Do Good Writers Need To Consistently Read?

In my opinion, some people believe that writers aren’t real writers if they don’t have their nose deep in novels or short stories.  Of course, reading others’ work does help and can make an individual more knowledgeable about the craft. However, there are also great writers out there and great novels alike, one doesn’t single out the other.  I only recently got into reading books and I’ve found I enjoy more academic books where I learn about certain subjects to better understand myself.  For instance, I recently got into meditation and since I enjoy music, I’ve found that the similarities of learning about how the two interact can be life changing.  

Can A Non-Active Reader’s Writing Be More Unique?

Sometimes, I wonder what my quality of work would look like if I made an effort to read novels and short stories, and if were to do so, would others’ work would alter my voice as a writer?  I wonder as I don’t read novels or short stories, and even so, I feel I have found my unique voice as a writer.  A lot of writers can be very good, but lack a unique voice. It’s true that reading makes you knowledgeable and you definitely learn how a story is put together, but if your writing makes sense you don’t have to read.  

Although reading others’ work can help with inspiration, sometimes over analyzing others’ work can be stifling when creating original work.  I think it’s more interesting when a writer writes really well and doesn’t read because as usually assumed, great writers read.  My mom thinks I write as if I were literate.  She’s always impressed that I can write so well and I barely read since I didn’t start out writing by first reading.  Even though I struggle to comprehend what I read, I’ve always wanted to learn and understand what goes on in a story, so I can get lost in the stories of other people’s lives other than mine.

My Future Goals As A Writer

One of my goals is to be able to read a novel and grasp what is happening in a story.  I never read novels because reading comprehension is so difficult because of my visual processing difficulties.  However, if I read a novel without any expectations of understanding the text, I will have improved my reading ability simply by reading.

I would like to be an avid reader since I love words so much.  However, I’ve always wanted to have a conversation with the book; I learn to read without analyzing the text, asking questions and notating.  When you read a book and you don’t have a conversation with the book you are passively reading.  On the other hand, an active reader is a reader who asks questions, annotates and thinks critically.  The reason I feel I’m a passive reader is not because I don’t want to be an active reader, but because I have always found it really difficult to comprehend what I’m reading.  One of my goals is to learn those skills.  Being able to think critically while reading will help only make me smarter.  Personally, I feel I am an extremely analytical person who thinks critically and is very inquisitive in general, so once I learn the skill I will probably be really great at reading.  

The Benefits Of Reading

There are many benefits of reading.  Reading also makes people more empathetic because readers learn about other cultures and experiences others have in the world.  I think it’s important to be aware of what is going on in the world, what has happened in the world and how people’s past and present affects them. 

The Benefits Of Writing

If any of you dream of being a writer, just know that you don’t have to be an avid reader to be an avid writer.  All you have to do is start writing.  You can step into a whole new world when you begin writing. The first step is to sit down and write and if you are stuck, you can get inspiration from people talking around you or from your friends’ experiences or your experiences.  I hope that you start writing one day because it is very cathartic.  Have fun on your writing journey!