Read If You Want To Be A Writer

Agatha Christie, (15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English crime novelist, short story writer, and playwright.

It's a dream, an aspiration for many would-be writers to become a well-known author with dozens of books published-recognized by both readers and publishers; sought after by fans; pestered by autograph hunters. But for very few does this take the form of reality. For the rest, the dream remains a delusion – a mere fancy.

It's a truth universally acknowledged that no one becomes a writer instantly. This absorbing and inspiring creative activity requires imagination, perseverance, lateral thinking, a kernel of good ideas, some solid research, a full box of dedication and, last but not least, lots of time. Another important factor that helps a writer immensely is reading. Reading helps a writer just as water helps a plant to flourish.

The foremost question here is “what to read?”

The answer is simple. One should read anything and everything. From cartoons to journals, from romance to horror, mystery, fantasy, comics, history, science fiction etc. One should read the world as if it were a text, consuming it and finding words to convey those experiences, and finally weaving them into stories. This is what a writer does – turns the world into text so that there is even more to read, even more to write.

Films, poems, stories, plays, song, lyrics – whatever one reads, has read, will read – will filter into their own writing. According to the novelist John Gardner, “How you write is always an expression, a consequence, of what you have learned from reading. You learn from them, correct in your own work what you dislike in the work of others, pay tribute to work you admire, establish yourself in the tradition.”

There exists a unique relationship between reading and writing. Even the great authors of history have been influenced by reading. For instance, Virgil modeled 'The Aeneid' on Homer's epic poems. 'Paradise Lost' is an attempt to do in English what was done in Latin and Greek. Samuel Beckett's doleful plays are partly inspired by the great clowns of stage and screen. Jane Austen was a writer formed most of all by reading. She admired Richardson. She even copied his epistolary method for 'Sense and Sensibility'.

Reading immediately before writing is what some writers call: 'priming the pump.' It's a good way to warm up before starting a day's writing. Whether we call it 'warming up' or 'priming the pump', there is no doubt that reading helps a writer enormously. All aspiring writers should keep on reading and writing and one day their books might also be published, waiting for a reader, a fresh writer to read and learn from it. Bonne Lecture!