Welcome back to the Authors’ Toolbox Blog Hop. Each third Wednesday of the month, we meet to share writerly tips, tricks, and sage advice. To continue hopping through other great blogs in the monthly #AuthorToolboxBlogHop or to join, click here.

As a writer, do you ever get the feeling everyone’s got their hand out? Just this morning, I deleted several emails offering expensive paid promotional services promising big sales for my books, and/or expensive courses designed to make me a writing/publishing/marketing superhero.

Y’all, I’m not made of money. And while I gladly pay for a few writing-related services such as Bookbrush (for graphics), online courses through RWA, and ads on my favorite romance websites and podcasts, I always look for the best value for my limited budget. I’ve found some wonderful resources in book form, and I’d like to share a few today that are useful to fiction writers in all genres.

Sure, I like Stephen King’s On Writing, but everybody recommends that one, and too many people take his every word as holy scripture, infallible and universally applicable, amen. It’s worth a look, but it’s just one of many excellent craft books out there.

1. The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Expression, by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi. You can’t beat this guide to remedy your characters’ endless shrugging, nodding, and sighing. Every fiction writer needs this book.
2. Master Lists for Writers: Thesauruses, Plots, Character Traits, Names, and More by Bryn Donovan. Just got this one, and it’s a hoot! My favorite entry: “500 Great Words for Sex Scenes.”
3. Story Trumps Structure: How to Write Unforgettable Fiction by Breaking the Rules, by Steven James. After four years of listening to critique group members recite “The Rules,” usually from Stephen King’s aforementioned book, this is a refreshing look at accepted writerly wisdom that doesn’t always serve us.
4. Story Genius: How to Use Brain Sceince to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel, by Lisa Cron. I don’t agree with every bit of advice contained herein, but her scene cards technique is worth the price of the book. Tons of practical advice for creating layered, complex, believable characters that readers will root for.
5. Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, by Renni Browne and Dave King. Get. This. Book. Browne & King walk the reader through dozens of typical rookie mistakes and provide clear examples of how to avoid/correct them.
6. The Kick-Ass Writer: 1001 Ways to Write Great Fiction, Get Published, & Earn Your Audience, by Chuck Wendig. This one’s an absolute hoot to read! Wendig is witty, irreverent, and wise. Read it for the laughs, and you’ll learn something too!
7. 2,000 to 10,000: How to Write Faster, Write Better, and Write More of What You Love, by Rachel Aaron. Great practical tips for increasing your productivity–because coffee can’t do it all!
8. Verbalize: Bring Stories to Life & Life to Stories, by Damon Suede. I hesitated to include this one, as the author had a great deal to do with the implosion of Romance Writers of America last fall/winter. But I’ve attended several of his workshop and can’t deny he’s a fine writing instructor. His method for narrowing down character motivation to one transitive verb (and a host of synonyms) is a game-changer.

There you go! Next time, I’ll share a list of craft books for romance writers and crime writers. ‘Til then, I’d love it if you’d share your favorite craft books. I can always squeeze a few more onto my shelf!