- Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott. My dad gave me this book, and it was one of the first times I encountered a book about writing. I loved Lamott's sass and honesty. I became aware of multiple approaches to writing. I began to feel I could really be a writer, in whatever form that took for me.
- Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg. This is in my top five books. I don't know how I found it--I think I was just browsing the reference section I'd just found at Barnes and Noble. The idea of writing practice, writing as a practice, truly changed my life. I became a scribbler.
- The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. I read this at 16 as part of a writing contest. I didn't actually write the essay, but the book changed me. I had low self-esteem at best and self-hate at worst. The book didn't propel me into Rand's ideals, but it brought me to a better relationship with myself.
- Living a Beautiful Life by Alexandra Stoddard. My mom had the book, and I read it. I was a young teenager or even younger. Wow. The book taught me about beauty, about details, and about self-care. The words were like medicine and made my senses awaken.
- The Creative Companion by SARK. This was the first and certainly not the last SARK book I've read. I don't know how I found it, but the bright colors may have caught my attention. I felt a new spark in my scribbles and in the way I treated myself.
- Influence, Science and Practice by Robert Cialdini. This is the best textbook I read as an undergrad. It made me think critically about persuasion and manipulation, recognizing this in myself and others.
- Rose and the Beast by Francesca Lia Block. I discovered this in the YA section at Barnes. It blew my mind. The fairy tale retellings were dark and dazzling. I had to open my mind. The writing was richer, made of ice and velvet, than any I had read. She became my favorite writer.
What books changed you?
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