Hi, Dotsie, good question! Below, is a short list of some books that I (and my students) find particularly helpful. In addition to reading “how to write” books, I’d like to share with all of you my “creative nonfiction reading list,” which is posted on the University of Iowa’s website: http://www.english.uiowa.edu/nonfiction/readinglist.html. (I don’t teach at Iowa, but they’re using my list!) This list is divided by subject matter, since memoirs and essays can cover such a wide range.

Here are the “how to” books:

Natalie Goldberg, Writing Down the Bones
Vivian Gornick, The Situation and the Story
Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Rebecca McClanahan, Write Your Heart Out
Bill Roorbach, Writing Life Stories: How to Make Memories into Memoirs
Mimi Schwartz, Writing True
Gayle Brandeis, Fruitflesh: Seeds of Inspiration for Women Who Write