This is the full list of books that have been reviewed by the Writing Books Book Club.

Books are listed with the most recent books reviewed first. If you would like to see the full assessment of the following books, be sure to join the book club on Discord and check out the archives.

Books reviewed in 2025

Book Blurbs Unleased by Robert J. Ryan

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in April 2025. In general, we found this book insightful on how ad copy and back-cover blurbs are constructed to garnish the best conversion rate, enticing readers to read the sample pages. However, we also felt that the book was lacking on the specificity of "how" to write book blurbs. That said, we're also not sure how one might approach the teaching of the "how to write blurbs" other than showing "how to dissect existing blurbs". Regardless, members of our group now feel more confident on giving it a go, attempting to write their blurbs for the first time.

I Give You My Body: How I Write Sex Scenes by Diana Gabaldon

Rating: ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in February 2025. Diana Gabaldon might be a skilled writer, but we found that this book used example excerpts that were too long, making it hard to understand the lessons that she was trying to demonstrate. To complicate matters, many of the samples used required prior knowledge of the Outlander series. Even then, because of the length of the samples, the lessons were forgotten.

If you chose to read this book, we advise against the audio version. The sections where the lessons were being given were narrated far too quickly and were difficult to understand. And many of the example excerpts were in the order of 30 minutes, meaning you zoned out and forgot what you were supposed to be learning.

Books reviewed in 2024

Blueprint for a Book by Jennie Nash

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in December 2024. While we are giving this book 4 stars, we thought it was a high 4-star book. It provides writers with another set of tools to think about their story, even for the pantsers.

The plotters might want to apply the techniques during the plotting and early development phase. Whereas the pantsers might want to use the techniques in this book as part of their developmental editing phase. But we at the BW Book Club felt it was another set of tools that writers could add to their toolbox.

The Psychology of Subtext by Jessie Cal

Rating: ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in December 2024. In general, we found that material presented in this book is likely to be instinctual for many writers. But we also feel that dedicating more than 50% to a novelette was not all that beneficial, particularly when subtext is subjective and requires a certain level of cultural understanding from the reader. While the "brand new" writer might find benefit from the ideas presented in this book, there are other books that will help a writer build in subtext into their narrative that would be better resources.

The Kick-Ass Writer by Chuck Wendig

Rating: ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in October 2024. In general, we found the author's voice in this book to be crude and, at times, inappropriate. Everyone in the group was unable to finish reading this book because of the language used—even those members who are extremely tolerant. At around the 30% mark, it became sexually explicit, which has no place in a book of this nature and topic. There will be some writers who will find the blunt/crass tone to be refreshing, but the BW Book Club can not recommend this book to others, simply because of the inappropriate and sexually explicit language.

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott

Rating: ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in August 2024. While we found the ideas and exercises presented to be of use for someone wanting to get back into writing (or struggling with writer’s block), we recognise that the anecdotal style of writing will be irritating to some readers.

This book was originally written back in 1994 and has been republished many times over the years. It should be noted that the ideas and concepts are timeless. BUT reading audiences have changed. Today’s society is faster paced and wants things to get to the point much sooner. As a consequence, the attention given to anecdotes could be a distraction for some readers.

If you like anecdotal writing, then this might be a good book for you. But if you prefer instructional material, then you would be better served finding a different book to read.

100 Ways to Improve Your Writing by Gary Provost

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in June 2024. In general, we felt that the book was a good summary of the advice that has been given to writers over the years. One doesn’t need to read this book from start to finish, but rather can read the sections that are relevant to a writer’s present circumstances.

This book was originally published in 1972. Knowing this, we are wondering if this is the “original source” for a lot of the advice that is given by other established writers. This includes the advice about adverbs often attributed to Stephen King. But in this book, the advice regarding adverbs specifically doesn’t say that one should remove them and never use them. But rather look at them “carefully and always be suspicious. What are those little buggers up to?”

This book leans heavily into nonfiction writing. While some sections felt like they were written for fiction writers, they were actually written for those writing creative nonfiction. But good writing is good writing. And much of the advice found in this book applies to nonfiction AND fiction.

The JLM Book Club elected to recommend this book, as long as readers are away that there is a nonfiction slant to this book.

Writing Unforgettable Characters by James Scott Bell

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in April 2024. We decided to give this book a 4-star rating, recommending this book as a useful resource for fiction writers.

Like all of the books in the "Bell on Writing" series, this book is an easy read and logically laid out. Each chapter contains an explanation of the idea that Bell is trying to convey, an example (or two) to illustrate what he is getting at, and a series of questions (or an exercise) to apply the concepts to your own writing. Because of this consistent chapter structure, it make it easy to use this book as a quick reference guide for future manuscripts.

Bell includes a discussion about the plotter vs panster argument when it comes to developing characters. (He calls it dossier and discovery.) While many writers will be somewhere on the spectrum, he approaches that topic with a discussion of his own process, and the limits that he needs to impose on himself before the joy of writing disappears. And he reminds writers that it's OKAY to not have it all worked out before you write. And it's OKAY to have that full dossier too. You have to do what works best for you. (A huge thank you to James Scott Bell for this chapter, because it made many of us in the Black Wolf Book Club feel much better about not having full dossiers for our characters.)

We also noticed that the examples used in the book are from a mixture of older and newer stories (published in recent years) AND from a range of genres. As such, we feel that writers of all ages (and all genres) will benefit from the book and be able to connect with the material.

We are recommending that writers think of this book as a quick-reference guide. Bookmark and dog-ear the exercises.

The Anatomy of Story by John Truby

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in February 2024. We decided to give this book a rating of 3.5, because we felt that its usefulness warranted more than a 3, but the negatives of the book meant that it wasn't quite a 4.

This book is NOT for the newer writer. To get the most out of this book, you need to be comfortable AND confident with story structure before reading this book. In addition, you need to understand your own writing process (whether you are a plotter or a panster or somewhere in between). At times, the tone used within the writing can be considered as belittling. While we feel that this wasn't the intent, those who are not English majors should keep in mind that this is not a personal attack. This book also focused on literary fiction, dismissing the merits of commercial fiction.

This book is ideal for those who would like to take a deeper dive into character development and the role the character has on the overall story. The exercises presented in the book are designed to encourage you to focus on your character's motivations (wants and needs). This book also encourages you to dive into antagonist characters and minor characters (like the sidekick and love interest). However, this book focuses on character. If your story has a non-character antagonist (such as "man vs weather" stories), you will struggle with the protagonist-vs-antagonist-interplay exercises.

The BW Book Club felt that this would be best read as a companion book for more experienced writers, helping you to develop your B-story of your novels with the more character-driven feel.

Books reviewed in 2023

Structuring Your Novel by KM Weiland

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
This book was reviewed by the JLM Book Club in December 2023. The book provides a good in-depth description of plot structure and scene structure, with consistent examples throughout.
It was noted that the all-is-lost moment was not discussed in detail like the other plot points, but it was nice to see the antagonistic pinch points discussed.
The only major failing that the book club found was that this book does not allow for antagonists that are not of the "good guy vs bad guy" model.
It was decided to recommend this book to newer writers, who are just getting their head around story structure.

Please note that there is a companion workbook for this book too.

Atomic Habits by James Clear

Rating: ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in October 2023. While the ideas in the book are useful, the Book Club felt that the examples were skewed incorrectly, and too many examples were included of the wrong type. Much of this book focused on "diet culture" and addictions. We also felt that the book could have been a fraction of the size, removing the number of examples and repetition. This book can be motivational, but only if you look at the overall picture and not the details.
It was decided that this book would not be added to the list of recommended books for writers.

How to Write Dazzling Dialogue by James Scott Bell

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in August 2023. We recommend this book to other writers, but with the understanding that newer writers should read this book in sections, taking in the material in chunks. New writers should also ignore the chapter on experimental dialogue, as it will only confuse them.

How to Write a Mystery (Editors: Lee Child & Laurie King)

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
This book was reviewed by the JLM Book Club in June 2023. The book club decided that the book was worth recommending to others, but with the understanding that this book is structured as an overview of a lot of topics. New writers might find this book overwhelming.

Voice: The Secret Power of Great Writing by James Scott Bell

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
This book was reviewed by the JLM Book Club in April 2023. The book club found this to be a simple and easy-to-read book, filled with useful exercises designed to help you understand what voice is and how to develop your own voice. The book club recommends this book to both new and experienced writers alike.

How Not to Write a Novel by Howard Mittelmark and Sandra Newman

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in February 2023. The book club found this to be a funny book, filled with examples of what not to do. It's not a book on how to fix the issues, but on how to identify them. That said, the book club decided that this book was better suited for new to intermediate writers. More advanced writers might not find this book useful.

Books reviewed in 2022

Story Genius by Lisa Cron

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in December 2022. The book is worth reading, as long as you are prepared to recognize that there is a bit of contradiction in the author's philosophy. This is one way to write a story, with exercises that encourage you to develop your depth of perception within the narrative. BUT this is not the only way to write a book; the full blueprint methodology will not work for everyone.

The Emotional Craft of Fiction by Donald Maass

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in October 2022. We found the book filled with useful details and good examples, but this book is not one for newer writers.
The material presented in this book is intensive, and the layout is not designed for you to dip in and out. Take notes as you read, creating your own crib sheet for the information you've gleaned from the book.

On Writing and Worldbuilding: Volume I by Timothy Hickson

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
The JLM Book Club reviewed this book in August 2022. This book is a good book on world building, BUT only for those who have a background in reading fantasy and science fiction.

If you are not already familiar with the genres of fantasy and science fiction, then this book is not for you.

The Writer's Guide to Psychology by Carolyn Kaufman

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
This book was reviewed by the JLM Book Club in June 2022. This book provides a good generalized overview of the topic, providing examples where fiction gets it wrong (and where they get it right). While it's just an overview, there is enough detail present so writers can understand the buzz terms, assisting in their research if they need to dive deeper into any of the topics presented.
The JLM Book Club recommends this book for all writers at all levels.

Understanding Conflict by Janice Hardy

Rating: ★ ★
Goodreads review:
This book reviewed by the JLM Book Club in April 2022. The first two chapters of this book provides useful information, defining what conflict within writing really is and what it isn't. However, this book became repetitious with examples that didn't overly make sense if you weren't already familiar with the examples chosen.

This book was not added to the bookshelves on the JLM website.

The Successful Author Mindset by Joanna Penn

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Goodreads review:
This book was reviewed by the JLM Book Club in February 2022. We found the book easy to read. Much of what is said in this book can be found in other books too, but it was nice to have all this advice presented in one location.