John A. Murray is the author of forty-five books, including Cinema Southwest: An Illustrated Guide to the Movies and Their Locations, which received the Southwest Book Award, and Mythmakers of the West: Shaping America's Imagination, which received the Colorado Book Award. He was the founding editor of the world nature series for Oxford University Press and of the American Nature Writing annual for Sierra Club Books. Among his books is Writing About Nature: A Creative Guide, also available from the University of New Mexico Press.
Originally published by the Sierra Club in 1995, this handbook has already helped thousands of aspiring writers, scholars, and students share their experiences with nature and the outdoors. Using exercises and examples, John Murray covers genres, techniques, and publication issues. He uses examples from such masters as Barry Lopez, Annie Dillard, Larry McMurtry, Edward Abbey, Ernest Hemingway, and Henry David Thoreau. Also included are recommended readings, a directory of creative writing programs, professional organisations for writers, and a directory of environmental organisations. This revised edition includes a new chapter on nature writing and environmental activism.