Looking back on 2020, Episode 2: Attack of the Books

I don’t know what I was thinking when I created my first Looking Back on 2020 post and decided to riff on Star Wars movie titles. Now I feel like I’ve committed to writing 9 of these posts (or 11 if you count Rogue One, which you definitely should, and Solo, which you probably shouldn’t). I’m not sure anyone wants to read that many posts about my experiences in 2020. Maybe I can shift to the original trilogy for looking forward to 2021 (2021: A New Hope has a nice ring to it).

Anyhoo, let’s move on to one of my favorite topics as a writer and lifelong reader: books! Of the 83 books I read last year, most were good, quite a few were great, and some were outstanding. In this post, I’ll share the outstanding ones. Here we go (full disclosure – links below are Amazon affiliate links, so if you use them to buy, I’ll get a few pennies):

My favorite reads of 2020

Fiction

I can’t believe I hadn’t read Coben till this year. I picked up a paperback copy of Tell No One somewhere (garage sale? Little Free Library?), and once I started reading it, I barely put it down till I finished.

This short story by the author of Wild was so moving and beautifully written.

I reread the Hunger Games trilogy this year before checking out the new prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. The prequel was disappointing, but the original trilogy was as wonderful as ever.

Stephen Fry reading Sherlock Holmes? Yes, please!

I hadn’t read Night Shift since high school, and I enjoyed it even more this time around. Amazing short story collection from one of my literary idols.

I’ve been hooked on Deaver’s Lincoln Rhyme series for a couple of years now. The Devil’s Teardrop is a standalone thriller, and it is un-putdownable.

I absolutely love the Stillhouse Lake series. I read the first one while I sat by my mother’s deathbed, and it gave me a few precious hours of escape from the misery of watching my mother fade away. Rachel Caine passed away from breast cancer this year. RIP Ms. Caine, and thank you.

Another page-turner of a thriller. I believe I got this one as part of the Kindle First Reads program that comes with my Amazon Prime membership.

Riveting short story from Deaver. Included in Kindle Unlimited.

Lovely and moving short story from Chee. I have to put in a word here for Amazon Original Stories. I’ve discovered several amazing authors I’d never read via these stories.

Another gem from Amazon Original Stories.

Nonfiction – General

Rayne Constantine. Pizza, Pincushions, and Playing it Straight. No Amazon link for this one – the link goes to the author’s purchase site. Before Constantine became Internet-famous for running the Insufferably Intolerant Science Nerd page on Facebook, she was a sex worker in Australia. This is her memoir of that time, and it is both educational and hilarious. This is another one I barely put down.

I’d been hearing about The Miracle Morning for a few years but didn’t read it till last summer. I tried the morning routine for a couple of months, and I really enjoyed it. My only issue was that it cut into my writing time too much, so I’ve scaled it back considerably. If you can make the time, it’s a great way to start the day.

I debated whether to list this one below with the writing books, but it really isn’t a writing book. It’s a collection of essays by famous writers, literary and genre, on their creative processes. Even if you never write anything more creative than a grocery list, you will love this book.

Kornacki’s analysis of how we got to the mess we’re in is spot on and entertaining (and depressing).

Nonfiction – Writing

I’m starting to plan the sequel to my first novel, Vanishing, Inc., and since I had no idea about how to write a series, I did a little self-educating. This book offers some excellent practical advice. FYI, I just sent Vanishing, Inc., out for professional editing. Hopefully I’ll be ready to query agents in a few months.

Solid advice for writing stories that will sell.

James Scott Bell’s writing books are always excellent–clear, practical, useful.

Ingermanson’s original Snowflake Method is what got me started writing fiction, and this book is just as good.

Great, practical advice for revising a novel, a process I continue to struggle with.

I used Yardley’s advice to create a query letter for Pitch Wars this year. I didn’t get selected, but 2 mentor teams requested my full manuscript, so that’s not too shabby.

Can you tell I’m a big Cathy Yardley fan?

I’ve always been a little baffled by Twitter. Tweeting usually feels like screaming into a void. But this book offers practical advice for authors who want to use Twitter effectively to build a platform without spending hours, well, screaming into a void.

Apparently, if you want your book to sell, you have to figure out which genre it fits into. As someone who reads across most genres, I find that concept a little sad, but there it is. This book will help you figure out where your book belongs in the market.

Great tips here for writing more and writing faster. Now if only I could find a way to revise faster. *sigh*