As a Writer, I’ve Been Reading More Than Writing
Here’s why you should try it too.
Do writers take a break? Or do they keep writing for weeks and months? There’s always that dilemma of the balance between reading and writing.
There are thousands of writing tips out there — clubs, Facebook groups, and blogs down to specifics about the tips they provide. And the most important among the best tips is always to read.
But it never tells how much to read and how to come about balancing between the two.
Giving out writing tips on my own blog, I’ve come to realize that I’ve never mentioned this myself either. But to consider, here’s how I’ll put it out:
There are no fixed hours to how much you read. Make reading a hobby and watch yourself immerse in.
The Importance of Reading for Writers
What happens if you stop reading as a writer? Nothing, actually. You’ll keep writing the way you do now.
But that’s not what we want, do we? No one likes to read a monotonous form of writing. And those who do enjoy probably read pieces written by other writers as well.
Reading ultimately brings more life to the things you write about. I believe, whether consciously or not, it brings more personality to the articles.
Not to mention, there are tons of other benefits — It helps break the writer’s block, improves one’s vocabulary, helps find what’s trending on the market, and so forth.
It helps break the writer’s block, improves one’s vocabulary, find what’s trending on the market, and so forth.
Taking a break from writing itself makes an adequate difference when you’ve been writing for long treacherous hours.
But try relaxing by holding up a book you’ve always wanted to read in one hand and a coffee in the other.
How Much I Read this Sunday Morning
I was about to begin working on my latest post on my blog when I got distracted by the trending hashtag #SundayMorning on Twitter.
A moment’s thought and I decided to take a turn from my usual routine and picked up the book I’d half-read — Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol.
I read for 3 hours straight before getting back on my latest post. That’s when I reread the bit of the 400 words I’d written in the morning.
It was boring. Compared to what I’d been reading, my writing looked absolutely dull. That’s when it hit me.
I realized I’d been focusing a bit too much on SEO and less on writing.
The article would definitely hit the search engines. But would anyone find its content worth reading word-to-word? Would anyone find it worth subscribing for?
Unless you’re writing about a very specialized niche, they can find their desired answer on any other page. Why choose yours?
The way you write matters.
Making a boring-ass topic sound interesting is a skill. Get your readers to like you with your writing.
Tell them a fun fact. Humor them. And most importantly, read — it’ll make you a better writer ;)
