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10 Books in 2023 that will improve your Writing, Storytelling, and Self-Growth
Mastery of story writing is a long labour.
And to get any good at it requires long hours of practice, and much reading. One reads not just to get inspired by knowledge but to be exposed to the creative possibilities of language. Here, in brief, are 12 books I read in 2023 that made an impression on me.
Hopefully, they will make you become a better writer, storyteller, and person.
- BURNING BOY — THE LIFE AND WORKS OF STEPHEN CRANE by PAUL AUSTER
This is a thick book.
More than 5OOO pages. It is written by a writer about a famous writer. Stephen Crane passed away at 28, but in his brief candle of a life, he left behind a fierce legacy of classics.
The highlight of this book is the detailed analysis of Stephen Crane’s most famous story, The Red Badge of Courage. Paul Auster went into a microscopic analysis of each paragraph, sentence, and word, of well-known scenes in the book.
It is like watching a film scholar dissect every frame of your favourite director’s work.
It’s as if you enjoy a glass of fine wine and here’s your personal sommelier explaining how the flavour was constructed and in so doing, allow you to gain an even deeper…