Books
I’ve included various links for each book below, to make it easy for you buy them. However, I would urge you, if you are interested in picking up a hard copy, to buy them from your favorite local bookstore, or to use 
Indiebound to find a brick-and-mortar shop near you. (You'll see that I've sprinkled in some of my go-to shops below.) Bookstores are the lifeblood of our literary culture, essential to preserving robust conversation about ideas and supporting writers in their efforts.
Wired Style
Wired magazine's editors weighed thousands of new terms, phrases, idioms, and usages of the language as they heralded the coming of the global village. With the cheeky attitude of the original Wired, this cool-book-in-a-hot-box tells you the plural of "mouse" and explains why "email" lost its hyphen. (Please note, both editions of this book—the first from 1996, the second 1999—reflect their times, and they are more collectors’ items than up-to-date guides. They may be hard to track down. Desperate? Email me.)
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Sin and Syntax
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Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch
Great sentences pivot on great verbs. In Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch, the bestselling author of Sin and Syntax zeroes in on verbs that make bad writing sour and good writing sing. Each chapter features four sections: “Vex” tackles tough syntax, “Hex” debunks myths, “Smash” warns of bad habits, and “Smooch” showcases exemplary writing. A veteran journalist and writing teacher, Hale spices her advice with pop-culture references and adapts her expertise for writers of every level. Examples range from the tangled clauses of Henry James and the piercing insight of Joan Didion to the punchy gerunds of the Coen brothers and the passive verbs of CEOs. The whole book amounts to a re-energized take on the English verb, that “little despot of the sentence.”
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Lesson Plans for Teachers
Offered at an introductory price of $6.99:
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Writing Character
Focus on a single aspect of the craft with help from The Writers’ Grotto. Writing Character begins with an essay by Constance Hale, who offers pointers for capturing human complexity. The bulk of the book consists of space to develop your own characters as you follow prompts like Create a portrait of someone based on the items on his desk, or Give a positive take on someone you loathe, or Describe your mother’s emotions as they are expressed by her eyes. Perfectly sized to take to a café, on vacation, or on your morning commute.
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