Anyone who knows me, knows that I am an avid reader as well as a writer. I tend to pick authors that I enjoy and read their entire body of work in chronological order. This not only brings me enjoyment, but it shows me their development as an author from their early to contemporary work.
One of my favorite authors is Stephen King. His early work is strong and definitely got stronger. When he suffered his accident and nearly died, his work suffered a bit after his recovery. He even threatened to retire, but thankfully, did not. I use him as an example because he also has one of my favorite quotes by an author:
If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time — or the tools — to write. Simple as that. – Stephen King
In the past eight months, I have written and published two novels and four short stories. I have also read somewhere around 20-25 books during that time. This may not sound unusual, but I also work 50-60 hours per week at my “day job”. How do I do this? Time management is one technique. Even though I work a lot of hours, I have a job where I travel to a destination early on Monday and return late on Thursday. There is a great deal of down time. Reading helps me to block out and reduce the stress of travel. It also makes flights pass by quickly. I often alternate reading and writing as I am on long flights. The writing depends upon my seating situation. If I am in a middle seat between to portly people, it is difficult to get out the laptop or tablet to write, so I resort to reading.
Before I started writing, reading was an escape. It was a way to de-stress from the pressures of my work and allowed me to relax and go to sleep. Since I have published my own work, it is also a way to assess other authors and look at their development as writers.
A prime example of this came to me through circumstance. A literary magazine reviewed my first book, Frankly Speaking, and compared my writing style to Elmore Leonard. I had heard the name and associated it with movies like “The Big Bounce” and “Get Shorty”, but I had never read any of Leonard’s work. I began reading from his very first novel, “The Bounty Hunters” which was published in 1953. It was a western, which took me by surprise. My book is a detective novel and I didn’t see the similarities. I’m not typically a reader of westerns, but stuck with Mr. Leonard. I noticed the lack of complex plots and well-developed characters in his early works. He also tended to end the novels abruptly without fleshing out the ending. Sixteen years and five novels later, he published “The Big Bounce”. It was his first non-western novel, but wasn’t really in the detective genre. I could, however, begin to see similarities in my use of dialog and narrative when compared to his work. I could also see his development as a writer over the 16 years.
An opposite example of this development would be in the work of James Patterson. I have read his work sporadically. I thoroughly enjoyed his early works, especially in the Alex Cross stories. His later work, however, is watered down. Most of his books these days (which seem to come out on a weekly basis) are “with” books. What I mean is that the cover will have James Patterson’s name in huge letters and then, somewhere at the bottom, there will be a line in smaller font that says “with …”. I have a feeling that the person whose name appears after the “with” is the actual writer and is writing books based on the James Patterson characters with his blessing (and substantial percentage of the profits). This is a phenomenon where a successful author has become a business and his books are like McDonalds franchise stores. I don’t read James Patterson books anymore.
My reading tends to be author and genre based. I read Harlan Coben, John D. MacDonald, and Jonathan Kellerman for the genre. I read Stephen King and Elmore Leonard for the writing style and enjoyment. I read Hugh Howey’s books because he has hit on the formula and success that all self-published authors aspire to. I also read non-fiction books that help me with my craft. These range from books on self-publishing to works by other authors that give writing advice. Stephen King’s book “On Writing” is one of the best that I have found. I use this as a reference book. Even if you don’t like King’s books, he gives great insight and a candid view into the mind of a writer. It is amazing, based on his youth, that he is alive, let alone a successful writer.
If you are, or aspire to be a self-published author, I recommend that you read books by your competition in your genre. You can learn a great deal from the successful authors and learn even more about what to avoid by reading authors that are not successful. You’ll marvel at the typos, grammatical errors, and other pitfalls that are the bane of self-publishing.
Again, I go back to Stephen King’s quote and paraphrase. If you are not reading, you shouldn’t be writing. Find or make the time to do it. You can’t write in a vacuum and expect to be successful.
Reblogged this on Author Don Massenzio and commented:
Check out this post from my ‘other’ site on the idea of authors as readers.
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Reblogged this on Anna Dobritt — Author.
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Thanks for sharing this, Anna.
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Reblogged this on Bette A. Stevens, Maine Author and commented:
Every #writer should #read this article by author Don Massenzio at DSM Publications! ~Bette A. Stevens, Maine author
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Thanks for sharing this.
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A pleasure, Don! 🙂
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An interesting post. I love reading, although my time for it is limited while I’m writing. (I haven’t even found time for my blog for a couple of months!) I do still read every night before sleep, even if it’s only a few pages. My preference is historical fiction but I also love a good mystery, with or without an historical setting. I definitely agree with the Stephen King quote.
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I read at night before bed as well. It helps me depressurize from the day. there are times when my iPad falls and hits me in the forehead when I doze off reading.
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Ha ha. That’s a fun image! I think many of us have experienced something similar. I read on my Kindle, which isn’t generally above my head to fall on me. Reading certainly helps people to nod off, probably because the focus is on whatever is being read and not day-to-day problems or anxieties.
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Great post, Don! I’ve always loved that quote by King, it really is so true. Now you’ve made me want to re-read “On Writing.”
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That is one of the best books that I’ve read on the discipline of writing. My copy is worn. I have it on Kindle so I can search for things and use it like a textbook.
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Advice that is well-worth heeding!
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I agree that writers need to be readers. I average somewhere between 60 and 80 books a year. I tend to read each night before bed. It helps me unwind before the end of the day, plus as a writer I couldn’t imagine it any other way. I read in a number of genres (plus nonfiction).
Way back in the day I used to read James Patterson but when he crossed into mixed POV (first and third) plus the winged kids, I stopped. It just isn’t work for me.
This is a great post, Don. Mr.King is right—all writers need to read.It just goes with the territory.
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I read a lot as well. I have my favorite authors; King, Grisham, Kellerman, etc. I’ve been trying to alternate their writing with indie authors this year. There are some good ones out there.
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Definitely!
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I read so much, Don, and agree wholeheartedly that every writer needs to read. My reading reflects my writing in that it’s multi-genre and eclectic. Thanks for this great post! 🙂
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You’re welcome, Harmony. I read both in my genre and outside of it. It’s both a study of writing and entertainment for me.
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Reading and writing stimulate the same areas of the brain, so yes, the two should go together to exercise those little gray cells!
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Agreed!
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I agree, Don. Reading gives us so much more knowledge to enhance our writing. The two go hand in hand.
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It also shows us what is successful and, sometimes, what not to do in our own writing.
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Yes, indeed it does.
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Your writing output is amazing, Don. This is a good post. 🙂 — Suzanne
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Thanks
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Great post, Don, and wise advice!
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Thanks so much. Thanks for stopping by.
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This is a wonderful post with great advice, Don. I’m not a novel writer, but everything you wrote makes perfect sense. Reading is a learning tool, but it also provides pleasure and a way to relax, diving into another world. I love that quote from Stephen King, and I’ve read a few books from James Patterson, the Alex Cross series, and liked his style, but haven’t read any of his newer books. Thanks for sharing!
~Lauren
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Thank you Lauren. I’ve learned a great deal from the famous authors, but as I read more works from Indie authors, they have a lot to offer as well.
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Reblogged this on Viv Drewa – The Owl Lady.
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Thanks for sharing this, Viv.
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Reading is vital to growth as an author. Thanks for sharing your time-management process, Don. I appreciate learning from fellow authors ❤️
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100% agree. I read 50/60 books a year – have done since I was a child. Since I started writing, probably 2/3rds of those books are indi produced. In the last few years especially, there has been a dramatic improvement in indi books. Unless I’ve just improved my selection, I’d say in many cases indi books match mainstream and in some cases are better than the big best sellers.
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When you look at authors like Hugh Howie, Mark Dawson and others and what they have done for the respectability of Indie authors, I think the boat are rising with the tide. Additionally, there are so many services available for indie authors to improve the quality of their work.
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