Bookshelf
Meet the books* that continually inspire and form me as a Creator & a Writer.
*Click the image of any cover
to learn more.
Creativity and Writing
Big Magic
Liz Gilbert teaches me to take joy in creating and welcome the process as a gift, not a chore.
Bird by Bird
Anne Lamott gives me permission to write a sh***ty first draft and so much more!
Writing the Romantic Comedy
Billy Mernit guides me along the path of crafting emotional and hilarious connections between characters.
The Artist's Way
In this seminal work, Julia Cameron continually gives me the tools to tap into the creative source and nurture my inner creative.
They Say/I Say
Graff and Birkenstein guide me and (my students) to honestly examine multiple sides of an issue while still taking a stance.
The Scene Book
Sandra Scofield teaches me how to create movement—beats—in a scene.
If You Want to Write
Brenda Ueland convinces me that everyone has unique thoughts and insights which can be crafted into writing.
Mystery and Manners
Flanney O'Connor challenges me to ask deeper questions about meaning and life itself in my writing.
The Right to Write
Julia Cameron pushes me beyond my comfort zone in these short chapters packed with: hard questions, writing exercises, and permission to experiment and embark on new writing forms.
Novels, Short Stories, and a play
A Gentleman in Moscow
has become my gold-standard for admirable characters who are also delightfully human—not to mention this novel even employs footnotes! (As does Icelander—see below!)
Little Black Book of Stories
boasts contemporary fairy tales, but one in particular that I wish I'd written: "Body Art." This story mixes the profane and divine as I've never
experienced before.
Say You're One of Them
brims with poignant and lush stories that read like a punch to the ribs.
The Shipping News
changed my life by elegantly giving flesh to underdogs and exploring the flavor of quiet romance.
The Goldfinch
invites us into the vivid worlds of hyper-realistic characters, while demonstrating how distinct settings, with aesthetics almost in contradiction, can all tell a cohesive story.
Icelander
exemplifies how to skillfully switch between narrators to create an one-of-a-kind comedy of the absurd.
People I Wanted
To Be
is a collection, written by my real-life mentor, that compassionately introduces us to peculiarly captivating lives.
The Book Thief
was my first encounter with prose that tastes like rich poetry, crafted by an author who manages to mix metaphors with great relish and success.
The Importance of Being Earnest
is my mentor for verbal acrobatics and politely absurd comedy. (A copy of this play was my sole literary companion during a summer spent in Kolkata, India!)
Who are your literary Mentors & Best Friends ?
Please use the comments below to share an important title or two and what those books teach you.