Reading as a writer

We’ve all heard it: a writer should also be a reader. But it’s easy to let that slip when life gets in the way, especially if what has brought you to this blog is your need to fit your writing into ten-minute bursts throughout the day or week.

That’s why I also recommend reading no matter what—even if it’s also in short spurts. It can be unsatisfying if you’re used to curling up with a novel in the evenings and really falling into the world the author has created. In that case, ten-minute reading can seem more appropriate to Buzzfeed articles or Facebook. But personally, I’ll take what I can get, even if it means I don’t get several consecutive hours of reading time for several weeks.

If you’ve tried to prioritize reading before and it hasn’t worked, consider these tips:

Read short stories. If you haven’t yet discovered the awesomeness that is the short story, go to nearest bookstore or library and pick up a copy of Best American Short Stories. As the title suggests, this anthology contains some of the best American work published in a given year. When you find a really great story, make a note of the author’s name—and the literary journal in which it was first published. That will give you an idea of where to find similar short stories, and the author may have written a novel you’d love to read when your schedule dies down a bit.

Read in your genre. It’s imperative to read in whatever genre you write in, no matter how busy you are. If you have traditional publishing goals and can’t tell an agent a recently published book that’s comparable to yours—or worse, if you say, “I don’t actually think [insert genre here] is very good, but my book is the magical exception”—you come across as someone who’s not serious about the craft of writing or the long journey to publication. So reading in your genre is worth it even though you won’t get to finish an entire novel in an hour, like you can with a short story. But taking longer to finish someone else’s book is worth it if it will help you finish your book.

Read outside your genre. Sometimes you need to switch gears, to focus on writing in a way that doesn’t directly relate to your WIP, in order to make the breakthroughs that will keep you going in your work. As a prose writer, I love reading The Southern Review—the whole thing, including the poems. I haven’t written poems since college, but they keep me well-rounded, sharpen my sense of imagery, and give me a break without turning off my brain.

Take notes. This helps the time-strapped writer in a couple important ways. First, you can jot down little reminders of what has already happened so you don’t read a lot of plot points, have to take a weeklong break, forget half of the important things, and end up rereading fifty pages. Second, you can increase your knowledge of the craft of writing by conducting your own independent study. When you come across a particularly moving passage or a deftly handled plot twist, make a note of it. Study it when your mind is clear. You may find some new techniques that will help your own WIP or even a story or book or screenplay you haven’t envisioned yet.