There are some amazing, stellar, fascinating, fantastically fabulous books on writing help that you can purchase. For example, the much-loved (and for good reason) On Writing- A Memoir of the Craft, by Stephen King or How Not to Write a Novel, by Howard Mittlemark and Sandra Newman.

If you have the money, books like that are really helpful resources that can get you thinking about writing in new ways. You want to improve? Read them. Read the other popular writing books. There's probably at least one thing you can take to heart in each of them (honestly, probably a lot more than one thing).

BUT.

Don't believe someone when they tell you that you HAVE to read a specific writing book to be good at writing. Yes, books can help you. Yes, you should read them if you have the opportunity.

No, you are not a failure because you haven't. You aren't ensuring that you'll never rise out of mediocrity by not reading them.

But there are some people out there, who, as they give advice, will tell you bluntly that you cannot be a good writer until you have read these books. Otherwise, you're just making mistakes and kicking yourself when you're down. You need these books to improve. Without them, you will fail.

In this day and age, that's simply not true. These books can help you hone your skills (or craft, or talent, or whatever you see your writing ability as), but if you don't have access to them, you can still be a good writer. You just learn in other ways. You write, you practice, you read, you critique, you beta read, you get feedback from various people all around the world... You have access to millions of websites to help you learn about writing and mistakes and tips and tricks. Heck, there are even youtube videos on writing from industry professionals. The internet lets you research from the comfort of your bed, couch, favorite coffee shop, etc. You have friends and family and teachers and maybe even some online roleplaying companions that write better than you that you try and keep up with...

There are all kinds of ways to learn how to write. You do not have to dance a particular way or pray to the right God to be able to tell a good story. Heck, good writers have come and gone who did not have access to the writing guides we have today.

But the more you know, the more experience and knowledge you amass from various sources, the more worldly your writing will become. If you read great tips from BOOK TITLE, yeah, you'll improve.

Just remember that it's just one way that you can improve, not THE way.