10 Of Our Favorite Books On Writing

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During our online conversation, An Open Book, Cig Harvey and I mentioned some of our favorite books on writing – and promised to make more recommendations. Here’s a quick list containing some of our favorite books on writing.

Cig’s Picks

These are soulful books on the writing life.

Art and Fear
David Bayles & Ted Orland
.
Art Objects
Jeanette Winterson
.
Bird by Bird
Annie Lamott
.
On Writing
Stephen King
.

John Paul’s Picks

These are simple, straightforward, practical craft books covering a variety of genres.

Writing Tools
Roy Peter Clark
Pounds of wisdom from the man who started the writing program at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies (a journalism think tank). Add Essential to the title.

Brevity
David Galef
Solid quick overviews of a surprising variety of short forms. It takes its title seriously.

Method Writing
Jacks Grapes
Mix method acting with writing, get method writing. A unique system that will help anyone become a more compelling and authentic writer.

The Art Of Memoir
Mary Karr
A classic in this genre on how to make a memoir personal, gripping, and unsentimental.

Poem Crazy
Susan Wooldridge Goldsmith
Pure playful joy, it’s a writing book that may be more about creativity.

Handbook Of Poetic Forms
Ron Padgett
Form is a noun and a verb. This book expands a poet’s options.

Writing And Enjoying Haiku
Jane Reichold
One of the clearest classics about the most widely practiced form of poetry.
Like photography, it’s really easy to do and really hard to do well.

For more see 9 Great Books On Haiku Poetry.
View my conversation with Natalie Goldberg here.

Listen to me read my published creative nonfiction and poetry here.

9 Essential Photo Editing iPhone Apps

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Finding it hard to choose between so many photo editing iPhone apps? Here’s my short list of essential photo editing apps. Get these ten apps and it’s likely you’ll only buy other apps for specialized effects or participating in specific social networks.
Snapseed, PhotoForge 2, Pro HDR, Auto Stitch Panorama, Liquid Scale, iResize, Photo Fixer, TiltShift, Image Blender
Read my full review on The Huffington Post.

Speedliter's Handbook – Syl Arena

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“Getting your Canon Speedlite to produce the light you need can be a real challenge. For those new to flash photography—or for anyone who has previously given up out of frustration—Speedliter’s Handbook is a revelation. Photographer Syl Arena takes you on a journey that begins with an exploration of light and color, moves through a comprehensive discussion of the Canon Speedlite family and all of the accessories and equipment available to the Speedliter, then settles down to crafting great light in one photo shoot after another. Whether you want to create a classical portrait, shoot an event, or simply add a little fill light to a product shot, Speedliter’s Handbook shows you how.
Illustrated with over 500 images, Speedliter’s Handbook covers:
•    how your camera sees versus how you see light
•    all the buttons and dials of the entire Canon Speedlite family
•    the basics of on-camera flash…and getting your flash off the camera
•    how to beautifully balance flash with the existing ambient light
•    all the equipment necessary for great Speedlite shots
•    how to get amazing shots with just one Speedlite
•    how and when to use E-TTL versus manual flash
•    the use of color gels to balance color, as well as create dramatic effects
•    how to tame the sun—or any really bright light—with hi-speed sync
•    and much, much more
Whether you’re shooting portraits, events, or sports, Speedliter’s Handbook is an essential resource that teaches you how to craft the light you need for any type of shot you want.”
Find out more about Syl’s lighting seminar and workshop series.
Get the book here.
Learn more at Speedliting.com.
Read More

Wired Magazine Digital Version – Now On iPad

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This sets the standard for the future of magazines.
Wired magazine has released its iPad edition in the Apple iStore (converted by Adobe from Flash to Apple approved Objective-C).
The June iPad edition of Wired costs $4.99.
The App is a 527MB download.
It’s intended for ages 17 and up. (Note the terms of agreement when you download it.)
Chris Anderson, editor in chief of Wired, says this is what he has always dreamed of. “It has all of the visual impact of paper, enhanced by interactive elements like video and animated graphics.” “We can offer you a history of Mars landings that lets you explore the red planet yourself. We can take you inside Trent Reznor’s recording studio and let you listen to snippets of his work in progress. And we can show you exactly how Pixar rafted each frame of its new movie, Toy Story 3.”
Wired released a video showing off the features of the new digital magazine. (View above.)(The video is encoded in Adobe Flash thus unplayable on the iPad.)
Apple Insider has more on the inside story on how Wired was impacted by Apple’s decision not to support Adobe’s Flash.
Find more on the App and it’s features on Wired.com.