It’s National Author’s Day (and the start to NaNoWriMo!)

Writing a book is incredibly hard work.

Some people spend lifetimes perfecting and penning their masterpieces, while for others inspiration strikes like lightning in a thunderstorm! You may nail a book in one go, but most often it requires multiple drafts, rounds with beta readers and sensitivity readers, a solid editor, selecting a cover artist and/or illustrator, finding an agent or self-publishing resources, marketing, and producing before you even get a chance to sell it!

The beauty of it all is that there’s no wrong way to begin writing your first, next, or last book. It’s a wonderful creative process that’s a unique journey every time. And it means there’s a book for everyone on just about every subject you can imagine!

National Author’s Day was originally conceived by Nellie Verne Burt McPherson in 1928; she wanted to set aside a special day to celebrate American Authors. She suggested to her friends and fellow Women’s Club members that they write letters of appreciation and encouragement to writers, purchase their published works, and fly the American flag in support. She was inspired by a letter she penned and the resulting correspondence between her and author Irving Bacheller. The United States Department of Commerce recognized the official day as November 1st 1949.

Today we’re going to celebrate with a list of a few ways you can help support authors whether they’re big names, self-pubbed, or small indie press authors.

• Support your favourite authors on Patreon.com or Ko-Fi.com

• Follow your favourite authors on Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, and subscribe to their blogs and newsletters!

• Buy a physical copy of their books or purchase an e-book for your e-reader or phone.

• Donate copies of their books to Little Free Libraries.

• Check out their books from your local library and keep them in circulation.

• Make sure to cross-post positive reviews for their books on your blog, multiple bookseller sites like Amazon or Thriftbooks and apps like GoodReads or Storygraph

Got a special writer or author in your life, and need to get them the perfect gift? Check out this list by The Write Life for great suggestions.

Helpful Advice on Reading and Writing for Aspiring and Established Authors

The best way to learn how to write is by reading diversely and expanding beyond your favourite genre. Consuming a variety of writing styles from authors of different genders, cultural backgrounds and ethnicities, and even different centuries or decades can vastly improve your own work. Exposing yourself to a wide array of perspectives can fling open the window and allow new ideas to come flooding in by encouraging personal growth. It can also prevent “idea theft” and “copycat” issues from a lack of exposure to content. It may even combat “imposter syndrome” as you begin to understand that there is always room for new voices and an audience for everyone!

There are lots of ways to learn more about the craft of writing beyond just reading the works of others. As creatives, our art is never fully perfected, and can always use some additional shine and polish. For this reason, we also recommend continuing to learn by taking workshops, classes, or courses that will build your skillset in grammar, creativity, editing, and the overall craft.

Consuming content specifically about the art of writing or storytelling can be an incredible asset to your work! We’ve compiled a list of suggested reading to improve your authorship skills. You’ll find that some of these are a little wider-cast than just narrowing in on writing fiction. It’s important to examine storytelling methods from multiple perspectives, as these diverse viewpoints can inspire us beyond the traditional way of seeing things.

Are you an aspiring writer who wants to hone their skills? An author who needs to break through recent writer’s block? Why not try the “Write a Road Trip” technique to work through your story outline!

Want to build your library on the craft of writing?
Try some of these:

• “Bird by Bird” by Anne Lamott

• “The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron

• “Zen in the Art of Writing” by Ray Bradbury

• “On Writing Well” By William Zinsser

• “Self Editing for Fiction Writers” by Renni Brown and Dave King

• “Writing Down to the Bones” by Natalie Goldberg

• “Story Genius” by Lisa Cron

• “Save the Cat! Writes a Novel” by Jessica Brody

• “On Writing Well” by William Knowlton Zinsser

• “Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear” by Elizabeth Gilbert

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

• “Making Comics” by Scott McCloud

• “Alan Moore’s Writing for Comics Volume 1” by Alan Moore

• “Words for Pictures: The Art and Business of Writing Comics and Graphic Novels” by Brian Michael Bendis

• “Framed Ink: Drawing and Composition for Visual Storytellers” by Marcos Mateu-Mestre

• “Reading Like a Writer” by Francine Prose

• “How to Read a Book” by Mortimer J. Adler

This is by no means an exhaustive or definitive list, and different people will require different things from their writing manuals. Do you have a favourite book that you would recommend? Let us know in the comments below!

Happy writing, future authors!

May your NaNoWriMo be a successful and joyous one!

And remember: Always support your local area
self-published and indie small press authors today and every day!