Writers as Readers

When I read, its location, location, location. Just kidding, location isn't all that important. I just need to be able to tune out whatever noise is going on around me. Otherwise, I need a somewhat comfortable temperature, and a snack if I'm hungry, and also a chair. I don't read while standing, and reading on the floor is not ideal. I've read a lot of places. Because I have older siblings, I've had many boring experiences during my sibling's various activities. I have read through many practices and long car rides.

The authors I imitate are the authors that I like. I don't think about imitating them when I write, but I probably imitate them nevertheless. Also, there are authors that I don't like, and I try not to imitate them. Mostly authors that try to be descriptive and flowery, but don't pull it off. A lot of Christian romance novels are like that. I don't know about other romance novels, but I guess they are probably similar. I don't appreciate sentences like this one: "The townspeople of Hagenheim craned their necks as they peered down the cobblestone streets, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Duke of Hagenheim's two handsome sons." Alright, so that sentence really isn't that bad. The problem is that sentences of this type have a building effect, coupled with over-dramatic heroines, etc, etc... The point is, there are certain species of author I hope not to imitate.

I have read several books that I could not put down. When I was younger, I loved to read and had time for it. At that point in my life, almost everything I read was something that I could not put down. I just like to read, so any book worth reading is hard for me to put down. However, in recent years something called school happened. Now I have to be more disciplined. The days are gone when I could come home from school or practice and read until dinnertime. There have been books that are harder to finish, like most nonfiction. I enjoy reading the genre if I am reading something that is interesting. Nevertheless, nonfiction has always been harder for me to sit down and read for hours.

I do think that people who read a lot pick up new ideas and techniques for writing. Reading also trains your ear. After your ear is trained, you know what 'sounds good' to your reading ear. Once you know what sounds good, the different sentence structures will naturally follow.