Read a Writers' Craft Book

Let's get a little writer self-help, how-to, or this is why/how I write going. Choose any book you'd like that is on the craft of writing. It can be essays, biography, how-to on fiction, non-fiction, poetry, graphic novels, etc. It just needs to be about writing.

Read the book, send your partner a letter or note with the title, author, and at least three of your takeaways AND three quotes from the book. Feel free to add any additional information (i.e. author website, other books, etc.)

I'm sure most people have writing books on their shelves or in an e-reader that have yet to be opened. So, take two months to read, absorb the knowledge and share what you learned.

There are hundreds of books about writing out there. For those who would like some suggestions or are just starting to build a library of craft books, here are 10 classics:

"On Writing" by Stephen King

"Bird by Bird" by Anne Lamott

"No Plot? No Problem!" by Chris Baty

"Writing Down the Bones" by Natalie Goldberg

"On Writing Well" by William Zinser

"The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron

"Zen and the Art of Writing" by Ray Bradbury

"Stein on Writing" by Sol Stein

"Writing the Breakout Novel" by Donald Maass

"Save the Cat!" by Blake Snyder

Swap posted: Tuesday, July 14

Sign up by: Friday, July 31

Send by: UPDATED to Wednesday, Oct. 7 (from Wednesday, Sept. 30.)

NOTE: If anyone is interested in a Craft of Writing Book Club swap series -- reading and discussing online one book every two months or every quarter -- please post below including your preference for how often.

Snail mail. International. Group membership.