’s no point having a Beginning – Middle – End approach, as there’s nothing useful there to guide the student to the mark scheme.

Beyond this, my own students have created 3 – 5 stories that fit the same tight plan. However, the setting, mood and action are all completely different. This way a bank of rich vocabulary has already been explored and a technique or two of their own that fits the piece beautifully. These can be drawn upon on the day to boost confidence and give a greater sense of depth and consideration to their timed sample.

Preparation, rather than revision in its classic form, is the best approach. Over time, even weeks or months before the exam itself, contrasting stories are written, improved upon, typed up and then tweaked further as better ideas come to mind. Each of these meets the demands of the mark scheme (paragraphing, varied sentence openings, rich vocabulary choices, considered imagery, punctuation to enhance meaning, development of mood etc).

To ensure your child can write confidently at and above the level expected of them, drop them into my weekly weekly online writing club for the 11+ age group . The club marking will transform their writing, and quickly.

What is the relationship between the English paper and the creative writing task?

Writing is usually marked separately from any comprehension or grammar exercises in your child’s particular 11+ exam. Each exam board (by area/school) adapts the arrangement to suit their needs. Some have a separate writing test, others build it in as an element of their English paper (usually alongside a comprehension, punctuation and spelling exercise).

Although there is no creative writing task in the ISEB Common Pre-test, those who are not offered an immediate place at their chosen English public school are often invited back to complete a writing task at a later date. Our ISEB Common Pre-test students join the writing club in the months before the exam, first to tidy up the detail and second to extend the content.

What if my child has a specific learning difficulty (dyslexia, ADD/ADHD, ASD)?

Most exam boards pride themselves on their inclusivity. They will expect you to have a formal report from a qualified professional at the point of registration for the test. This needs to be in place and the recommendations will be considered by a panel. If your child needs extra arrangements on the day they may be offered (it isn’t always the case). More importantly, if they drop below a pass on one or more papers you will have a strong case for appeal.

Children with a specific learning difficulty often struggle with low confidence in their work and low self-esteem. The preparations set out above, and a kids writing club membership will allow them to go into the exam feeling positive and empowered. If they don’t achieve a pass at first, the writing sample will add weight to their appeal.

Tips and strategies for writing a high-scoring creative writing paper

  • Read widely for pleasure. Read aloud to your child if they are reluctant.
  • Create a strong paragraph plan where each paragraph has a distinct purpose.
  • Using the list of example questions below, discuss how each could be written in the form of your paragraph plan.
  • Write 3-5 stories with contrasting settings and action – each one must follow your paragraph plan. Try to include examples of literary devices and figurative language (metaphor, simile) but avoid clichés.
  • Tidy up your presentation. Write with a good rollerball pen on A4 lined paper with a printed margin. Cross out with a single horizontal line and banish doodling or scribbles.
  • Join the writing club for a 20-minute Zoom task per week with no finishing off or homework. An expert English teacher will mark the work personally on video every Friday and your child’s writing will be quickly transformed.

Pressed for time? Here’s a paragraph plan to follow.

At Griffin Teaching we have an online writing club for students preparing for the 11 plus creative writing task . We’ve seen first-hand what a difference just one or two months of weekly practice can make.

That said, we know that a lot of people reading this page are up against a hard deadline with an 11+ exam date fast approaching.

If that’s you (or your child), what you need is a paragraph plan.

Here’s one tried-and-true paragraph plan that we teach in our clubs. Use this as you work your way through some of the example prompts below.

11+ creative writing paragraph plan

Paragraph 1—description.

Imagine standing in the location and describe what is above the main character, what is below their feet, what is to their left and right, and what is in the distance. Try to integrate frontend adverbials into this paragraph (frontend adverbials are words or phrases used at the beginning of a sentence to describe what follows—e.g. When the fog lifted, he saw… )

Paragraph 2—Conversation

Create two characters who have different roles (e.g. site manager and student, dog walker and lost man) and write a short dialogue between them. Use what we call the “sandwich layout,” where the first person says something and you describe what they are doing while they are saying it. Add in further descriptions (perhaps of the person’s clothing or expression) before starting a new line where the second character gives a simple answer and you provide details about what the second character is doing as they speak.

Paragraph 3—Change the mood

Write three to four sentences that change the mood of the writing sample from light to gloomy or foreboding. You could write about a change in the weather or a change in the lighting of the scene. Another approach is to mention how a character reacts to the change in mood, for example by pulling their coat collar up to their ears.

Paragraph 4—Shock your reader

A classic approach is to have your character die unexpectedly in the final sentence. Or maybe the ceiling falls?

11+ creative writing questions from real papers—fictional prompts

  • The day the storm came
  • The day the weather changed
  • The snowstorm
  • The rainy day
  • A sunny day out
  • A foggy (or misty) day
  • A day trip to remember
  • The first day
  • The day everything changed
  • The mountain
  • The hillside
  • The old house
  • The balloon
  • The old man
  • The accident
  • The unfamiliar sound
  • A weekend away
  • Moving house
  • A family celebration
  • An event you remember from when you were young
  • An animal attack
  • The school playground at night
  • The lift pinged and the door opened. I could not believe what was inside…
  • “Run!” he shouted as he thundered across the sand…
  • It was getting late as I dug in my pocket for the key to the door. “Hurry up!” she shouted from inside.
  • I know our back garden very well, but I was surprised how different it looked at midnight…
  • The red button on the wall has a sign on it saying, ‘DO NOT TOUCH.’ My little sister leant forward and hit it hard with her hand. What happened next?
  • Digging down into the soft earth, the spade hit something metal…
  • Write a story which features the stopping of time.
  • Write a story which features an unusual method of transport.
  • The cry in the woods
  • Write a story which features an escape

11+ creative writing questions from real papers—non-fiction prompts

  • Write a thank you letter for a present you didn’t want.
  • You are about to interview someone for a job. Write a list of questions you would like to ask the applicant.
  • Write a letter to complain about the uniform at your school.
  • Write a leaflet to advertise your home town.
  • Write a thank you letter for a holiday you didn’t enjoy.
  • Write a letter of complaint to the vet after an unfortunate incident in the waiting room.
  • Write a set of instructions explaining how to make toast.
  • Describe the room you are in.
  • Describe a person who is important to you.
  • Describe your pet or an animal you know well.

best creative writing book for 11

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17 Best Books on Writing to Improve Your Fiction Writing Skills!

What are the best books on writing to help you improve your fiction writing skills? Here, I’ll list some of my favorite titles. These creative writing books carry a wealth of incredibly useful style tips, plot structuring ideas, and other advice to guide your authorial efforts.

I think these books about writing will give you the confidence to dive into your passion with greater ease. However, please also remember that very few authors enjoy overnight success. Instead, we all need many years of practice to fine-tune our writing skills. So, be sure to stay committed and keep those ideas coming!

Disclaimer: This post contains Amazon affiliate links. Please read our privacy policy for more details.

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My list of best books on writing to enhance your fiction writing skills.

1. on writing: a memoir of the craft.

Best Books on Writing Creative Writing Books 1

Who doesn’t know Stephen King? An international household name, King has given us some of the most iconic horror stories of all-time, selling millions of books along the way.

The first half of On Writing is essentially King’s memoir of his early life as an author. This is a highly engrossing read in and of itself!

However, I think aspiring creative writers will especially love the second part. Here, King shares concrete fiction writing tips to help us on our journey. This includes telling us how to get rid of needless adverbs, the art of showing not telling, building engaging dialogue, and so much more.

In short, I find On Writing to be one of the best books on writing available. King knows how to hook you in, all while contextually teaching you how to vastly improve your fiction writing skills.

Haven’t yet read Stephen King? Check out our list of best King books to start with for beginners!

2. The Elements of Style

Best Books on Writing Creative Writing Books 2

The Elements of Style is widely regarded as one of the best books about writing ever, for both fiction and nonfiction authors alike. Originally published a century ago, the tips inside have largely remained timeless, helping millions to improve their authorial style along the way.

The book is a back-to-basics approach. It teaches us often overlooked grammar rules, the skill of concise writing, good sentence structures, and much more. In addition, this 2018 revised edition updates any earlier advice that might have become obsolete or less relevant in recent years.

I think it’s fair to note that quite a few reviewers still prefer the Fourth ‘pure’ edition of The Elements of Style – which includes credits to E. B. White . However, personally, I welcome the revisions made in this specific version.

In short, The Elements of Style doesn’t focus on more specific fiction writing techniques. However, it’s a solid starting point which covers the core stylistic elements of English writing that, in the long run, will empower your skills as an author. The more tools in your arsenal, the better!

3. Writing Tools: 55 Essential Strategies for Every Writer 

Best Books on Writing Creative Writing Books 3

Roy Peter Clark is among America’s most influential writing teachers. Condensing thirty years of experience, Writing Tools is packed with some truly phenomenal tips on improving your creative craft.

The book comprises four main sections: ‘nuts and bolts’, ‘special effects’, ‘blueprints for stories’, and ‘useful habits’. Together, they’ll guide you on mastering key writing basics as you learn how to put together exciting stories that’ll pull your readers in.

In addition, I love how Clark successfully breaks down his generous info into 55 concise and easy-to-digest tips. This makes it much more convenient to flip to a specific page to remind yourself daily of good fiction writing practices to uphold.

In short, Writing Tools is by far one of the best books about writing to inspire you to greater creative heights. An incredibly valuable toolbox for all aspiring authors!

Want to improve your productivity? Check out our list of best books to enhance your work output – with fewer distractions!

4. The Making of a Story A Norton Guide to Creative Writing

Best Books on Writing Creative Writing Books 4

Alice LaPlante offers great insights into the art of creative writing. She walks you through the entire process – from nurturing your initial idea spark to creating story arcs and characters that leap off your pages.

The Making of a Story is full of writing lessons that are all wonderfully supported with clear real-world examples (both fiction and nonfiction). In addition, LaPlante uses simple language to explain her points, keeping things both engaging and educational.

I particularly loved her chapter on how adopting different viewpoints can impact the way readers understand a story. In addition, she guides you in putting together effective dialogue that smoothly pushes your narrative along, without forsaking character development.

Overall, I highly recommend The Making of a Story as a go-to resource for anyone keen to take their creative writing to the next level.

5. Story Genius

Best Books on Writing Creative Writing Books 5

Lisa Cron has released one of the best creative writing books on the market – with a twist! Specifically, she grounds all her tips in scientifically inspired strategies that’ll hugely aid in improving your storytelling effectiveness.

I’m really won over by Lisa’s lighthearted style that makes her creative writing points fun to learn and follow. In addition, she shares a lot of unique advice that isn’t found in most other books on writing. This includes, among other things, learning how to write strong risk / opportunity scenarios that neurologically stimulate readers to keep turning your pages.

In short, I think Story Genius works as a great companion book to The Making of a Story .

Enjoy YA dystopian fiction? Here’s our list of 15 addictive series like The Hunger Games!

6. Save the Cat! Writes a Novel: The Last Book On Novel Writing You’ll Ever Need

Best Creative Writing 1

You gotta love the quirky title! However, beyond that, Save the Cat! Writes a Novel is a five-star reviewed treasure trove filled with awesome writing tips.

In essence, ‘Save the Cat!’ is a tried-and-tested story-writing methodology for fiction authors. Here, Jessica Brody guides you through 15 major plot ‘beats’ to help shape your novel from its early stages to completion. These cover narrative, character development, conflict and resolution, and so on.

Above all, I think the Save the Cat! approach is very useful to both ‘pansters’ and ‘plotters’. It aids everyone in striking a good balance between creative flow and coherent structure, thus keeping readers’ interests alive.

In short, if you’re looking for the best books on writing, give Save the Cat! Writes a Novel a try. You’ll take in a truckload of useful pointers that’ll inspire your writing for years to come!

7. How to Write Dazzling Dialogue: The Fastest Way to Improve Any Manuscript

Dazzling Dialogue

Writing electrifying dialogue is a key part of great storytelling. With this focus in mind, How to Write Dazzling Dialogue specializes in helping you breathe life into all your characters and their interactions.

James Scott Bell covers a lot of ground. This includes showing you how to write riveting tension into your dialogue, tips on crafting memorable conversations, using effective punctuation for impact, and much more.

Moreover, I love the section that teaches us how to smartly mix in descriptive actions (e.g. character verbs) with powerful dialogue that sticks in readers’ minds.

An enticing plot always benefits from convincing and purposeful speech. In this regard, I consider How to Write Dazzling Dialogue to be easily one of the best books on writing available.

Ready for the undead apocalypse? Check out our list of the best zombie books to sink your teeth into!

8. The Emotional Craft of Fiction: How to Write the Story Beneath the Surface

The Emotional Craft of Fiction: How to Write the Story Beneath the Surface

Building a strong plot is a major part of novel-writing. However, to truly stand out, you’ll also need to stir people’s emotions. Here, Donald Maass teaches you how to evoke memorable feelings among your readers, thus elevating the overall power of your work.

The biggest takeaway I had from reading this book is the importance of revealing one’s inner and outer journeys. In other words, you’ll need to lift the veil on a character’s emotional state as he / she interacts with his / her physical environment and others.

Ultimately, Maass explains how the end-goal of all emotional storytelling is to allow readers to experience what your characters are really going through on a deeper, more visceral level.

Overall, I believe The Emotional Craft of Fiction is one of the best creative writing books that shows you the way to add emotional weight to your words.

9. Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author’s Guide to Uniting Story Structure

Best Books on Writing Creative Writing Books 6

Good fiction often rests on compelling character arcs. Here, K. M. Weiland shares her approach to creating dynamic / evolving characters that work to retain readers’ interests. Much of her advice builds upon the classic Three-Act Story Structure.

Personally, I find Weiland’s tips to be highly nuanced. For example, she details how authors should avoid pitting their character arcs against the grain of the main plot. Instead, these two aspects of storytelling should compliment each other for the sake of a greater whole. In addition, Weiland consistently raises key writing questions for you to ponder over as you craft your own novel.

However, keep in mind that a lot of her book focuses on constructing ‘positive’ character arcs – less so on ‘flat’ or ‘negative’ ones.

Overall, I strongly recommend Creating Character Arcs as a good resource for strengthening your character development skills – a big asset of the creative writing process.

Keen to bloom your very own garden? Here’s our list of beginner books that’ll help you bring your garden to life!

10. Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within

Down the Bones Freeing the Writer Within

Looking for books on writing that are both fun to read and informative? Writing Down the Bones is a great place to start! Natalie Goldberg walks you through all the fiction writing basics. This includes tutorials on how to let your creative ideas flow, using verbs effectively, learning to listen as you write, and so on.

I also loved Goldberg’s coverage of less-often discussed authorial topics. For example, she explains the importance of finding an ideal physical location to write (e.g. the perfect cafe, etc.) – as well as her tips on overcoming writer’s block and self-doubt.

In addition, I think what makes Goldberg’s book unique is her weaving in of spirituality – specifically, her view of writing as a highly spiritual process. This distinct perspective separates her from other best creative writing books on this list.

Overall, Writing Down the Bones offers a little bit of everything for aspiring authors. Its spiritual tone might not be everyone’s cup of tea. However, I think the book is a great fit for anyone who sees writing as both a practical craft and psychological mindset.

Other best books on writing to look out for!

11. bird by bird: some instructions on writing and life.

Best Books on Writing Creative Writing Books 7

With thousands of five-star reviews, I regard Bird by Bird as a proven classic filled with writing wisdom for all fiction authors. Anne Lamott dispenses tons of creative writing tips (e.g. working on your first drafts, choosing the best plot ideas, etc.).

In addition, she also explores the many meaningful joys – and challenges – of striving to become a professional writer.

12. How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method

How to write a novel using the snowflake method

Nope, Randy Ingermanson isn’t calling you a ‘snowflake’! Instead, the Snowflake Method is a 10-step approach that maps out your entire creative writing process. The book also presents its ideas through the lens of a fictitious novelist. Meta, much?

In short, when it comes to the best books on writing, How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method is an ideal fit for those looking for a zany – yet, fruitfully methodical – technique to authoring your bestseller.

Deepen your thoughts with these beginner books about philosophy!

13. Write Your Novel From The Middle

Write Your Novel From The Middle

Write Your Novel From the Middle posits a distinct writing strategy – start your novel from the middle, not the beginning or end!

For bestselling writing instructor James Scott Bell, working from the middle of your plot lets you quickly uncover the true heart of your story, early on. Subsequently, you’ll find it far easier to develop the rest of your book around this narrative epicenter. Brilliant!

14. Zen in the Art of Writing: Essays on Creativity

Best Books on Writing Creative Writing Books 5

I see Ray Bradbury as one of the best sci-fi writers of all time! So, naturally, I also fell in love with Zen in the Art of Writing . Through several essays, he shares his seasoned wisdom on how to master the craft of creative writing.

Above all, Bradbury’s highly motivational advice will inspire you to keep writing, refining your skills through passion, practice, and patience.

15. Stein On Writing

Stein On Writing

After so many years, I love how Stein on Writing has stayed relevant to millions of fiction and nonfiction authors today.

Unlike some best books on writing, Stein focuses less on strict theory. Instead, he pragmatically guides you on ‘fixing’ specific writing issues. This includes trying to liven up a flat story, repairing pacing issues, and so much more.

16. Hooked: Write Fiction That Grabs Readers at Page One & Never Lets Them Go

Best Books on Writing Creative Writing Books 6

Ever read a book you just couldn’t put down? If so, you’ll soon realize every author needs to weave a certain kind of magic to create a true page-turner.

In this regard, Les Edgerton presents you with his special formula to consistently produce alluring scenes that hold your readers’ attention throughout. In short, Hooked teaches you all that its title suggests!

17. Writing the Breakout Novel

Writing a Breakout Novel

How do you write a novel that truly stands out the rest? Donald Maass is once again here to help! In Writing the Breakout Novel , he details many of the common characteristics that today’s bestselling books tend to share.

Eye-opening and easy-to-read, I believe this essential writing guide will greatly improve your chances of authorial success!

Know of other best books on writing? Drop us an email with your favorite creative writing books and we’ll include them in this list!

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Abbey has been a freelance writer for 12 years, focusing on reviewing fantasy, romance, and sci-fi novels. She lives in Ohio and enjoys going for 2 hour walks with her dog, Mr. Sausage.

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best creative writing book for 11

100 Best Creative Writing Books of All Time

We've researched and ranked the best creative writing books in the world, based on recommendations from world experts, sales data, and millions of reader ratings. Learn more

best creative writing book for 11

A Memoir of the Craft

Stephen King | 5.00

best creative writing book for 11

Mark Manson I read a bunch of books on writing before I wrote my first book and the two that stuck with me were Stephen King’s book and “On Writing Well” by Zinsser (which is a bit on the technical side). (Source)

Jennifer Rock If you are interested in writing and communication, start with reading and understanding the technical aspects of the craft: The Elements of Style. On Writing Well. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. (Source)

Benjamin Spall [Question: What five books would you recommend to youngsters interested in your professional path?] On Writing: A Memoir Of The Craft by Stephen King, [...] (Source)

See more recommendations for this book...

best creative writing book for 11

Bird By Bird

Some Instructions on Writing and Life

Anne Lamott | 4.88

best creative writing book for 11

Susan Cain I love [this book]. Such a good book. (Source)

Timothy Ferriss Bird by Bird is one of my absolute favorite books, and I gift it to everybody, which I should probably also give to startup founders, quite frankly. A lot of the lessons are the same. But you can get to your destination, even though you can only see 20 feet in front of you. (Source)

Ryan Holiday It was wonderful to read these two provocative books of essays by two incredibly wise and compassionate women. [...] Anne Lamott’s book is ostensibly about the art of writing, but really it too is about life and how to tackle the problems, temptations and opportunities life throws at us. Both will make you think and both made me a better person this year. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

The War of Art

out of 5 stars4,70 | 4.76

best creative writing book for 11

James Altucher When a writer or an entrepreneur, or a manager, or an employee, or a…whatever…sits down to get to work, he or she is often met by “the resistance”. The excuses that come up: I can’t do this. I am too old. I don’t have enough money. I’m scared. “The War of Art” is the guide to getting through that block. The comfort zone is papered up and cemented shut by our excuses. Learn to blast through that... (Source)

Seth Godin Also hard to find on audio. I find Steve's voice to be fascinating, and even before I knew him, I was fascinated by listening to him speak his own work. The War of Art is one of those books, at least for me when I finally was exposed to it, I said, 'Why wasn't I informed? Why did it take this long for this book to land on my desk?'... You need to be clear with yourself about what you are afraid... (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Brian Koppelman Talks about resistance. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

The Elements of Style

William Jr. Strunk | 4.57

best creative writing book for 11

Tobi Lütke [My] most frequently gifted book is [this book] because I like good writing. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Bill Nye This is my guide. I accept that I’ll never write anything as good as the introductory essay by [the author]. It’s brilliant. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

The Hero With a Thousand Faces

Joseph Campbell | 4.57

The first popular work to combine the spiritual and psychological insights of modern psychoanalysis with the archetypes of world mythology, the book creates a roadmap for navigating the frustrating path of contemporary life. Examining heroic myths in the light of modern psychology, it considers not only the patterns and stages of mythology but also its relevance to our lives today--and to the life of any person seeking a fully realized existence. Myth, according to Campbell, is the projection of a culture's dreams onto a large screen; Campbell's book, like Star Wars , the...

The first popular work to combine the spiritual and psychological insights of modern psychoanalysis with the archetypes of world mythology, the book creates a roadmap for navigating the frustrating path of contemporary life. Examining heroic myths in the light of modern psychology, it considers not only the patterns and stages of mythology but also its relevance to our lives today--and to the life of any person seeking a fully realized existence. Myth, according to Campbell, is the projection of a culture's dreams onto a large screen; Campbell's book, like Star Wars , the film it helped inspire, is an exploration of the big-picture moments from the stage that is our world. It is a must-have resource for both experienced students of mythology and the explorer just beginning to approach myth as a source of knowledge.

best creative writing book for 11

Ray Dalio The book I’d give [every graduating senior in college or high school] would be [...] Joseph Campbell’s 'Hero of a Thousand Faces'. It's little bit dense but it’s so rich, so it’s a good one. (Source)

Darren Aronofsky [I'm] totally part of his cult. Because I believe in that hero’s journey. (Source)

Kyle Russell Book 28 Lesson: Embedded in human psychology (and the resulting symbolism we find compelling) is a wish for our struggles to be meaningful, for our suffering to have value, for our effort to pay off for ourselves and those we love - and to then be recognized for it. https://t.co/lWgr4k7d8Y (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

On Writing Well

The Classic Guide To Writing Nonfiction

William Zinsser | 4.55

best creative writing book for 11

Tim O'Reilly On Writing Well, by William Zinsser. I wouldn't say this book influenced me, since my principles of writing were established long before I read it. However, it does capture many things that I believe about effective writing. (Source)

Derek Sivers Great blunt advice about writing better non-fiction. So inspiring. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

The Writer's Journey

Mythic Structure for Writers

Christopher Vogler | 4.50

Darren Aronofsky It’s the Bible for screenwriters. I think it’s the best book on how to write a screenplay ever written. It helped me get through so many roadblocks as a writer. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Writing Down the Bones

Freeing the Writer Within

Natalie Goldberg | 4.47

best creative writing book for 11

Brie Code @gamesandbowties Oh I love that book! And am intrigued by mystic poetry and would love to see it on Twitter 😇 (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Writing Tools

50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer

Roy Peter Clark | 4.47

best creative writing book for 11

The Artist's Way

Julia Cameron | 4.46

best creative writing book for 11

Anand C STARTING FROM AUTHENTICITY: by observing, showing humility and being grateful - I started being open to what’s in the sub-conscious more (30+ sessions in). Speaking your truth is a powerful result of this. One great book to help explore this. https://t.co/sOAgAHhWsO (Source)

Emma Gannon Instead of all these fast paced books saying: ‘Here’s how to be amazing, here’s how to get a side hustle, here’s how to hustle, hustle, hustle.’ This is the total opposite. It’s about slowing right down and connecting with yourself again. (Source)

Don't have time to read the top Creative Writing books of all time? Read Shortform summaries.

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best creative writing book for 11

The Emotion Thesaurus

A Writer's Guide to Character Expression

Becca Puglisi | 4.38

best creative writing book for 11

Save the Cat

The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need

Blake Snyder | 4.37

best creative writing book for 11

Eric Weinstein [Eric Weinstein recommended this book on Twitter.] (Source)

Bill Liao The human world occurs in language so best get good at it! (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Neville Medhora It takes you through 11 different 'archetypes' of screenplays you can write, and the exact elements each needs to be a great story. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting

Robert McKee | 4.35

best creative writing book for 11

Gotham Writers' Workshop: Writing Fiction

The Practical Guide From New York's Acclaimed Creative Writing School

Gotham Writers' Workshop | 4.33

best creative writing book for 11

The Illustrated Guide to Creating Imaginative Fiction

Jeff VanderMeer, Jeremy Zerfoss | 4.33

best creative writing book for 11

Becoming a Writer

Dorothea Brande, John Gardner | 4.33

best creative writing book for 11

Sophie King This book will help you work out what you can do with your own book. (Source)

Andrew Cowan Because creative writing has now taken off and has become this very widespread academic discipline it is beginning to acquire its own canon of key works and key texts. This is one of the oldest of them. It’s a book that almost anyone who teaches creative writing will have read. They will probably have read it because some fundamentals are explained and I think the most important one is Brande’s... (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Self-Editing for Fiction Writers

How to Edit Yourself Into Print

Renni Browne, Dave King | 4.32

Alina Varlanuta My professional path – copywriting – somehow intertwines with my unprofessional (hahaha) path – writing so I would recommend reading literature for both. Somehow reading and writing are two ways of doing the same thing: storytelling (even when you read you tell yourself a story in your own voice, bringing your personal emotion and empathy to the story you’re reading). The only difference is that... (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Plot & Structure

Techniques and Exercises for Crafting a Plot That Grips Readers from Start to Finish

James Scott Bell | 4.30

best creative writing book for 11

Zen in the Art of Writing

Ray Bradbury | 4.27

best creative writing book for 11

Maria Popova In Zen in the Art of Writing: Releasing the Creative Genius Within You, Ray Bradbury — acclaimed author, dystopian novelist, hater of symbolism — shares not only his wisdom and experience in writing, but also his contagious excitement for the craft. Blending practical how-to’s on everything from finding your voice to negotiating with editors with snippets and glimpses of the author’s own career,... (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Steering the Craft

Exercises and Discussions on Story Writing for the Lone Navigator or the Mutinous Crew

Ursula K. Le Guin | 4.27

best creative writing book for 11

Reading Like a Writer

A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them

Francine Prose | 4.27

best creative writing book for 11

Steal Like an Artist

10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative

Austin Kleon | 4.26

best creative writing book for 11

Seth Godin Breezy and fun and yes, scary. Scary because it calls your bluff. (Source)

Ryan Holiday Part of ambition is modeling yourself after those you’d like to be like. Austin’s philosophy of ruthlessly stealing and remixing the greats might sound appalling at first but it is actually the essence of art. You learn by stealing, you become creative by stealing, you push yourself to be better by working with these materials. Austin is a fantastic artist, but most importantly he communicates... (Source)

Chase Jarvis Super small, fast read. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Outlining Your Novel

Map Your Way to Success

K. M. Weiland | 4.25

best creative writing book for 11

Writing Fiction for Dummies

Randy Ingermanson | 4.23

best creative writing book for 11

Characters and Viewpoint (Elements of Fiction Writing)

Orson Scott Car | 4.22

best creative writing book for 11

Wired for Story

The Writer's Guide to Using Brain Science to Hook Readers from the Very First Sentence

Lisa Cron | 4.22

best creative writing book for 11

2,000 to 10,000

How to Write Faster, Write Better, and Write More of What You Love

Rachel Aaro | 4.21

best creative writing book for 11

Creating Character Arcs

The Masterful Author's Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development (Helping Writers Become Authors Book 7)

K.M. Weiland | 4.21

Powerful Character Arcs Create Powerful Stories

Have you written a story with an exciting concept and interesting characters—but it just isn’t grabbing the attention of readers or agents? It’s time to look deeper into the story beats that create realistic and compelling character arcs. Internationally published, award-winning novelist K.M. Weiland shares her acclaimed method for achieving memorable and moving character arcs in every book you write.

By applying the foundation of the Three-Act Story Structure and then...

By applying the foundation of the Three-Act Story Structure and then delving even deeper into the psychology of realistic and dynamic human change, Weiland offers a beat-by-beat checklist of character arc guidelines that flexes to fit any type of story.

This comprehensive book will teach you:

Gaining an understanding of how to write character arcs is a game-changing moment in any author’s pursuit of the craft.

Bring your characters to unforgettable and realistic life—and take your stories from good to great!

best creative writing book for 11

Writing Fiction

A Guide to Narrative Craft

Janet Burroway, Elizabeth Stuckey-French | 4.20

best creative writing book for 11

Story Engineering

Character Development, Story Concept, Scene Construction

Larry Brooks | 4.19

best creative writing book for 11

The Art of Fiction

Notes on Craft for Young Writers

John Gardner | 4.19

best creative writing book for 11

The Anatomy of Story

22 Steps to Becoming a Master Storyteller

John Truby | 4.19

best creative writing book for 11

Writing Magic

Creating Stories that Fly

Gail Carson Levine | 4.19

best creative writing book for 11

The Positive Trait Thesaurus

A Writer's Guide to Character Attributes

Angela Ackerman, Becca Puglisi | 4.18

best creative writing book for 11

The Art of Dramatic Writing

Its Basis in the Creative Interpretation of Human Motives

Lajos Egri | 4.17

best creative writing book for 11

Seth Rogen Very referential to certain plays. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

The Negative Trait Thesaurus

A Writer's Guide to Character Flaws

Angela Ackerman, Becca Puglisi | 4.17

best creative writing book for 11

The Emotional Wound Thesaurus

A Writer's Guide to Psychological Trauma

Becca Puglisi | 4.16

best creative writing book for 11

Characters, Emotion & Viewpoint

Techniques and Exercises for Crafting Dynamic Characters and Effective Viewpoints

Nancy Kress | 4.16

•Choose and execute the best...
•Choose and execute the best point of view for your story •Create three-dimensional and believable characters •Develop your characters' emotions •Create realistic love, fight, and death scenes •Use frustration to motivate your characters and drive your story

best creative writing book for 11

Structuring Your Novel

Essential Keys for Writing an Outstanding Story

K. M. Weiland | 4.16

best creative writing book for 11

Creative Living Beyond Fear

Elizabeth Gilbert | 4.16

Mark Manson I read a bunch of books on writing before I wrote my first book and the two that stuck with me were Stephen King’s book and “On Writing Well” by Zinsser (which is a bit on the technical side). I was also surprised by how much I enjoyed Elizabeth Gilbert’s “Big Magic.” (Source)

Chelsea Frank I read everything with an open mind, often challenging myself by choosing books with an odd perspective or religious/spiritual views. These books do not reflect my personal feelings but are books that helped shape my perspective on life, love, and happiness. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Story Genius

How to Use Brain Science to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel (Before You Waste Three Years Writing 327 Pages That Go Nowhere)

Lisa Cron | 4.16

best creative writing book for 11

Back to Creative Writing School

Bridget Whelan | 4.15

best creative writing book for 11

Writing the Breakout Novel

Donald Maass | 4.15

best creative writing book for 11

Where the Wild Things Are

Maurice Sendak | 4.15

best creative writing book for 11

Richard Branson Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. (Source)

Barack Obama During a trip to a public library in Washington’s Anacostia neighborhood in 2015, Obama shared some of his childhood favorites with a group of young students. He also read (and acted out) Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak to kids at the White House in 2014. (Source)

Martha Stewart In this photo, Jimmy Fallon and I enjoy slurping Eggs of Newt together for Season-5 of “The Martha Stewart Show." I am dressed as "Queen of the Wild Things" inspired by the beloved Maurice Sendak children's book, "Where the Wild Things Are." https://t.co/1ZBqXEW7dC (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Into the Woods

A Five Act Journey Into Story

out of 5 stars31 | 4.15

best creative writing book for 11

Save the Cat! Writes a Novel

The Last Book on Novel Writing You'll Ever Need

Jessica Brody | 4.14

best creative writing book for 11

How to Write a Damn Good Novel

A Step-by-Step No Nonsense Guide to Dramatic Storytelling

James N. Frey | 4.14

best creative writing book for 11

Scene & Structure (Elements of Fiction Writing)

Jack M. Bickham | 4.14

best creative writing book for 11

On Becoming a Novelist

John Gardner, Raymond Carver | 4.14

Andrew Cowan This is another one of the classics. He was quite a successful novelist in the States, but possibly an even more successful teacher of creative writing. The short story writer and poet Raymond Carver, for instance, was one of his students. And he died young in a motorcycle accident when he was 49. There are two classic works by him. One is this book, On Becoming a Novelist, and the other is The... (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Stein on Writing

A Master Editor of Some of the Most Successful Writers of Our Century Shares His Craft Techniques and Strategies

Sol Stein | 4.14

best creative writing book for 11

Letters to a Young Poet

Rainer Maria Rilke | 4.13

Todd Henry A book of mentorship for young artists. (Source)

Estella Ng Letters to a Young Poet - it is everything. [...] This line in Letters to a Young Poet “If your daily life seems poor, do not blame it; blame yourself, tell yourself that you are not poet enough to call forth its riches" is an important one to me. I constantly go back to this to evaluate if I have been living a full life. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Write Fiction That Grabs Readers at Page One & Never Lets Them Go

Les Edgerton | 4.13

*The first and only fiction-writing book that focuses exclusively on beginnings--no other book on the market addresses story beginnings in a comprehensive manner

Agents and editors agree: Improper story beginnings are the single biggest barrier to publication. Why? If a novel or short story has a bad beginning, then no one will keep reading....

Agents and editors agree: Improper story beginnings are the single biggest barrier to publication. Why? If a novel or short story has a bad beginning, then no one will keep reading. It's just that simple. Hooked provides readers with a detailed understanding of what a beginning must include (setup, backstory, the inciting incident, etc.); instruction on how to successfully develop the story problem; tips on how to correct common beginning mistakes; exclusive insider advice from agents, acquiring book editors, and literary journal editors; and much more.

best creative writing book for 11

The Writing Life

Annie Dillard | 4.13

best creative writing book for 11

How Not to Write a Novel

200 Classic Mistakes and How to Avoid Them—A Misstep-by-Misstep Guide

Howard Mittelmark, Sandra Newman | 4.13

best creative writing book for 11

How to Write Dazzling Dialogue

The Fastest Way to Improve Any Manuscript

James Scott Bel | 4.12

best creative writing book for 11

Take Off Your Pants! Outline Your Books for Faster, Better Writing

Libbie Hawke | 4.12

best creative writing book for 11

Conflict and Suspense (Elements of Fiction Writing)

James Scott Bell | 4.11

Conflict pulls readers into a story and suspense carries them along until its conclusion. Expert author of over 15 thrillers, James Scott Bell offers proven techniques that help writers craft fiction that their readers won?t be able to put down. Learn how to believably weave conflict and suspense into a story, how to pace your story and keep the pressure on throughout, and how to bring it all to a gripping conclusion.

best creative writing book for 11

The First Five Pages

A Writer's Guide To Staying Out of the Rejection Pile

Noah Lukeman | 4.11

Many writers spend the majority of their time devising their plot. What they don't seem to understand is that if their execution -- if their prose -- isn't up to par, their plot may not even be considered.

best creative writing book for 11

Write. Publish. Repeat. (The No-Luck-Required Guide to Self-Publishing Success)

Sean M. Platt and Johnny Truan | 4.10

In 2013, Johnny B. Truant and Sean Platt published 1.5 million words and made their full-time livings as indie authors. In Write. Publish. Repeat., they tell you exactly how they did it: how they created over 15 independent franchises across 50+ published works, how they turned their art into a logical, sustainable business, and how any independent author can do the same to build a sustainable, profitable career with their writing.

Write. Publish. Repeat. explains the current self-publishing landscape and...

Write. Publish. Repeat. explains the current self-publishing landscape and covers the truths and myths about what it means to be an indie author now and in the foreseeable future. It explains how to create books your readers will love and will want to return to again and again. Write. Publish. Repeat. details expert methods for building story worlds, characters, and plots, understanding your market (right down to your ideal reader), using the best tools possible to capture your draft, and explains proven best practices for editing. The book also discusses covers, titles, formatting, pricing, and publishing to multiple platforms, plus a bit on getting your books into print (and why that might not be a good idea!). But most importantly, Write. Publish. Repeat. details the psychology-driven marketing plan that Sean and Johnny built to shape their stories into "products" that readers couldn't help but be drawn into -- thus almost automatically generating sales -- and explores ways that smart, business-minded writers can do the same to future-proof their careers.

This book is not a formula with an easy path to follow. It is a guidebook that will help you build a successful indie publishing career, no matter what type of writer you are ... so long as you're the type who's willing to do the work.

James Altucher Sean Platt has a good book that just came out about writing many books. I recommend it. “Write. Publish. Repeat.” I think Sean has published over 50 books. I don’t know because he uses pseudonyms as well. (Source)

Kaci Lambe Kai On the same flight, I read Write. Publish. Repeat. by Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant. They made it seem so easy to become an author and a creative. It's as easy as the title. Create a thing. Put it out into the world. Do it all over again. I got off that flight a changed human being. I knew I wanted to make my living as an independent creative in which I create works, release them, and obtain... (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

The Ode Less Travelled

Unlocking the Poet Within

Stephen Fry | 4.08

Fry is a wonderfully engaging teacher and writer of poetry himself, and he explains the various elements of poetry in simple terms, without condescension. His enjoyable exercises and witty insights introduce the concepts of Metre, Rhyme, Form, Diction, and Poetics. Aspiring poets will learn to write a sonnet, on ode, a villanelle, a ballad, and a haiku, among others. Along the way, he introduces us to poets we've heard of, but never read. The Ode Less Travelled is a lively celebration of poetry that makes even the most reluctant reader want to pick up a pencil and give it a try. BACKCOVER: Advanced Praise: “Delightfully erudite, charming and soundly pedagogical guide to poetic form… Fry has created an invaluable and highly enjoyable reference book.” — Publishers Weekly “A smart, sane and entertaining return to the basics… If you like Fry's comic manner… this book has a lot of charm… People entirely fresh to the subject could do worse than stick with his cheerful leadership.” — The Telegraph (UK) “…intelligent and informative, a worthy enterprise well executed.” — Observer (UK) "If you learn how to write a sonnet, and Fry shows you how, you may or may not make a poem. But you will unlock the stored wisdom of the form itself." —Grey Gowrie, The Spectator (UK) “…intelligent and informative, a worthy enterprise well executed.” — Observer (UK)

best creative writing book for 11

The Forest for the Trees

Betsy Lerner | 4.08

Andrew Cowan Yes, she was an editor at several major American publishing houses, such as Simon & Schuster. She went on to become an agent, and also did an MFA in poetry before that, so she came through the US creative writing process and understands where many writers are coming from. (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

No Plot? No Problem!

A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days

Chris Baty | 4.08

best creative writing book for 11

Daily Rituals

How Artists Work

Mason Currey | 4.08

best creative writing book for 11

Alok Kejriwal Daily Rituals - Book Review "Sooner or later, Pritchett writes, "great men turn to be alike. They never stop working. They never lose a minute. It's very depressing". Daily Rituals is a remarkable book. It chronicles the daily habits of artists, writers, composers.. see note https://t.co/tMUhBKmzkI (Source)

Bobby Voicu Mason Currey’s "Daily Rituals" will show you how 161 of the most creative and inspiring minds in the world work. This book’s great to demolish the myth that artists don’t have a routine and they’re just waiting for inspiration to hit them. As David Brook… https://t.co/4Owd29TQEm (Source)

B. J. Novak B. J. also recommended Daily Rituals by Mason Currey for anyone who would enjoy seeing the daily routines of legends like Steve Jobs, Charles Darwin, and Charles Dickens. "It is so reassuring to see that everyone has their own system, and how dysfunctional a lot of them are". (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Divergent (Divergent, #1)

Veronica Roth | 4.08

best creative writing book for 11

The Foundations of Screenwriting

Syd Field | 4.07

best creative writing book for 11

The Fire in Fiction

Passion, Purpose and Techniques to Make Your Novel Great

Donald Maass | 4.07

best creative writing book for 11

The Writing Strategies Book

Your Everything Guide to Developing Skilled Writers

Jennifer Serravallo | 4.06

best creative writing book for 11

The Story Grid

What Good Editors Know

Shawn Coyne and Steven Pressfiel | 4.06

best creative writing book for 11

Revision & Self-Editing

Techniques for Transforming Your First Draft Into a Finished Novel

James Scott Scott Bell | 4.06

•Write a cleaner first draft right out of the gate using Bell's plotting principles •Get the most out of revision and self-editing techniques by honing your skills with detailed exercises •Systematically revise a completed draft using the ultimate revision checklist that talks you through the core story elements

best creative writing book for 11

Spilling Ink

A Young Writer's Handbook

Ellen Potter, Anne Mazer, et al. | 4.06

best creative writing book for 11

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs

Judi Barrett, Ronald Barrett | 4.06

best creative writing book for 11

Travis Herzog I absolutely LOVED this book as a kid, and I still love reading it today as an adult. @Ginger_Zee and @RobMarciano, I challenge you to post your own "shelfie" (selfie with a book) and @Disney will donate up to 1 million books for kids in need! #magicofstorytelling https://t.co/zEwuZpf0zc (Source)

The Rural Setting Thesaurus

A Writer's Guide to Personal and Natural Places

Angela Ackerman, Becca Puglisi | 4.06

best creative writing book for 11

Emotion Amplifiers

Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglis | 4.05

best creative writing book for 11

Techniques of the Selling Writer

Dwight V. Swain | 4.05

best creative writing book for 11

The Right to Write

An Invitation and Initiation Into the Writing Life

Julia Cameron | 4.05

best creative writing book for 11

How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy

Orson Scott Card | 4.05

best creative writing book for 11

Still Writing

The Perils and Pleasures of a Creative Life

Dani Shapiro | 4.05

best creative writing book for 11

Writing 21st Century Fiction

High Impact Techniques for Exceptional Storytelling

Donald Maass | 4.04

best creative writing book for 11

Ernest Hemingway on Writing

Larry W. Phillips | 4.04

Maria Popova Ernest Hemingway famously maintained that it was bad luck to talk about writing. Yet, over the course of his career, he frequently wrote about writing in his novels and short stories, his letters to editors, friends, critics, and lovers, in interviews, and even in articles specifically commissioned on the subject. In Ernest Hemingway on Writing, editor Larry W. Phillips culls the finest,... (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

Imaginative Writing

Janet Burroway | 4.04

best creative writing book for 11

Eats, Shoots & Leaves

The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation

Lynne Truss | 4.04

best creative writing book for 11

Write to Market

Deliver a Book that Sells (Write Faster, Write Smart, #3)

Chris Fox | 4.03

best creative writing book for 11

Insurgent (Divergent, #2)

Veronica Roth | 4.03

best creative writing book for 11

The Science of Storytelling

out of 5 stars10 | 4.03

‘One of my absolute favourite writers’ Decca Aitkenhead

Who would we be without stories?

Stories mould who we are, from our character to our cultural identity. They drive us to act out our dreams and ambitions, and shape our politics and beliefs. We use them to construct our relationships, to keep order in our law courts, to interpret events in our newspapers and social media. Storytelling is an essential part of what makes us human.

There have been many attempts to understand what makes a good story – from Joseph Campbell’s...

There have been many attempts to understand what makes a good story – from Joseph Campbell’s well-worn theories about myth and archetype to recent attempts to crack the ‘Bestseller Code’. But few have used a scientific approach. This is curious, for if we are to truly understand storytelling in its grandest sense, we must first come to understand the ultimate storyteller – the human brain.

In this scalpel-sharp, thought-provoking book, Will Storr demonstrates how master storytellers manipulate and compel us, leading us on a journey from the Hebrew scriptures to Mr Men, from Booker Prize-winning literature to box set TV. Applying dazzling psychological research and cutting-edge neuroscience to the foundations of our myths and archetypes, he shows how we can use these tools to tell better stories – and make sense of our chaotic modern world.

best creative writing book for 11

Hannah Fry This is the intro to The Science of Storytelling by @wstorr. Easily the best book I've read this year. https://t.co/WzpSWlzVGi https://t.co/RX9kdQANeB (Source)

Adam Rutherford Tomorrow night at @WaterstonesTCR I’ll be in conversation with @wstorr about his brilliant book The Science of Storytelling - a book that has made me change how I write. Come. https://t.co/mbQpHfwysV (Source)

best creative writing book for 11

The Art of War for Writers

Fiction Writing Strategies, Tactics, and Exercises

James Scott Bell | 4.03

best creative writing book for 11

The Sense of Style

The Thinking Person's Guide to Writing in the 21st Century

Steven Pinker | 4.03

best creative writing book for 11

Writing Alone and with Others

Pat Schneider, Peter Elbow | 4.02

best creative writing book for 11

The Urban Setting Thesaurus

A Writer's Guide to City Spaces

Angela Ackerman, Becca Puglisi | 4.02

best creative writing book for 11

Living the Writer's Life

Natalie Goldberg | 4.02

best creative writing book for 11

The Creative Writing Coursebook

Forty Authors Share Advice and Exercises for Fiction and Poetry

Julia Bell, Paul Magrs, Andrew Motion | 4.02

best creative writing book for 11

Getting Into Character

Seven Secrets a Novelist Can Learn from Actors

Brandilyn Collins | 4.02

best creative writing book for 11

GMC: Goal, Motivation and Conflict

The Building Blocks of Good Fiction

Debra Dixon | 4.01

best creative writing book for 11

The Modern Library Writer's Workshop

A Guide to the Craft of Fiction

Stephen Koch | 4.01

best creative writing book for 11

Beginnings, Middles & Ends (Elements of Fiction Writing)

Nancy Kress | 4.01

best creative writing book for 11

Old Friend from Far Away

The Practice of Writing Memoir

Natalie Goldberg | 4.01

best creative writing book for 11

Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers

Anne Bernays, Pamela Painter | 4.01

best creative writing book for 11

Description & Setting

Ron Rozelle | 4.01

best creative writing book for 11

The Art of the Novel

Milan Kundera | 4.00

best creative writing book for 11

Make a Scene

Crafting a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time

Jordan E. Rosenfeld | 4.00

best creative writing book for 11

Story Trumps Structure

How to Write Unforgettable Fiction by Breaking the Rules

Steven James and Donald Maas | 4.00

Imagination Soup

Three Excellent Writing Books for Kids

M ost of us want our children to grow as writers. One way we can support their writing growth is to read helpful writing books like these three books which explicitly teach the craft of writing as well as provide examples and inspiration.

These three writing books will support children who are developing as writers. Use them in the classroom or at home, guiding children and writing with children or asking kids to read the books independently.

Let’s take a look at these writing books and find out what’s covered in each book as well as the best audience for each title.

Writing Books for Kids

Spilling ink: a young writer’s handbook by ann mazer and ellen potter.

Spilling Ink is written by two experienced children’s book authors, Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter , who, besides having lots of books, beautifully explain the craft of writing in kid-friendly language for writers who are ages eight and up. (Adults can learn from this book, too!)

The authors talk specifics about crafting stories. They’ll share about narrative voice, setting, suspense, titles, characters, dialogue, and so forth, as well as the writing process and identity.

Here’s why I recommend this book for your kids (and you). It

  • encourages writing anything and breaking the rules
  • is broken into manageable section s of information, scaffolding the writing craft into layers
  • shares helpful ideas about all aspects of writing
  • is memorable with personal stories from both Anne and Ellen
  • relatable with examples of how all writers stumble and grow, fail and succeed
  • applicable with “I Dare You” ideas to apply the lessons

The Creative Writing Playbook For Kids Only by Megan Wagner Lloyd, illustrated by Madeline Garcia

The Creative Writing Playbook For Kids Only! is a writing book written by Megan Wagner Lloyd , children’s book author of Squished , Haven , and Allergic , among other books. It’s a guided journal for ages 8 to 12 with instructional prompts and blank spaces for you to write.

Writers will learn about the story elements, including planning, character development, and strong verbs. In addition, Megan gives story starters and comic strips to spark creative writing from a prompt.

You The Story by Ruta Sepetys

You The Story is a writing book for teens and adults by acclaimed historical fiction author Ruta Sepetys known for titles like Salt to the Sea and I Must Betray You .

The premise of this writing book is that you will use your own life and the experiences you’ve had, and the people you know to help inform your writing. Your life will give you ideas for writing that will feel authentic because…they are!

Ruta covers plot, character development, voice, perspective, setting, revision, and more. It’s full of her own examples, which helps us understand how you can mine your life to find ideas.

KEEP READING

Journals for Kids

Writing Prompts for Kids

Wreck This Journal

Mentor Text Book List

Six Word Memoirs

The post Three Excellent Writing Books for Kids appeared first on Imagination Soup .

Most of us want our children to grow as writers. One way we can support their writing growth is to read helpful writing books like these three, which explicitly teach the craft of writing as well as provide examples and inspiration.

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COMMENTS

  1. 10 Best Creative Writing Books to Read in 2023

    History Explorers - Juniors - 11-12; Law Explorers - Juniors - 9-10; Law Explorers - Juniors - 11-12; Maths Explorers - Juniors - 9-10; Maths Explorers - Juniors - 11-12; ... 10 Best Creative Writing Books to Read in 2023. home > > 10 Best Creative Writing Books to Read in 2023; Introduction:

  2. Top 10 books about creative writing

    4. Madness, Rack, and Honey by Mary Ruefle. The collected lectures of poet and professor Mary Ruefle present us with an erudite inquiry into some of the major aspects of a writer's mind and craft.

  3. The 20+ Best Books on Creative Writing

    Steering the Craft by Ursula K. Le Guin - Many writers consider this to be their bible on craft and storytelling. Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg - A favorite of many writers, this book takes an almost spiritual approach to the art, craft, and experience of writing.

  4. The best books on Creative Writing

    There are two classic works by him. One is this book, On Becoming a Novelist, and the other is The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers. They were both put together from his teaching notes after he died. On Becoming a Novelist is the more succinct and, I think, is the better of the two.

  5. The 50 Best Books for 11- and 12-Year-Olds

    Preteens need good books that both resonate with their complex lives as well as educate and entertain them. Which brings us to this book list — our 50 best books for 11- and 12- year-olds, curated by a panel of children's literature experts. You'll find a wide variety here, excellent books that appeal to a range of preteen interests ...

  6. 20 Best Creative Writing Books of All Time

    Atomic Habits by @JamesClear is the best book I've read on habit building. A must-read (or listen to) more than once - from Twitter. Jeremy VineIf you want to write, this is THE book to read first. Just reissued by @HodderBooks @philippapride on its twentieth anniversary. (Hey @bbckirstylang will give this to you.

  7. 11 Best Creative Writing Books (Fiction & Non-Fiction Picks)

    Embark on a literary adventure with the best books on creative writing, fueling your passion for storytelling and poetic expression. ... 11 Best Creative Writing Books (Fiction & Non-Fiction Picks) September 16, 2023 August 25, 2023 by Eddison Monroe.

  8. 10 Best Books to Boost Your Writing and Creativity

    On Writing, by Stephen King. Bird by Bird, by Anne Lammott. Stein on Writing, by Sol Stein. On Writing Well (30th Anniversary Edition), by William Zinsser. It was the best of sentences, it was the worst of sentences., by June Casagrande. Dreyer's English, by Benjamin Dreyer. The Elements of Style, by Strunk and White.

  9. The most recommended creative writing books

    The most recommended creative writing books. Who picked these books? Meet our 43 experts. Tom Cheesewright Author. G. Elizabeth Kretchmer Author. Dinty W. Moore Author. +37. 43 authors created a book list connected to creative writing, and here are their favorite creative writing books. Shepherd is reader supported.

  10. The Ultimate 11 Plus Creative Writing Guide

    1) Always think about the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell). 2) Sometimes avoid the most obvious sense when describing a thing (see point 8 below). These tips are easy to apply in your creative writing for 11+, but they make a huge difference.

  11. Best Books on Creative Writing

    By Stephen King. Blending autobiography and writing guide, this book delves into King's writing journey, revealing his challenges, inspirations and techniques. From focusing on the importance of reading to the art of crafting compelling narratives, 'On Writing' is a must-read for both King fans and writers looking to improve their craft.

  12. How To Prepare For 11 Plus (11+) Creative Writing

    To succeed at an 11 Plus comprehension task, students need a range of skills, including: Source. 1. Imagination and creativity. One of the most important skills for creative writing is the ability to come up with an original idea which fully answers the given question and uses imaginative language.

  13. The 40 Best Books About Writing: A Reading List for Authors

    So for starters, here are our top 10 books about writing: On Writing by Stephen King. The Kick-Ass Writer by Chuck Wendig. Dreyer's Englis h by Benjamin Dreyer. The Elements of Style by Strunk, White, and Kalman. The Story Grid by Shawn Coyne. A Swim in a Pond in the Rain by George Saunders. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott.

  14. 11 Of The Best Writing Prompts Books

    2. 300 Writing Prompts by Picadilly. Check Price on Amazon. With 300 writing prompts, this one has the same number of pages but comes in a smaller size (5.6" by 8.5"). It has the same lay-flat binding and archive-quality paper but will more easily fit into a purse or laptop bag.

  15. 12 Best Creativity Books For Your Library (2024)

    9. Lateral Thinking: Creativity Step by Step by Edward De Bono. 10. Show Your Work! 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered by Austin Kleon. 11. The Power of Creativity By Bryan Collins. 12. The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin. A Final Word On The Best Creativity Books.

  16. 11+ creative writing guide with 50 example topics and prompts

    Write 3-5 stories with contrasting settings and action - each one must follow your paragraph plan. Try to include examples of literary devices and figurative language (metaphor, simile) but avoid clichés. Tidy up your presentation. Write with a good rollerball pen on A4 lined paper with a printed margin.

  17. 17 Best Books on Writing to Improve Your Fiction Writing Skills!

    Overall, I believe The Emotional Craft of Fiction is one of the best creative writing books that shows you the way to add emotional weight to your words. 9. Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author's Guide to Uniting Story Structure. Click on cover art for reader reviews.

  18. Creative Writing Books (53 books)

    All Votes Add Books To This List. 1. Bandersnatch: C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and the Creative Collaboration of the Inklings. by. Diana Pavlac Glyer (Goodreads Author) 4.27 avg rating — 1,147 ratings. score: 500 , and 5 people voted. Want to Read.

  19. 100 Best Creative Writing Books of All Time

    The Artist's Way. A stunning gift edition of the powerful bestselling book on creativity.The Artist's Way is one of the bestselling gift books of all time. Beautifully packaged with a slipcase and ribbon, this tenth anniversary gift edition is the ideal gift for loved ones engaged in creative lives. less.

  20. Three Excellent Writing Books for Kids

    The Creative Writing Playbook For Kids Only! is a writing book written by Megan Wagner Lloyd, children's book author of Squished, Haven, and Allergic, among other books. It's a guided journal ...

  21. Best Creative Writing Book For 11+

    Best Creative Writing Book For 11+ - Megan Sharp #12 in Global Rating THESIS. User ID: 766050 / Apr 6, 2022. 2329 Orders prepared. ID 11801. Level: College, High School, University, Master's, Undergraduate, PHD. 464 . Customer Reviews. Best Creative Writing Book For 11+ ...

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