Ink + Alchemy

Monthly missives to help you access your creative magic and build a writing practice you love.

In This Newsletter

• A poll!
• Our main topic: Why you should stop reading craft books and start reading like a writer
• A reminder about The Coven
• An oracle card pull
• An invitation to The Ceremony
• Book recommendations
• Writing resources to amp up your creative magic

How Can I Help You?

Which of these resources would you find most helpful?

Stop Reading Craft Books and Start Reading Like a Writer

I want to thank everyone who participated in the topic poll way back in May—the results were clear!

For this New Moon Missive, we’re going to focus on craft and, specifically, why you should stop reading craft books and start reading like a writer, instead.

As the Literary Witch, I talk a lot about the elements of writing alchemy—mindset, practice, and craft. Mindset is how you think about writing and about yourself as a writer: your mental habits, your self-talk. Practice is how you show up to the page, your tools for building and (rebuilding) a relationship with writing. Craft is all about becoming increasingly skilled at writing and revising—the nitty-gritty of becoming a better writer.

All three elements are necessary for a successful writing life (“success” being something you have to define for yourself, but that’s a topic for another day!). Sometimes, you might emphasize one element over another, but they’re all going to be in the mix. That’s how writing alchemy creates gold. That’s how we work magic with writing.

So, today, let’s talk about why it’s time to put down the craft books and read like a writer.

What is a Craft Book?

Craft books are texts that purport to teach you how to write. Sometimes they’re focused on a particular genre or style of writing, and sometimes they’re more general or even more of a writerly memoir. The typical goal of a craft book is to help you improve your skills.

Some popular (and less well-known) craft books include:

• ​On Writing, by Stephen King
• ​Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott
• ​Wrede on Writing, by Patricia C. Wrede
• ​Save the Cat! Writes a Novel, by Jessica Brody
• ​Steering the Craft, by Ursula K. Le Guin
• ​How to Write a Mystery, edited by Lee Child
• ​Writing Down the Bones, by Natalie Goldberg
  (affiliate links*)

I could go on, but by now you get the gist. Craft books are writing teachers in book form, offering instructions and advice for writers who want to get better at writing.

So… what’s the problem here, exactly?

Put the Craft Book Down and Nobody Gets Hurt

Before I get onto my soapbox, a bit of a disclaimer: I’m not saying that you should stop reading craft books forever and ever, or that craft books are useless. I love a good craft book and I use them regularly as part of my own practice—one of my deep and abiding interests is learning how writers get writing done so that I can share a wide array of tools with my book coaching clients.

That said, craft books are only useful up to a point and sometimes, reading them can in fact become detrimental.

The way I see it, there are two main problems with craft books.

1. Theory and practice are two different things and only one of them is actually going to make you a better writer
2. Some craft books, however inadvertently, reinforce limiting or even harmful ideas about how to write or build a writing practice

Let’s tackle these in order.

Theory vs. Practice

When you’re reading a craft book, you’re reading one writer’s perspective on what makes good writing, what makes a good writing practice, and how they think you should go about cultivating your skills. In other words, you’re getting their theory of writing.

Now, I love writing theory. I have a PhD in writing studies—I could read about writing and theory all dang day (and I often do). Understanding the writing theory that supports your craft absolutely matters! The wisdom dispensed by experienced writers and teachers is useful.

But—I’m sure you knew there was a but coming—theory is not the same thing as practice.

You can read craft books until the cows come home, but if you are not regularly engaging with actual books of the kind you want to write and practicing doing that kind of writing yourself, then your writing skill will remain, well, theoretical.

You can learn how to deeply understand and analyze narrative structure, characterization, or plot by reading craft books. That is not, however, the same as honing those skills by sitting down with your draft and working through a thorny plot tangle or developing a compelling narrative of your own. Reading another craft book is not going to help you build that skill.

Reading the theory is not the same as building a practice. Both are necessary, but we can’t stop at the former and expect to get better at the latter.

Limiting, Harmful Writing Advice

The other problem with (some) craft books is a failure I see in a lot of writing advice, and it’s the idea that, “This is what worked for me, so it will surely also work for you [and if it doesn't, you’re doing writing wrong or are a bad/lazy/incompetent writer].”

One of the reasons I read a lot of craft books is because I want a diversity of perspectives on how to build a writing practice that works. A singular craft book, written by a singular author, can only provide that writer’s perspective. And sometimes, that writer’s perspective leaves no room for any practice that doesn’t look identical to their own.

In fairness, there are plenty of books that acknowledge a plurality of experiences or offer alternatives when they can. But quite a few of them demand adherence to the author’s way of doing things, and that’s where we run into trouble.

“Stephen King/Julia Cameron/my fifth grade English teacher said I should write every day. I just can’t, and I feel like I’m not a ‘real’ writer.” So many of my book coaching clients have said some version of this to me. An enormous part of the work I do as a coach is helping writers unlearn rigid expectations of themselves and their writing that they picked up from craft books.

Craft books are great—but not when the effect of reading them is that you feel inadequate about your own writing practice.

And now a brief word from our sponsor for this New Moon Missive.

Reading Like a Writer: The Ultimate Flex?

Reading craft books can stymie your growth by keeping you trapped in an endless loop of feeling like you need to read more theory, or by telling you you’re somehow Doing Writing Wrong because your life doesn’t look like some famous writer’s life did several decades ago in entirely different conditions from yours.

All well and good—these are decent reasons for putting down the craft books (or at least putting a cap on how many you read). But what do I mean by “reading like a writer,” and why is that a better alternative?

Writers must also be readers, but reading like a writer is different from reading for pleasure.

When I’m reading like a writer, the way I read and what I pay attention to looks almost nothing like what’s happening when I’m reading for fun. I might still notice writerly things when I’m reading for pure enjoyment, but the goal of that reading is not the same.

Reading like a writer will help you improve your craft, and it’ll probably happen faster and more effectively than through reading yet another craft book. Improving your craft requires you to adopt a different mindset toward reading and incorporate that into your writing practice (I told you all three elements would be important!).

Reading like a writer involves a few key skills and activities, including:

• Reading widely and intentionally
• Reflecting on what you’re reading
• Incorporating those reflections into your practice

Let’s dig into what that actually means.

Reading Widely and Intentionally

Reading like a writer requires you to pay close attention to what you are reading and how you are doing that reading. You need to adopt the mindset of reading widely with the intent to learn about writing.

Let’s say, for example, that you want to write a contemporary romance series about a group of friends who are all into fantasy live action role-playing (LARP). (Sidenote: if you are writing that series, please let me know immediately because I want to read it).

“Reading widely” might look like:

• Reading a lot of contemporary romance novels to deepen your understanding of what’s happening in the genre
• Reading up on the history of LARP games and role-playing more broadly so you can write about it believably
• Reading historical romance and fantasy for comparison and inspiration

Reading widely might also look like picking up books you know you’ll like and books you know you won’t. During a conference panel, bestselling author Matt Dinniman talked about how he reads the best- and worst-reviewed books he can find in his genre (and their reviews!) so he understands what his ideal readers like and dislike.

Reading widely could involve venturing far outside your chosen genre—mystery, horror, and literary fiction could all be sources of unexpected inspiration for a contemporary romance. Reading nonfiction—history, psychology, science—can help you create more realistic worlds and characters.

However, the point of all this reading is not having fun (although ideally reading them will still be enjoyable!). You are reading with intention.

Perhaps you choose three contemporary romance novels published in the past two years by authors you admire because you want to study how they are structuring their stories. You might ask questions like:

• What points of view are they using?
• Are they writing in present or past tense?
• Are the chapters long or short?
• What literary devices and tropes are common?
• How do they build suspense and tension?

Reading with intention means choosing an element of craft that you are curious about and then paying attention to it in the books you read. Look at what writers are doing and study how they do it. Pay attention to big-picture elements of craft (structure, story beats, character arcs) and small details (description, metaphor, dialogue).

Reflecting on What You’re Reading

As you start reading like a writer, the next skill to incorporate is reflecting on what you learn.

Perhaps you keep a reading journal devoted where you make notes about the books you chose. Notice what you liked, what you disliked, and why. Describe a skillful plot twist and how the author managed to pull it off. Copy, word for word, a sentence that took your breath away (or one that annoyed you).

Reflect on what moves you and what leaves you reaching for your phone because the writing isn’t holding your attention. Analyze those passages deeply:

• What’s going on? How do you know?
• How are you responding to the writing?
• Why are you responding in that way?

Analyzing the books you’re reading can serve as a guidepost for your own writing. Rather than simply reacting to a book and moving on, you will become a more thoughtful reader/writer. You’ll begin to see what you want to emulate in your writing and understand how the authors you admire are achieving those effects.

This is one area where reading craft books can pair nicely with reading like a writer. Reading a craft book can help you understand the theory—reading books in your genre can show you what that theory looks like in practice and how skillful writers are upholding or subverting reader expectations.

Incorporating Reflection Into Practice

The final stage is where craft and practice combine. As you read widely and intentionally and reflect on what you’re noticing, you’ll prepare yourself for the next step: putting what you’re learning into practice.

Building a writing practice and improving your craft does not always mean working on the draft of your biggest, most ambitious project. Sometimes, setting yourself up with some writing exercises will help you hone a specific skill more quickly.

Perhaps dialogue is something you want to improve. You’ve been reading books that have witty, fast-paced repartee, villainous monologues, and everything in between. You’ve been taking notes on different modes of dialogue and what you might want to try.

Now it’s time for the rubber to meet the road. Design a few small writing activities around dialogue (or turn back to a craft book that has a specific exercise that lines up with what you want to work on!). You might:

• Copy out a passage of dialogue from a book, paying attention to how each line lands as you write it
• Rewrite that section in your own style or with different characters
• Write a scene of dialogue three different ways, focusing on strategies you’ve learned from your reading

Growing your craft requires more than reading a lot of craft books—and more than reading a lot of books in general. Becoming a better writer means learning how to read like a writer: reading widely and intentionally, reflecting on what you’ve read, and then creating opportunities to practice new skills in a low-pressure way.

Go Forth and Read

Believe me, I fully understand the irony of writing a craft-focused newsletter that’s telling you to…stop reading so many craft-focused texts. My hope is that this email inspires you to put down the craft books (at least for a little while) and start reading in a way that will actually help you reach your writing goals.

I’d love to hear from you if you try this out. Tell me what you’re reading, what you’re learning, and what you notice about your own writing afterward!

Want to Join My Coven?

Applications are open for my new group coaching program, The Coven! The Coven is for visionary writers who want to grow their craft in community.

The Coven is a 6-month writing group that begins in September, 2026. We'll meet twice a month for lessons, writing feedback, and group coaching. You'll get to learn from your fellow writers, a group of amazing guest teachers, and me.

As a member of The Coven, you'll also get two one-on-one meetings with me to talk about your writing—and you can come to The Ceremony for free for all 6 months.

The Coven is open to novelists, nonfiction writers, academics, and anyone who has a book project they want to work on and a writing practice that could use a dose of magic.

I'm opening 5 spaces for The Coven, and 1 has already been claimed! Since this is the first cohort, I'm offering these spots at a reduced price: $200/month ($1,200 total for 6 months of group coaching. A steal!). After this, the price goes up to $400/month, and the next cohort of The Coven will open in early 2027.

If you're ready to make real magic, find community with your fellow witchy writers, and put words on the page, The Coven is for you.

Applications are open until August 20.

New Moon Oracle Card Pull

The new moon is a time to set intentions and reflect on our practices and goals. I pulled an oracle card for the new moon to see what aspect of creativity might need a bit of attention over the next moon cycle.

The blue leratiomyces asks us to think about discovery and the unknown.

• How can you discover something new about your writing practice over the next few weeks?
• What can you do to bring a bit of mystery into your creativity?
• Where are you gripping tightly when an open mind and a gentle touch might be more effective?
• Can you focus on the next step forward in your writing instead of trying to see the whole path at once?
• How can you trust your creative intuition to guide the way?