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Copyright 2011 Allison Knight

Writing Tip of the Month

BUILDING A WRITER’S LIBRARY

 How do you build a writer’s library?

I’m not in the business of selling research books, but I’ve discovered over the years, there are some books that are invaluable.  Unless you were a spelling champ in school, you’ll need a good dictionary, or at least a basic speller.  The word processing programs are good, but there are words not in those computer programs, and then there are those words that sound alike, but are spelled differently depending on their meaning.  A good dictionary is one book I’d consider invaluable.

If you want to write historicals, then you should have a dictionary that will date words.  Could you give a patient an aspirin in the mid 1800's?   How about table forks?  Automobiles?  You get the idea.

One of my favorite books is the “Farmer’s Almanac”.  It’s been around since 1792 and is full of information.  An example - if you are writing a story  with  a character who is a horse breeder, you might need to know how long the gestation period is for a horse.  It’s in the “Farmer’s Almanac”.  You’ll find planting guides for planting vegetables, tide tables, medicine substitutes.  If nothing else, it’s fun to see how close they come with their weather forecasting - - and their ads are a hoot!

There are magazines dedicated to writers, and these are full of good advice and suggestions.

With the advent of the internet and the research capabilities of the web,  a lot of books are no longer necessary.  One suggestion, though  - -   Always look for at least two or three confirmations on any research you do on the internet.  There’s a lot of false information out there.  I’ve listed some excellent sources for historical research on the Links Page.

A good grammar book is a good idea.    And most writers agree that Strunk and White’s “Elements of Style” is a great little book to have close at hand.  Also, a  thesaurus is another handy tomb.   A walk through a good book store, on foot or on line, will offer books that match specific needs.  Library sales, even garage sales, can help build an excellent library and save money in the process.

If you plan to write fiction, you find that building a good library is part of the process.