Hone Your Craft, Spark Your Creativity

Yes, writing is difficult. And that's okay. Although the process of writing may be painful and uncomfortable, it's also cathartic. Keep trying. Push yourself. You may (or may not) love the outcome. Either way is fine. The practice is the reward. Enjoy it and release everything else.

Here are some of my favorite go-to writing books about craft and creativity:

Breaking Ground on Your Memoir: Craft, Inspiration and Motivation for Memoir Writers by Brooke Warner

The Memoir Project: A Thoroughly Non-Standardized Text for Writing and Life by Marion Roach Smith

Handling the Truth: On the Writing of Memoir by Beth Kephart

Writing Life Stories: How to Make Memories into Memoirs, Ideas into Essays, and Life into Literature by Bill Roorbach

The Situation and the Story by Vivian Gornick

Writing the Memoir: From Truth to Art by Judith Barrington

The Art of Time in Memoir by Sven Birkerts

Art of Memoir by Mary Karr

Crafting the Personal Essay: A Guide for Writing and Publishing Creative Nonfiction by Dinty W. Moore

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

On Writing Well by William Zinsser

Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting by Robert McKee

Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg

The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield

Writing Begins with the Breath: Embodying Your Authentic Voice by Laraine Herring

Your Book Starts Here: Create, Craft, and Sell Your First Novel, Memoir, or Nonfiction Book by Mary Carroll Moore

Blueprint for a Book by Jennie Nash

The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp

The Artist’s Way: Creativity as a Spiritual Practice by Julia Cameron

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott

The Elements of Style by Strunk and White

Dreyer’s English: An Utterly Correct Guide to Clarity and Style by Benjamin Dryer

Save the Cat Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody

I hope these give you the adrenalin shot you need! I'd love to hear your favorites, too!