Reading for Writers

Okay, so this is kind of a confessional post. I don't read very much. There, I've said it.

As a writer starting out, one of the most common pieces of advice you are given is READ. Read other authors, read best sellers, read classics, read poetry, read, read, read.

Stephen King says it's the most important thing for a writer to do. While I would be foolish to ignore the advice of such an esteemed author, I have to admit, I do ignore him.

Writing isn't easy. It doesn't just fall into your lap. It takes a good idea, some time to get the idea down, then lots of drafts and revisions. Often a finished story won't even resemble the original thought. I can take months to actually finish a story, or it might pop out in a day. So writing takes time.

I write in the evenings. I've got kids that need wrangling in the day, along with chores, housework, and life in general, so I write at night. I might start at 9 pm, and I'll generally finish at 2 am. Now, I won't be writing for every minute of those 5 hours. I'll be drinking tea, reading over my writing, googling very important research, drinking more tea, maybe do a bit of writing, etc. So yeah, not that much time in my day for actual writing.

I've also started writing quite late in life, so time is precious commodity. I have stories upon stories in my "To do" file. I've got novels to write, short stories, poetry, plays, all sorts. And those are just my personal ideas. I like to collaborate too, so then I'm locked into a time-frame with another author.

What I'm trying to say,, is that I've no spare time to read other authors. It sounds lame, but there it is. And it's not like I don't enjoy reading. Quite the contrary, I love it. I take some solace in the fact that before I started writing, I read a lot, so I do have those hours and ideas in my head somewhere.

Still, there's that nagging feeling that I am neglecting my craft. As a musician you listen out for melodies, chord sequences, textures, etc, that you can use to enhance your own musical style. It should be the same for writing. I'm sure Mr. King is right. Reading is the art of finding tools to improve your own work.

There is one other reason I don't read very much. Whenever I read while in the middle of writing something, I tend to take on traits of the author by osmosis. If I was reading Tolkien, my writing would get very setting-heavy, and if I was reading Kerouac, it would lean to the more esoteric, stream-of-consciousness end of things. And I hate that. Half my battle as a new writer is finding my voice. Having that signature style is basically the most important thing a writer can have. But giving your writing personality is the hardest part. Anyone can recite events. The magic of a story is all in getting "you" into the piece. So any outside source that I read, tends to colour my writing way too much.

Anyway, that's my problem with reading. If any of you finds a solution, let me know. I've a bookshelf full of lonely books that would appreciate it.

M.