Let’s Get Crafty
by Paula Martinac
I started buying fiction craft books decades ago as an aspiring author, and I still have all those books on my shelves. They’re well-loved, with cracked spines, dogeared pages, and a rainbow of sticky notes poking out.
My craft book collection expanded exponentially when I started teaching in the creative writing program at UNC Charlotte in 2015. Publishers tripped over themselves to send me copies of craft books so I could consider them for course adoption — woo-hoo!
I stopped teaching college at the end of 2024, and it’s possible I’ll miss those free books almost as much as I miss my students. But I don’t expect to stop collecting books that offer the latest perspectives on learning to write fiction. Here are some favorite craft books I’ve used — and reused — over my long career (in alpha order, by author). Maybe they’ll help you get crafty, too.
Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts, by Matt Bell.
I wish I’d had Bell’s book when I was first starting out, but this was published in 2022. His clear guidance takes you from your opening pages through polishing. My favorite part may be his section on those pesky “weasel words” that creep into our writing.
What If? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers, by Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter
I bought the first edition of this back in the early ‘90s, and I still use it. A classic, both for beginners and experienced writers.
Writing Fiction: A Guide to Narrative Craft, by Janet Burroway
Burroway’s definitive guide has gone through many incarnations and editions, and now — without the anthology of stories that used to put it out of most writers’ price range — it’s affordable, too.
The Art and Craft of Fiction, by Michael Kardos
When I taught “Introduction to Fiction” to college students, I used this text. But I recommend it to fledgling and accomplished fiction writers alike for its accessible language, clear examples, and terrific anthology.
Steering the Craft: A Twenty-First-Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of Story, by Ursula K. Le Guin
What can I say? It’s Ursula K. Le Guin! This craft book exudes her humor and underscores her mastery of story.
Craft in the Real World: Rethinking Fiction Writing and Workshopping, by Matthew Salesses
Traditional thinking about craft has long been informed by white cultural values. Salesses revisits and expands on all the elements of fiction writing, including plot, character, conflict, and structure, from the perspective of a non-white writer.
Making Shapely Fiction, by Jerome Stern
Another oldie-but-goodie. The bulk of the book is a concise tour of fiction craft elements. But I especially love the section titled “Don’t Do This,” which — after outlining everything fiction writers shouldn’t do — concludes with the advice to break the rules and embrace the don’ts … if you dare.
About Paula
Paula Martinac is the award-winning author of seven novels and three nonfiction books. Her short stories and essays have been published in Raleigh Review, Hippocampus, Main Street Rag, and other places. She has received grants and fellowships from the Arts & Science Council, the North Carolina Arts Council, the Modern Language Association, and the Historical Novel Society; and was the recipient of the 2023 William F. Deeck-Malice Domestic Grant for an unpublished mystery novel. She taught fiction writing at UNC Charlotte for ten years. In addition to being Charlotte Lit’s Community Coordinator, she is a freelance developmental editor and writing coach. Visit her website