If you’re looking for things to read or experience, here are some of my favorite recommendations! If you want to purchase these, please consider getting them from a local bookseller like Powell’s Books instead of the big box stores (*cough* Amazon *cough*) or if cost is an issue, there are some fantastic book re-sellers like AbeBooks. This list is a constant work in progress, so come back if you run out of things to read! Will continue to add links to author pages as I have time.
Books on Writing
These books are all ones I have read and learned from and highly recommend others pick up. Most of these I return to frequently as needed!
- Wired for Story by Lisa Cron
- Writing the Other by Nisi Shawl
- Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss
- Thrill Me by Benjamin Percy
- Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury
- The Elements of Style by Strunk and White
- The Art of Subtext by Charles Baxter
- The Sounds of Poetry by Robert Pinsky
- The Art of Fiction by John Gardner
- On Becoming a Novelist by John Gardner
- On Writing by Stephen King
- Wrede on Writing by Patricia C. Wrede
- On Writing Well by William Zinsser
- Turning Life Into Fiction by Robin Hemley
- The Ethics of Life Writing by Paul John Eakin
- Writing True by Sondra Perl
- The Joy of Writing Sex by Elizabeth Benedict (get your mind out of the gutter, it’s about how to handle intimacy in ALL kinds of writing, tsk)
Fiction Authors and Playwrights I Love
Pretty much any books by this author you pick up will be awesome. Equal parts high literature and popcorn lit. At least 50% of the list is YA. Suggestions for starting points are provided for some. Not in any particular order.
- Tamora Pierce – Start with Terrier, then read everything except Melting Stones, listen to that one, don’t read it.
- Terry Pratchett – My two favorites are The Truth and Monstrous Regiment
- Jim Butcher – I prefer the Dresden Files series
- Seanan McGuire – Wayward Children series is my fav, followed closely by Incryptids.
- Nisi Shawl – Everfair is stunning
- Nancy Kress – Beggars in Spain
- Robert A. Heinlein – The unabridged version of Stranger in a Strange Land
- Ted Chiang – Lifecycles of Software Objects
- Isaac Asimov – Robots and Murder trilogy
- Nnedi Okorafor
- Erin Morgenstern
- Marissa Meyer
- Patricia C. Wrede
- Theodora Goss
- Jasper Fforde
- Robert Asprin
- Patricia Briggs
- Nalo Hopkinson
- Amber Dawn
- G. Willow Wilson
- Lish McBride
- John Scalzi
- Nisi Shawl
- NK Jemison
- Nicky Drayden
- Robin Sloan
- Neil Gaiman
- Neal Stephenson
- Laurie R. King
- K.B. Spangler
- Kat Richardson
- Keri Arthur
- Jennifer Blackstream
- Janet Evonavich
- Jana DeLeon
- Aaron Sorkin
- Cat Rambo
- Molly Knox Ostertag
- Gail Carriger
- Matsuo Basho
- Margaret Weis
- Mark Z. Danielewski
- Jeffrey Carver
- John Scalzi
- Kurt Vonnegut
- Jacqueline Carey
- Anne Bishop
- Poe Ballentine
- Christopher Buckley
- More to follow…
Authors I know whose work isn’t necessarily my style, but it’s good writing and they are lovely people and I always buy and read their books…
- Nadia Akbar
- Michael Strelow
- Scott Nadelson
- Steve Yarbrough
- Neil Aitken
- Ben Clanton
- Ladette Randolph
- William Orem
- Maria Flook
- More to follow…
Graphic Novel/Webcomic Series I Follow
- Strong Female Protagonist
- A Girl and Her Fed
- Rat Queens
- Shuri
- Sleepless
- Chew
- More to follow…
TV Shows I Love and I think are well done
- Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries
- Murdoch Mysteries
- The Republic of Doyle
- Black Lightning on CW
- Legion on FX
- All of the Originals and prequels/spinoffs
- Preacher
- True Blood
- Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency
- Brooklyn 99
- Outer Limits
- Twilight Zone
- Black Mirror
- 30 Rock
- Community
- Up Pompeii
- MASH
- Sirens
- Firefly
- Rizzoli and Isles
- Elementary
- Sherlock
- Twin Peaks
- Almost Human
- All of Star Trek EXCEPT for Enterprise
- Stargate SG1
- Pushing Daisies
- Steven Universe
- The Witcher
- Altered Carbon
- Happy
- Umbrella Academy
- Ragnarok
- iZombie
- Lucifer
- Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
- The Magicians
- Locke and Key
- The Mandelorian
- More to follow…
TV Shows that are background noise and/or guilty pleasures
- The rest of the CW DC Comic lineup
- All the Netflix Marvel shows EXCEPT IRON FIST (stupid whiny white boy)
- Agents of Shield
- Cloak and Dagger
- Buffy
- Angel
- Haven
- Supernatural
- Charmed
- Veronica Mars
- The Librarians
- Roswell
- SWAT
- Runaways
- Burn Notice
- White Collar
- Flashpoint
- All Law and Order
- All CSI
- Criminal Minds
- Numbers
- Wayward Pines
- Dr. Who
- Scrubs
- Body of Proof
- Bones
- The Glades
- Lie to Me
- Medium
- Ghost Whisperer
- Primeval
- Dead Like Me
- Misfits
- Gotham
- Persons of Interest
- Disenchantment
- Heart of Dixie
- Royal Pains
- Dexter
- Once Upon a Time
- More to follow…
And my least favorite book I was ever made to read for class, just for sh*ts and giggles:
- Elementary Particles by Michel Houellebecq