ISBN: 9781921966279

Creative Writer’s Sourcebook

50 Great Authors & 175 Writing Exercises

Avaliable now (ANZ only)


A fascinating guide to the style and technique of the world’s great writers. From Roald Dahl to Katherine Mansfield, each author profile includes details of the writer’s career, key works and significance of their writing style. Writing exercises then guide the reader to experiment with this style, honing their craft as they play with perspective, perfect characterisation, and craft opening lines like the greats. Perfect for aspiring fiction writers and literature lovers alike!

Specifications: Hardback | 230 x 172mm  | 224 Pages

Explore the style and technique of the world’s greatest writers in this compendium to be treasured by literature lovers.

From Katherine Mansfield to Toni Morrison, discover 50 celebrated writers and the literary techniques that set them apart. Each author profile includes details of the writer’s career and key works, followed by an in-depth exploration of their unique style, and several writing exercises based on this. Spanning over 100 years of literature, and several genres, featured writers include:

  • Harper Lee – acclaimed American author of southern gothic fiction including To Kill a Mockingbird.
  • Lynley Dodd – much-loved New Zealand author of the Hairy Maclary and Friends series for children.
  • Gabriel García Márquez – Colombian author of works including One Hundred Years of Solitude, known for his exceptional, genre-defining use of magical realism.

The collection contains 175 writing exercises and prompts based on the techniques and works of the featured writers. They provide instruction on different aspects of writing, from perfecting dialogue and characterisation to experimenting with structure and language. Learn from the greats and expand your writing repertoire as you play with perspective à la Virginia Woolf and craft an opening line worthy of Franz Kafka.

The perfect reference for aspiring fiction writers and literature buffs alike!

John Gillard is a writer and illustrator has written widely on the subject of creative writing, and has helped many people ignite and enhance their writing skills. Some of his titles include Flash Fiction: The Very Short Story Starter, Just Write One Thing Today, and Fiction Writer’s Notebook.

CONTENTS

CHILDREN’ S LITERATURE
LEWIS CARROLL 6
A. A. MILNE 10
ASTRID LINDGREN 14
ROALD DAHL 18
JUDY BLUME 22
LYNLEY DODD 26
MILDRED D. TAYLOR 30

SATIR E / SOCIA L COMMENTARY
JANE AUSTEN 36
HERMAN MELVILLE 40
FRANZ KAFKA 44
F. SCOTT FITZGERALD 48
JOHN STEINBECK 52
GEORGE ORWELL 56
MILAN KUNDERA 60
ROBERTO BOLAÑO 64

MAGICA L REALISM
MIKHAIL BULGAKOV 70
ITALO CALVINO 74
GABRIEL GARCÍA MÁRQUEZ 78
GÜNTER GRASS 82
HARUKI MURAKAMI 86
PATRICK SÜSKIND 90

FANTAS Y / SCI-F I / HORROR    
J. R. R. TOLKIEN 96
C. S. LEWIS 100
URSULA K. LE GUIN 104
MARGARET ATWOOD 108
STEPHEN KING 112
J. K. ROWLING 116

SOUTHERN GOTHIC
WILLIAM FAULKNER 122
FLANNERY O’CONNOR 126
HARPER LEE 130
CORMAC MCCARTHY 134

MODERN / BEAT
VIRGINIA WOOLF 140
VLADIMIR NABOKOV 144
ERNEST HEMINGWAY 148
WILLIAM S. BURROUGHS 152
JACK KEROUAC 156
TONI MORRISON 160
JOHN LE CARRÉ 164

EXPERIMENTAL / EXISTENTIAL
JAMES JOYCE 170
KATHERINE MANSFIELD 174
ALBERT CAMUS 178
IRIS MURDOCH 182

POSTMODERN           
KURT VONNEGUT 188
KAZUO ISHIGURO 192
DOUGLAS COUPLAND 196
MICHAEL CHABON 200

POSTCOLONIAL
MAYA ANGELOU 206
J. M. COETZEE 210
PETER CAREY 214
CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE 218

INDEX 222

IMAGE CREDITS 224

Good Reading
“A fascinating guide to the style and technique of the world’s great writers.”


NZ Listener
“A guide to the style and technique of the world’s great writers, from Roald Dahl to Katherine Mansfield. Exercises next to potted bios and style and oeuvre summaries, will probably appeal most to younger writers wanting to explore the Western canon”


SchoolDays Magazine
“There is a goldmine of information from revered authors across the ages and genres, such as CS Lewis, AA Milne, Jane Austen, Franz Kafka, Stephen King, John Steinbeck, George Orwell, JK Rowling, Roald Dahl, Herman Melville, Margaret Attwood, JRR Tolkien, John Le Carre, James Joyce, Maya Angelou, Jack Kerouac and more. It is designed has to be helpful with 175 writing exercises to help you with prompts that could help you improve language, plots and structure.”


Blue Wolf Reviews
“So many people would benefit from this amazing book. Those who love reading, discussing authors, developing knowledge of writing styles and those who have favourite stories and much-loved books. Creative Writers Sourcebook is a keeper.”

You may also like…

Everyone Can Write

USD $14.95 Tax Included

Everyone Can Write is an easy-to-understand, practical, ‘how to write’ book that is accessible to everyone from a business executive wanting to polish his reports to a retiree wanting to chronicle her family history. It solves the problems that beginning writers struggle with by giving them an easy-to-follow and simple set of rules that allows them to write rapidly and clearly.

The book outlines the three forms of non-fiction writing: report, narrative and essay. Each one is dissected and a set of rules applied to each structure. The rules are easily put into practice and vary for each structure. For example, in report writing, two easy-to-apply rules are: 25 words to a sentence and 3 or 4 sentences in a paragraph.

The author has also developed a foolproof method of structuring your writing, so that you make effective use of your time. It’s based on the easy-to-remember three-step formula: Pre-write, Free-write, Re-write. Pre-write refers to researching the necessary information. Free-write refers to getting the information onto the computer screen. Re-write refers to the essential task of editing the writing into clear readable text. This technique allows writers to become the editors of their own writing, thereby dramatically improve its quality.

The essentials of grammar and punctuation, easily confused words and other useful tips for writers are also covered.

SPECIFICATIONS: Hardback | 162 mm x 125 mm | 176 Pages |

The Journal Writer’s Companion

USD $24.99 Tax Included

Achieve Your Goals • Express Your Creativity • Realize your Potential

Numerous studies show that effective journal writing can significantly impact your life. Designed to be a clear, practical guide to using journaling to help you succeed in any area of life, The Journal Writer’s Companion is also a comprehensive reference to all of the different types of journaling techniques, from gratitude journals to bullet journals, legacy journals to art journals. The result is the only guide you’ll ever need to achieving personal and professional success the journaling way!

SPECIFICATIONS: 9781925820041 | Hardback | 210 x 152 mm / 8.25 x 6 inches |272 Pages

Word to the Wise

USD $19.99 Tax Included

Untangling the Mix-ups, Misuse and Myths of Language

Even the best wordsmiths can trip over words that are commonly misused, mixed up or misspelled. This useful reference gets to the bottom of these language issues so that you can ensure you’ve got the word you’re looking for. With examples of how to sharpen up text and improve your writing, lists of useful social media abbreviations and a discussion of unusual plurals, this playful look at the often bizarre English language has got you covered, whether you’re writing a book, blog or an email.

SPECIFICATIONS: Paperback | 229 x 152 mm / 9 x 6 Inches  | 192 Pages |