Writing guides for "By the Will of the Gods"

There are three guides I found invaluable for writing my sci-fi murder mystery:

1) Hallie Ephron and Sara Paretsky’s “Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel.” Really just gangbusters when it comes to investigating every aspect of writing a mystery.

2) Cory Doctorow and Karl Schroeder’s “The Complete Idiot's Guide to Publishing Science Fiction.” It’s a real shame this book is out of print. Somewhat behind the times when it comes to the sci-fi market because it was published in 2000, but mostly everything in it having to do with writing science fiction holds up extraordinarily well.

3) Writer's Digest’s “Crafting Novels & Short Stories.” I much prefer it when writing guides offer concrete tips on how to approach the craft. This book is well-organized and lovingly devoted to making you a better writer of fiction.