The best writing books I've read:

Writing Fiction by Janet Burroway
On Writing by Stephen King
Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
First five pages by Noah Lukeman

Yes, that's all . . . and I just realized that my library has 150 books under the Libray of Congress subject heading "authorship." A lot of writing books annoy me because the author seems to be lecturing the amateur writer. They say things like, "Try to give up writing, try to do anything else, and if you can't, you know you're a writer." Okay fine. But don't writers, and others working to follow a creative passion, get enough discouragement from the world at large? Do they need to get discouraging lectures from fellow writers, especially those who thrive off the existence of amateur writers to sell books. Perhaps I'm biased, because I think the world would be a more interesting place if we had fewer beurocrats and office workers - who in far too many cases spend their days figuring out new ways to waste time - and more writers, artists, and musicians. Wasn't the goal of technology to free humans up for more eddifying pursuits than the daily grind? I digress. I have actually learned a great deal from the many writing books I've read. A lot of people who dream about writing a novel don't realize that they don't just flow forth from the mind when one decides to tackle one. The craft requires particular skills - pacing, character development, dialogue, setting up a scene, staying organized, revising. Books can help you learn such things. The ones I listed are more entertaining to read than most.