R is for Reading

READING

“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.” 
― Stephen King

 Do you read? If you write for others, or aspire to, you should. 

Reading is one of the main ways that we develop an ear for the poetry of language, an eye for description, a sense of timing and plot. 

 Yes, you can also learn about plot structure from watching movies. Especially if you first do a little research so that you know to look for: the inciting events, plot points, and set pieces. But as a writer, you learn so many different things from reading. You learn what you like and dislike. You discover what works and what doesn't. There are the books you read when you want to escape. Books you read to learn things. Books you read because the language takes our breath away. And if you are lucky to find one book or author that can do all three, well, you've won the jackpot. Study this author. See if you can figure out what makes her (or him) tick. What is it that mesmerizes you so? You can do it, too. Maybe not right away, but if you are persistent, eventually you will develop your own special voice. People will recognize it when they read your work. But as Stephen King says, we need to read and write a lot to be good writers.

 Got kids? A second job? Have no time for the luxury of reading? I hear you. Modern life has us all plugged in, 24-7. It isn't easy to break the habit of checking email, texts, or Facebook all the time. And at the end of a long day, sinking into the couch to watch your favorite series or a great new movie can be so tempting. But all of these things take up a lot of time and energy, and don't enhance your writing skills the way that reading can.

 Can you give up one hour a week to read instead of watching something? Or go to bed thirty minutes earlier? Give it a shot, see how it goes. You might just surprise yourself. 
“If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that."
-Stephen King

"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read." 
- Groucho Marx

Goodreads reading challenge

Comments

  1. AnonymousApril 21, 2016 at 7:35 PM

    I've been using the Goodreads reading challenge to keep myself reading. Setting a goal to work toward really encourages me and as a result I've been reading more. =)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sati ChockApril 21, 2016 at 7:59 PM

    Thank you, Patricia! I've just added the link to the blog post. :-)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

N is for Name

Image
NA M ES               “Names have power.”                       -Rick Riordan, The Lightning Thief              What's in a name? Plenty. The name you give your character gives the reader an instant impression, even if they don't know what the name really means. For example, w hat do you think of when you hear the following names:  Destiny Colt Barack Ruby Hester Sierra Khan Jesus Barbara Magda Aloha Martha Kofi Prudence Lucifer Bilbo Miranda Filippo Jessie Duncan Anjali Peewee Ishmael Ludwig Ngai Dae won Amber Hercules Scarlett Ashley Midori Gabriel Xerxes Ralph Heathcliff Veruca Hannibal Roshanna Ramona Svengali  Hans Isabella Lolita Jeeves Pip Ebenezer  Rudolph Gump Scout Winnie Grendel Tarzan Scheherazade I bet each of them gave you an immediate impression, even if you can't fully articulate what that impression is.  Well, your reader will have one, too. So when you choose a name for your c
Read more

H is for Horror

Image
H O RR O R “We make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones.”  ―  Stephen King Writing can be a scary business. Whether alone or with others, it requires a lot of risk on our part. We bare our souls, share our secrets with the world. Or we put them in a story and call it fiction. Yeah, that's it. I'm kidding, sort of. But today I want to talk about writing scary stories, not living them.  Writing horror So you love horror. Great--so do lots of people, and there are many potential markets. Paying markets, even. Well, not paying much. But still. Did I say paying?  We'll get to that in a bit.  What's the best way to start writing horror stories?  Ask yourself this: What makes you anxious? What scares you the most?  What is the most terrifying situation you can imagine? Your worst nightmare? What grosses you out? Start there. Avoid  cliché s . But if you have a new take on that  cliché , go for it. There is always room for so
Read more

Yearn

Image
We yearn the most for what we have lost, for what we cannot have, for what can never be. But there can be silver linings to our yearnings. We might discover something we love or want even more than what we originally desired.  And, then, this: out of yearning, great stories are born.  "I love those who yearn for the impossible."  -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe What do you yearn for?  What story can you tell about it? "Art comes from the place where you dream."  -Robert Olen Butler interview with Robert Olen Butler Writing about yearning in fiction Robert Olen Butler & short fiction Longing writing prompt From fear to yearning writer's prompt An ancestral yearning: why writers love the ocean Yearning for transcendence Books about yearning Yearning and writing inspiration Harness the yearning "If you don't die of thirst, there are blessings in the desert. You can be pulled into limitlessness, which we all yearn for, or
Read more