Reading might seem like a separate hobby to writing…
…especially if you are struggling to find time to write you might think that sitting reading a book is a waste of time, let me explain why it is so important.
Many moons ago when I was a teacher, part of my job was teaching children to write. I taught everything from 4 year olds through to FE college during my teaching career so I have taught everything from holding a pen and forming first letters right through to some quite complex concepts.
One thing that was true across the board, was that the students who loved reading were quicker to pick up writing. Their spelling, grammar and content was better than those who didn’t have any interest in reading.
This takes us back beautifully to one of our favourite quotes here at Booksmith Academy:
“Reading is like breathing in, and writing is like breathing out.”
Pam Allyn
It’s obvious really. The more input you recieve on any subject the better you understand the techniques used. The more you read and see how other people spell words, form sentences and make an impact with their writing, the better equipped you are to write well written, impactful content yourself.
The more varied the books you read as a writer the better. It is important to know what styles and subjects you enjoy reading and which you don’t, because this will help inform you about what genres you should be writing yourself.
How do you read as a writer?
Don’t worry, we aren’t going to try to teach you a totally different way to read, just to make you aware of tweaks you can make that might help you to improve your writing.
The first thing that can really help your writing is reading more consciously. What do I mean by this? Well, when we read, particularly when we are reading fiction, we tend to get swept up into the story. My first suggestion is that you find a book you really like and re-read it, but this time, paying attention to the writing style, the choice of words etc. Really try to analyse what it is about this book that captivated you when you first read it.
My second suggestion is that you don’t always read last thing at night. I always use to read jst before I went to sleep, and it is a great way to wind down after a busy day, but if you only ever read when you are tired you won’t process what you are reading in the same way.
Try to make time to read in the daytime. Even if it isjust for a few minutes while you are waiting to go into for a dentist appointment, you will find that you read very differently when you are wide awake to when you are sleepy at the end of the day.
My third suggestion is to take notes while you read. I’m not suggesting that if you are reading a book for pleasure you sit with a notebook and a pile of post its all the time, that will spoil your enjoyment. However, if you are doing as I have suggested and you decide to re-read an old favourite, actively make notes and highlight things as you read (I say highlight – and I know some of you will be able to put marks in your books – but personally I use small page marker sticky tabs and put them on the first line of quote I want to find again).
Write down phrases that you enjoy and words you want to look up, whatever it is that catches your eye, make a note so you don’t forget it.
You may want to research words you have read that you aren’t familiar with, pay attention to the punctuation used by a particular writer… whatever it is that has caught your eye, note it down.
Finally, I recommend starting. a reading journal. It doesn’t have to be detailed and extensive – although it can be if you would enjoy that – but make a note of the books you read and what you think of them. You can make note of any take away messages or thoughts about them. That way if you have your memory pricked while you are reading, or writing, something in the future, you have a quick reference for where to look for a similar theme or style of writing. It saves you wading through all your books to find what you are looking for. It is also a great way to make you stop and think about what you have just read and to embed the content and author etc in your mind more effectively.
I hope that if you are a writer, you already understood the value of reading, but if not I hope I have given you some food for thought. Reading is good for your mental health as well as for your writing. It is proven to lower blood pressure, among other things, and reading is NEVER a waste of time. Everything you read informs and educates you, even if you don’t agree with it, or like the writing style, and learning is never a bad thing.
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