Leggere per scrivere

Ecco una lista di letture utili per chi vuole cimentarsi nelle sfide!

La lista è lunga, ma per fortuna i libri più utili non hanno moltissime pagine! Ad esempio “The elements of style” (libretto imprenscindibile,  la cui lettura fa davvero la differenza) sfiora le 90 pagine!

La lista non è ordinata, ed io personalmente ho letto solo alcuni di questi libri. Gli argomenti trattati nei volumi nominati sono quanto mai vari: da come gestire il tempo per terminare il proprio romanzo nel cassetto, a fonti di ispirazione su temi specifici, alle regole per una scrittura corretta .

Questi ultimi, secondo la mia umile opinione sono i migliori, perché contiene quelle cose che possono effettivamente essere imparate e messe in pratica, senza la pretesa di trasformare in scrittore chiunque li legga.

1. The 90-Day Novel Alan Watt
2. The Supernatural Book of Monsters, Spirits, Demons, and Ghouls Alex Irvine
3. How to Write a Damn Good Thriller: A Step-By-Step Guide for Novelists and Screenwriters James N. Frey
4. Key: How to Write Damn Good Fiction Using the Power of Myth James N. Frey
5. Bullies, Bastards & Bitches: How to Write the Bad Guys of Fiction Jessica Morrell
6. Manage Your Day-To-Day: Build Your Routine, Find Your Focus, and Sharpen Your Creative Mind Jocelyn K. Glei, 99u
7. Oxford Guide to English Gramma John Eastwood
8. Dostoevsky: A Writer in His Time Joseph Frank
9. APA Style Guide to Electronic References, Sixth Edition American Psychological Association
10. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association American Psychological Association
11. Literary Rogues: A Scandalous History of Wayward Authors Andrew Shaffer
12. The Adweek Copywriting Handbook: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Powerful Advertising and Marketing Copy From One of America’s Top Copywriters Joseph Sugarman
13. Writing Academic English With Criterion(TM) Publisher’s Version Alice Oshima
14. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life Anne Lamott
15. Elements of Writing Fiction -Plot Ansen Dibell
16. Fiction Writer’s Workshop Josip Novakovich
17. The Oxford Dictionary of Idioms Judith Siefring
18. The Artist’s Way Julia Cameron
19. Writer’s Digest Flip Dictionary Barbara Ann Kipfer
20. The Handbook of English Linguistics Bas Aarts
21. Beyond WikiLeaks: Implications for the Future of Communications, Journalism and Society Benedetta Brevini, Arne Hintz, Patrick McCurdy
22. The AMA Handbook of Business Writing: The Ultimate Guide to Style, Grammar, Punctuation, Usage, Construction, and Formatting Kevin Wilson
23. Take Control of Scrivener 2 Kirk McElhearn
24. Telling Lies for Fun & Profit Lawrence Block, Sue Grafton
25. Wired for Story: The Writer’s Guide to Using Brain Science to Hook Readers From the Very First Sentence Lisa Cron
26. Grant Writing for Dummies Beverly A. Browning
27. Bryson’s Dictionary of Troublesome Words: A Writer’s Guide to Getting It Right Bill Bryson
28. The Novel Writer’s Toolkit: A Guide to Writing Novels and Getting Published Bob Mayer
29. Quick Access Compact (Custom Joliet Junior College Edition) Lynn Quitman Troyka, Douglas Hesse
30. Writing From Sources Brenda Spatt
31. Daily Rituals: How Artists Work Mason Currey
32. Writing Feature Articles Brendan Hennessy
33. The Chicago Guide to Writing About Numbers Jane E. Miller
34. Principles of Successful Freelancing Miles Burke
35. Creative Writer’s Workbook, The Cathy Birch
36. Elements of Fiction Writing -Beginnings, Middles & Ends Nancy Kress
37. Elements of Fiction Writing -Characters & Viewpoint: Proven Advice and Timeless Techniques for Creating Compelling Characters by an Award-Winning Author Orson Scott Card
38. Harbrace Essentials Cheryl Glenn, Loretta Gray
39. Paperback Oxford English Dictionary Oxford Dictionaries
40. Talking About Detective Fiction P. D. James
41. The Harbrace Guide to Writing, Concise Edition Cheryl Glenn
42. The No Plot? No Problem! Novel-Writing Kit Chris Baty
43. Encyclopedia of 19th-and 20th-Century British Writers Christine L. Krueger, George Stade, Karen Karbiener
44. The Oxford Book of English Detective Stories Patricia Craig
45. How to Write Reports and Proposals Patrick Forsyth
46. Reading of Theoretical Texts Peter Ekegren
47. The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers Christopher Vogler
48. The Encyclopedia of the Novel Peter Melville Logan
49. Essays and Poems Ralph Waldo Emerson
50. A Guide to Writing as an Engineer David F. Beer, David A. McMurrey
51. The Describer’s Dictionary: A Treasury of Terms & Literary Quotations David Grambs
52. The Cambridge Introduction to Creative Writing David Morley
53. The College Writer: A Guide to Thinking, Writing, and Researching Randall VanderMey, Patrick Sebranek, Verne Meyer, John van Rys
54. Writing Popular Fiction Dean R. Koontz
55. The Extreme Searcher’s Internet Handbook: A Guide for the Serious Searcher Randolph Hock, Gary Price
56. Zen in the Art of Writing Ray Bradbury
57. Reference and Research Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction Richard J. Bleiler
58. The St. Martin’s Guide to Writing Rise B. Axelrod, Charles R. Cooper
59. 2012 Writer’s Market Robert Lee Brewer
60. 20 Master Plots and How to Build Them Ronald B Tobias
61. Writing for Academic Journals Rowena Murray
62. Exercises for a Writer’s Reference Large Format Diana Hacker, Nancy Sommers
63. The Psychology of Creative Writing Scott Barry Kaufman
64. Stein on Writing Sol Stein, Christopher Lane
65. Rules for Writers Diana Hacker, Nancy I. Sommers
66. Fundamentals of New Testament Greek Stanley E. Porter
67. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft Stephen King
68. The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing Evan Marshall
69. The Handbook of Creative Writing Steven Earnshaw
70. Writing Mysteries Sue Grafton
71. Writing Systems of the World Florian Coulmas
72. Literary Theory: An Introduction Terry Eagleton
73. English Grammar for Today: A New Introduction Geoffrey Leech
74. The Theory of the Novel Georg Lukacs
75. The Oxford Companion to the English Language Tom McArthur, Thomas McArthur
76. Writing a Novel and Getting Published for Dummies George Green, Lizzy Kremer
77. The Oxford Essential Guide to Writing Thomas S. Kane
78. Lifehacker: 88 Tech Tricks to Turbocharge Your Day Gina Trapani
79. Writing Fiction: The Practical Guide From New York’s Acclaimed Creative Writing School Alexander Steele, Gotham Writers’ Workshop
80. On Creative Writing Graeme Harper
81. Mugging the Muse: Writing Fiction for Love and Money: Second Edition: New and Updated Holly Lisle
82. The 100 Most Influential Writers of All Time J. E. Luebering
83. The Writer’s Idea Book: How to Develop Great Ideas for Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, & Screenplays Jack Heffron
84. The Oxford Book of American Detective Stories Rosemary Herbert
85. How to Write a Damn Good Novel, 2: Advanced Techniques for Dramatic Storytelling James N. Frey
86. Critical Thinking: A Concise Guide Tracy Bowell, Gary Kemp
87. How to Write a Damn Good Novel James N. Frey
88. Writing Tricia Hedge, Alan Maley
89. The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations Elizabeth Knowles
90. Story Structure Architect Victoria Lynn Schmidt
91. Serial Crime, Second Edition: Theoretical and Practical Issues in Behavioral Profiling Wayne Petherick
92. A Jane Austen Education: How Six Novels Taught Me About Love, Friendship, and the Things That Really Matter William Deresiewicz
93. On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction William Zinsser
94. The Elements of Style by William Strunk William Strunk
95. Writing for Journalists Wynford Hicks
96. Handbook of Research on Digital Libraries: Design, Development, and Impact Yin-Leng Theng, Schubert Foo, Dion Goh, Jin Cheon Na
97. The Anatomy of Story: 22 Steps to Becoming a Master Storyteller John Truby
98. From Inquiry to Academic Writing: A Text and Reader Stuart Greene, April Lidinsky
99. Art of Plotting: Add Emotion Suspense and Depth to Your Screenplay Linda J. Cowgill
100. Story Physics: Harnessing the Underlying Forces of Storytelling Larry Brooks
101. Politics and the English Language and Other Essays George Orwell
102. Writing Fiction for Dummies Randy Ingermanson, Peter Economy
103. Writing: A Manual for the Digital Age, Brief David Blakesley, Jeffrey Laurence Hoogeveen
104. Crafting Novels & Short Stories: Everything You Need to Know to Write Great Fiction Editors Of Writer’s Digest
105. A Writer’s Book of Days: A Spirited Companion & Lively Muse for the Writing Life Judith Reeves
106. Persecution and the Art of Writing Leo Strauss
107. Schaum’s Quick Guide to Writing Great Short Stories Margaret Lucke
108. Write Good or Die Various
109. The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Expression Angela Ackerman, Becca Puglisi
110. Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction Patricia Highsmith
111. Writers Workshop of Science Fiction & Fantasy Michael Knost
112. How to Write Great Essays Learningexpress Editors
113. The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing Editors Of Writers Digest Books
114. The Facts on File Dictionary of Allusions Martin H. Manser
115. It Was the Best of Sentences, It Was the Worst of Sentences: A Writer’s Guide to Crafting Killer Sentences June Casagrande
116. Pocket Oxford American Dictionary & Thesaurus Oxford University Press, Usa
117. 2011 Children’s Writer’s and Illustrator’s Market Alice Pope
118. Time and Narrative, Volume 1 Paul Ricoeur
119. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers Joseph Gibaldi, Modern Language Association Of America
120. Writer’s Reference (Instructor’s Edition) Diana Hacker, Nancy Sommers
121. Simon & Schuster Handbook for Writers Lynn Quitman Troyka, Douglas Dean Hesse
122. The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Edition University Of Chicago Press Staff
123. A Practical Guide to Graphics Reporting: Information Graphics for Print, Web & Broadcast Jennifer George-Palilonis
124. Scientific Writing = Thinking in Words David Lindsay
125. On the Commerce of Thinking: Of Books and Bookstores Jean-Luc Nancy, David Wills
126. Rules of Thumb: A Guide for Writers: 7th (Seventh) Edition Elaine Hughes, Diana Roberts Wienbroer Jay Silverman
127. Dictionary of Problem Words and Expression Harry Shaw
128. Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (And More) That Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business Ann Handley, C. C. Chapman
129. The Dramatic Writer’s Companion: Tools to Develop Characters, Cause Scenes, and Build Stories Will Dunne
130. Narrative in Fiction and Film: An Introduction Jakob Lothe
131. How to Be a Writer: Secrets From the Inside Stewart Ferris
132. Writing Fiction: An Introduction to the Craft Garry Disher
133. Journalism, Ethics and Society David Berry
134. Writing FAST: How to Write Anything With Lightning Speed Jeff Bollow
135. In a Word: 750 Words and Their Fascinating Stories and Origins Rosalie Baker, Tom Lopes
136. The New American Webster Handy College Dictionary Albert H. Morehead, Loy Morehead, Philip D. Morehead
137. The Fable of the Southern Writer Lewis P. Simpson
138. Writers on Writing Robert Pack, Jay Parini
139. Internet Guide for Writers, The Malcolm Chilsholm
140. Ancient Gonzo Wisdom: Interviews With Hunter S. Thompson Anita Thompson
141. Careers in Publishing Blythe Camenson
142. Grant Application Writer’s Handbook Liane Reif-Lehrer
143. Encyclopedia of Beat Literature Kurt Hemmer
144. The Facts on File Companion to the World Novel: 1900 to the Present, 2-Volume Set Michael D. Sollars
145. Careers for Writers & Others Who Have a Way With Words Robert Bly
146. Writing for Scholarly Publication: Behind the Scenes in Language Education Christine Pearson Casanave, Stephanie Vandrick
147. Writing Groups Inside and Outside the Classroom Edited By Beverly J. Moss
148. Resources for Writers: An Annotated Bibliography R. Baird Shuman
149. Researching for Writers: How to Gather Material for Articles, Novels and Non-Fiction Books Marion Field
150. Creative Writing: How to Develop Successful Writing Skills for Fiction and Non-Fiction Publication Adele Ramet
151. Writing Features & Interviews: 2nd Edition Christine Hall
152. Academic Writing and Publishing: A Practical Handbook James Hartley
153. Talking With Texas Writers: Twelve Interviews Patrick Bennett
154. On the Art of Writing Copy Herschell Gordon Lewis
155. Classic Mystery Writers Harold Bloom
156. Modern Crime and Suspense Writers Harold Bloom
157. Landmark Essays on Basic Writing Kay Halasek, Nels P. Highberg
158. Scientific Writing 2.0: A Reader and Writer’S Guide Lebrun Jean-Luc
159. Linguistics for Writers Colleen Donnelly
160. The Irish Writer and the World Declan Kiberd
161. Careers in Writing Blythe Camenson
162. The Writer’s Legal Guide: An Authors Guild Desk Reference Tad Crawford, Kay Murray
163. Technical Writing Julie M. Zeleznik, Philippa Jane Benson, Rebecca E. Burnett
164. Professional Feature Writing Bruce Garrison
165. Classic Crime and Suspense Writers Harold Bloom
166. Kurt Vonnegut: A Critical Companion Thomas Marvin, Thomas F. Marvin
167. Southern Writers and Their Worlds Susan A. Eacker, Anne Goodwyn Jones, Bertram Wyatt-Brown,
168. Writing Research: Transforming Data Into Text, 1e (Clare, Writing Research) Judith Clare Rn Ba Ma(hons) Phd Frcna, Helen Hamilton Rn Ba
169. Modern Mystery Writers Harold Bloom
170. The Bedford Introduction to Literature: Reading, Thinking, Writing Michael Meyer
171. The Fiction Writer’s Toolkit Bob Mayer
172. Writing Well: The Essential Guide Mark Tredinnick
173. $30 Writing School Michael W. Dean
174. Revision & Self-Editing: Techniques for Transforming Your First Draft Into a Finished Novel James Scott Bell
175. Concise Oxford English Dictionary Catherine Soanes, Angus Stevenson
176. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms Chris Baldick
177. The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature Dinah Birch, Katy Hooper
178. Dictionary of the Bible John L. Mckenzie
179. A Dictionary of World History Edmund Wright, Jonathan Law
180. The Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar Sylvia Chalker, Edmund Weiner
181. The Oxford Dictionary of Idioms Jennifer Speake
182. The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy Simon Blackburn
183. The Oxford Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Quotations Elizabeth Knowles
184. Oxford Paperback Thesaurus Maurice Waite
185. Self-Editing for Fiction Writers Renni Browne, Dave King, George Booth
186. I Never Knew There Was a Word for It Adam Jacot de Boinod
187. Interviewing for Journalists Sally Adams, Wynford Hicks
188. The Artful Edit: On the Practice of Editing Yourself Susan Bell
189. On Writing: 10th Anniversary Edition: A Memoir of the Craft Stephen King
190. The Best American Crime Reporting 2009 Jeffrey Toobin, Otto Penzler, Thomas H. Cook
191. The Best American Crime Writing 2006 Mark Bowden, Otto Penzler, Thomas H. Cook
192. The Best American Crime Writing: 2003 Edition: The Year’s Best True Crime Reporting Otto Penzler, Thomas H. Cook
193. The Call to Write John Trimbur
194. The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of Story Structure Any Writer Can Master Martha Alderson
195. Keys for Writers Ann Raimes, Susan K. Miller-Cochran
196. The Imaginative Argument: A Practical Manifesto for Writers Frank L. Cioffi
197. The 101 Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters: Insider’s Secrets From Hollywood’s Top Writers Karl Iglesias
198. The Big Sleep & Farewell, My Lovely: AND Farewell My Lovely Raymond Chandler
199. Why We Read Fiction: Theory of Mind and the Novel Lisa Zunshine

Il Primo contest: “Vapore e Ingranaggi”

Per iniziare abbiamo scelto… di non scegliere un tema!

Piuttosto ci adegueremo al tema del prossimo numero della e-zine “Mondo Sotterraneo”. Si tratta di una rivista elettronica dedicata al mondo di Dungeon World, gioco di ruolo fantasy che ha spopolato nell’ultimo anno.

Ogni numero rappresenta una vera e propria espansione del gioco, con approfondimenti su particolari tematiche, oltre a contenuti e meccaniche di gioco che aiutano a portare in gioco l’argomento proposto in ogni numero della rivista.

Fino ad oggi sono usciti 2 numeri:

1)“Mare Monstrum” (navi, mostri marini, e pirati in una sorta di versione fantasy del Mediterraneo)

2) “L’inverno sta arrivando” (avventure tra i ghiacci)

Il tema del terzo numero, in uscita a maggio, sarà “Vapore e ingranaggi”.  Che vuol dire? Ecco la spiegazione fornita dallo staff della rivista:

Il tema tratta dello steampunk, dello steamfantasy e di tutto ciò che vi ruota attorno. Come sempre, va benissimo stare larghi.
Tutto ciò che ha a che fare con l’800 e tecnologia dell’epoca, l’era vittoriana, la rivoluzione industriale, costrutti meccanici, mezzi a vapore e avventurieri con cappelli a cilindro, rotelle appese al collo e occhialoni da saldatore va benissimo.
Vanno benissimo anche generi legati allo steampunk come il clockpunk e il dieselpunk. 

 

Steampunk dunque, in tutte le sue connotazioni e varianti!

Visto che questa prima edizione ha il doppio obiettivo di fare partire gentechescrive e di promuovere la collaborazione con Mondo Sotterraneo, i racconti di questa prima sfida non dovranno superare le 5 cartelle, o comunque i 10000 caratteri. Questo per ottenere racconti adatti alla rivista, che potrà valutarne l’eventuale pubblicazione.