The Writer's Journey

Life is a journey.

Much of what we do in life is also a journey.

As you know (if you read my blog a few days ago), I recently attended a writers conference. There were writers there at every stage of the journey.

The starry-eyed hopeful . . . who still dreams of the romantic life of a published writer

The novice . . . who has gotten down to business and realizes there’s a lot to learn

The newly-published . . . who realizes it’s a lot of fun to see one’s name in print, who wants that feeling again, and who realizes there’s a lot to learn

The intermediate . . . who has published a number of articles and maybe even a book or two, who realizes there’s still a lot to learn

The pro . . . who is making a living with their writing and possibly speaking engagements as well and yes, you guessed it, knows there is even now lots to learn

Do you see a theme here?

I attended Steve Laube’s continuing class, “From Idea to Print.” He summarized his thirty years in the industry in just six hours. Among the handouts was a list he carefully prepared of skills development books he recommends. He encouraged us to never stop learning.

Steve broke it down by month, thirty-six books in total. However, he also included his “If You Will Only Read One” list. Here are those four books by category:

Fiction: Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renee Browne and Dave King

Non-fiction: An Introduction to Christian Writing by Ethel Herr

The Writing Life: Bird by Bird by Anne Lamont

The Business: The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published by Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Sterry

I will likely share some of Steve’s other recommendations in the future, but this looks like a great place to start.

Happy Reading/Happy Writing

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