Creative Writing

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Karen Kingsbury comes the second novel in the Angels Walking series about divine intervention and second chances—the dramatic story of a woman desperate to find deeper meaning in her life. Growing up in a comfortable home, Mary Catherine wanted for...

Compelling characters are what keeps readers turning pages and buying books—from fantasies to mysteries to the great literary novel. But how to do you create characters that feel three-dimensional and real on the page? Counsellor and author Eileen Cook shares common psychological techniques to help you build your characters and take your story to the next level. This book covers understanding your character's backstory and how it impacts their choices in your book by doing a structured counselling interview, personality structure, and the Stages of Change.

You’ve always wanted to write your life story—but something keeps getting in the way. Maybe the memories feel too painful. Maybe the words don’t come. Maybe you’re afraid of what you’ll uncover—or what you won’t be able to let go. You've thought about trying EMDR therapy—but you can't find a therapist, you feel intimidated or skeptical, or you simply can't afford to pay for sessions right now.

With the humor of Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird, the practicality of Natalie Goldberg’s classic Writing Down the Bones, and the warmth of Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic, Unstuck: 101 Doorways Leading from the Blank Page to the Last Page is your creative process’s new best friend. Unstuck...

The “spellbinding” (People) New York Times bestseller from the author of The Dovekeepers, an extraordinary novel about an electric and impassioned love affair—“an enchanting love story rich with history and a sense of place” (USA TODAY). Coralie Sardie is the daughter of the sinister...

Draft No. 4 is an elucidation of the writer's craft by a master practitioner. In a series of playful but expertly wrought essays, John McPhee shares insights he's gathered over his career and refined during his long-running course at Princeton University, where he has launched some of the most esteemed writers of several generations. McPhee offers a definitive guide to the crucial decisions regarding structure, diction, and tone that shape nonfiction pieces and presents extracts from some of his best-loved work, subjecting them to wry scrutiny.

An insightful and actionable guide to creating a hero that readers will fall in love with, from the author of The Secrets of Story The hardest yet most essential element of writing great fiction is character – specifically, creating a central hero who is relatable, compelling, and worth the...

Ready to build a poem? First, you’ll need the right tools. Open this title in the Writer’s Toolbox series and discover plenty of tips and tools to get you started. Soon you’ll be writing rhythms and rhymes like a pro!

Ready to build a scary story? First, you’ll need the right tools. Open this title in the Writer’s Toolbox series and discover plenty of tips and tools to get you started. Soon you’ll be sharing scares like a pro!

Ready to build a picture book? First, you’ll need the right tools. Listen to this title in the Writer’s Toolbox series and discover plenty of tips and tools to get you started. Soon you’ll be writing and showing stories like a pro!

From the Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist, a gripping exploration of class, race, friendship, sexuality, what an author owes her subject and what it means to be a good person—all wrapped up in a riveting Canadian true crime story. Padma Viswanathan was staying on a houseboat on Vancouver...

A practical guide to using witchcraft and the power of the written word to develop a magical creative practice. Word Witches are spellcasters of language. They are storytellers, poets, writers, and ritualists who know that writing anything is a form of channeling: spirits, ancestors, collective...

America's most original and controversial literary critic writes trenchantly about forty-eight masterworks spanning the Western tradition—from Don Quixote to Wuthering Heights to Invisible Man—in his first book devoted exclusively to narrative fiction. In this valedictory volume, Yale...

Discover what every new and aspiring author needs to know about the publishing industry and how to navigate all the complicated feelings that come with writing a book in this no-nonsense guide from literary agent, author, and creator of the popular newsletter Agents & Books Kate McKean. Writers...

An anniversary edition of The New York Times bestselling collection of essays by two-time Grammy Award winner, creator of Little Voice on Apple TV+, and star of Netflix’s Girls5eva Sara Bareilles “resonates with authentic and hard-won truths” (Publishers Weekly)—and features new material...

If the book tells a true story, you're listening to nonfiction. How else do you know? Quick, fun examples help you get the facts on nonfiction.

Young writers discover techniques for crafting persuasive opinion essays. Think rabbits make the best pets or that winter is better than summer? Share your opinion through writing! This engaging nonfiction book includes basic writing instructions, tips, and prompts tailored to beginning writers' needs. Perfect for research writing, browsing, or for fun!

If words describe a feeling or some words rhyme, you're listening to a poem. How else do you know? Quick, fun examples help you understand the beauty of poetry.

You can tell listeners how much an elephant eats. You can reveal key moments in Babe Ruth’s life. You can list facts about Mars, airplanes, or Halloween. You can write excellent reports!

Even the youngest listeners and writers need to learn about plagiarism. Give listeners and writers the tools they need to evaluate and understand ownership of work.