How Fiction Works: The Last Word on Writing Fiction--From Basics to the Fine Points by Oakley M. Hall
A guide to writing short stories and novels includes writing exercises, examples, and advice on developing language, dialogue, point of view, and characterization.

I Have This Nifty Idea...Now What Do I Do with It? by Mike Resnick
This book contains outlines for science fiction and fantasy novels which real authors (new and old) used to sell their books to major publishing companies . . . actual examples drawn from authors files, not idealized versions prepared just for a textbook.Whether youre a beginning writer looking to break into novels, an experienced professional seeking new tools and techniques to sell books, or a fan curious about the remarkable thought-processes of some of the great genre writers of our time, you will find something here which enlightens, educates, and entertains you.

Careers for Your Characters: A Writer's Guide to 101 Professions from Architect to Zookeeper by Raymond Obstfeld; Franz Neumann
Creating realistic, well-developed characters that readers can believe in is one of the biggest challenges authors face. "Careers for Your Characters" makes it easier than ever by providing detailed descriptions for the 99 most written-about professions--everything from ad executives to waiters.

Letters to a Fiction Writer by Frederick Busch
A collection of inspiring letters from some of our most renowned and respected fiction writers on the craft of writing and the writing life. Contributors include Lee K. Abbott, Charles Baxter, Ray Bradbury, Raymond Carver, Shelby Foote, John Gardner, Joyce Carol Oates, John Updike, Tobias Wolff, and Flannery O'Connor, among others.

Mooring Against the Tide: Writing Fiction and Poetry by Jeffrey Knott; Tim Schell; Jeff Knorr
This creative writing text will serve as a guide to steer through sometimes rough and unsure waters until the writer is safely moored against the tide.

Marriage of Minds: Collaborative Fiction Writing by Nikoo McGoldrick; James McGoldrick
Part how-to book, part relationship book, Marriage of Minds presents the strategies and techniques you need for creating successful collaborations and successful fiction.

On Teaching and Writing Fiction by Wallace Earle Stegner; Lynn Stegner
Stegner brings together eight previously uncollected essays--including four never-before-published pieces--on writing fiction and teaching creative writing. In this unique collection he addresses every aspect of fiction writing from the writer's vision to his or her audience to the recognizable truth it seeks finally to reveal.

Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass; Anne Perry
Using real-life case studies, the author shows novelists how to create a powerful and sweeping sense of time and place, develop larger-than-life characters, sustain a high degree of narrative tension, and explore universal themes that will interest a large audience of readers.

Novelist's Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes by Raymond Obstfeld
Shows how to create specific types of scenes -- action scenes, comic scenes, sex scenes and more -- then reveals how to link these scenes to form powerful novels.

Making Shapely Fiction by Jerome Stern
A deft analysis and appreciation of fiction what makes it work and what can make it fail. Here is a book about the craft of writing fiction that is thoroughly useful from the first to the last page whether the reader is a beginner, a seasoned writer, or a teacher of writing. Jerome Stern maintains that learning to write spontaneously is the first step to writing well. You will see how a work takes form and shape once you grasp the principles of momentum, tension, and immediacy. "Tension," Stern says, "is the mother of fiction. When tension and immediacy combine, the story begins." Dialogue and action, beginnings and endings, the true meaning of "write what you know," and a memorable listing of don'ts for fiction writers are all covered.

Narrative Design: Working with Imagination, Craft, and Form by Madison Smartt Bell
With clarity, verve, and the sure instincts of a good teacher, Madison Smartt Bell offers a roll-up-your-sleeves approach to writing in this much-needed book. Focusing on the big picture as well as the crucial details, Bell examines twelve stories by both established writers (including Peter Taylor, Mary Gaitskill, and Carolyn Chute) and his own former students. A story's use of time, plot, character, and other elements of fiction are analyzed, and readers are challenged to see each story's flaws and strengths. Careful endnotes bring attention to the ways in which various writers use language. Bell urges writers to develop the habit of thinking about form and finding the form that best suits their subject matter and style. His direct and practical advice allows writers to find their own voice and imagination.

On Becoming a Novelist by John Gardner; Raymond Carver
On Becoming a Novelist contains the wisdom accumulated during John Gardner's distinguished twenty year career as a fiction writer and creative writing teacher. With elegance, humor, and sophistication, Gardner describes the life of a working novelist; warns what needs to be guarded against, both from within the writer and from without; and predicts what the writer can reasonably expect and what, in general, he or she cannot. "For a certain kind of person," Gardner writes, "nothing is more joyful or satisfying than the life of a novelist." But no other vocation, he is quick to add, is so fraught with professional and spiritual difficulties. Whether discussing the supposed value of writer's workshops, explaining the role of the novelist's agent and editor, or railing against the seductive fruits of literary elitism, On Becoming a Novelist is an indispensable, life affirming handbook for anyone authentically called to the profession.

Master Class: Scenes from a Fiction Workshop by Paul West
The acclaimed novelist and author of The Secret Life of Words re-creates his last writing seminar in which fifteen students reflect on the art of writing great fiction as they discuss one another's work and shares their insights into the creative writing process.

Write & Sell Your Novel: The Fiction Writer's Guide to Writing for Publication by Marina Oliver
If you want to write a novel, the second edition of this popular handbook is the guide you need. Step by step it shows you how to get started, how to create compelling characters, plots and subplots, and whose viewpoint to tell your story from. There are tips on how to prepare your work for submission, who to send it to and an overview of the whole publishing process. Don't start writing without it! Marina Oliver has published over 30 novels, historical and contemporary, and lectures widely on writing.

Writing in General and the Short Story in Particular by Rust Hills
Now a classic in the field, this practical guide to writing explains the essential techniques from character and plot to flashback and foreshadowing. A resource book for both beginning and seasoned writers.

Novel & Short Story Writer's Market: 1,900+ Places to Get Your Fiction Into Print by Anne Bowling; Vanessa Lyman
Inside this handbook, fiction writers will find completely updated market entries for book publishers, magazines, literary agents, contests and script houses, plus brand new information on e-publishers, including interviews with industry experts, editors of e-magazines and more.

On Writing by Eudora Welty
Covering techniques and tools every writer should know, this primer on the art of fiction is presented by one of the 20th-century's masters, Pulitzer Prize winner Eudora Welty.

The Plot Thickens: 8 Ways to Bring Fiction to Life by Noah T. Lukeman
From the literary agent and author of the bestselling "The First Five Pages" comes a groundbreaking new book on plot development.

The Key: How to Write Damn Good Fiction Using the Power of Myth by Raymond Obstfeld; Franz Neumann
Myths, says James N. Frey, are the basis of all storytelling, and their structures and motifs are as powerful for contemporary writers as they were for Homer. In "The Key, novelist and fiction-writing coach Frey applies his popular "Damn Good" approach to Joseph Campbell's insights into the universal structure of myths, providing a practical guide for fiction writers and screenwriters who want to shape their ideas into a powerful mythic story.

The Writer's Digest Sourcebook for Building Believable Characters by Marc Mucutcheon
Six novelists reveal their approaches to characterization in this guide, which comes with a questionnaire to help writers probe their characters' backgrounds, beliefs, and desires and a "thesaurus" of physical and psychological traits to aid in character development.

The Spooky Art: Thoughts on Writing by Norman Mailer
Novel & Short Story Writer's Market 2003 by Anne Bowling (editor)
On Writing by Eudora Welty
Negotiating with the Dead: A Writer on Writing by Margaret Eleanor Atwood
Careers for Your Characters : A Writers Guide to 99 Professions from Architect to Zookeeper by Raymond Obstfeld, Franz Neumann
The Plot Thickens: 8 Ways to Bring Fiction to Life by Noah T. Lukeman
Immediate Fiction by Jerry Cleaver
The Complete Guide to Editing Your Fiction by Michael Seidman
45 Master Characters : Mythic Models for Creating Original Characters by Victoria Schmidt
Hooking the Reader: Opening Lines that Sell by Sharon Rendell-Smock
On Writing by Stephen King
Fiction Writer's Brainstormer by James V. Smith, Jr.
The Writer's Digest Sourcebook for Building Believable Characters by Marc Mucutcheon
Writer's Guide to Character Traits by Linda N. Edelstein
Description (Elements of Fiction Writing) by Monica Wood
Dialogue (Elements of Fiction Writing) by Lewis Turco
Plot (Elements of Fiction Writing) by Ansen Dibell
Setting (Elements of Fiction Writing) by Jack M. Bickham
Conflict, Action and Suspense (Elements of Fiction Writing) by William Noble
Building Better Plots by Robert Kernen
Creating Fiction by Julie Checkoway
The Writer's Tool Box: How to Write Fiction and Non-Fiction That Will Sell by Patrika Vaughn
Writing the Short Story by Jack M. Bickham
Writing Fiction Step by Step by Josip Novakovich
Steering the Craft: Exercises and Discussions on Story Writing for the Lone Navigator or the Mutinous Crew by Ursula K. Le Guin
Story Starters: How to Jump-Start Your Imagination, Get Your Creative Juices Flowing, and Start Writing Your Story or Novel by Lou Willett Stanek
Dynamic Characters by Nancy Kress
Six Walks in the Fictional Woods by Umberto Eco
Telling Lies For Fun & Profit by Lawrence Block, Introduction by Sue Grafton