I was speaking to a group of high school students recently as part of a career day at my daughter's school. As part of my talk I asked 1) what the kids wanted to write/what field of writing they were looking to pursue and 2) what kind of books/print material they read.
The answers to the question of what they wanted to do "when they grew up" came fast and furious but when it came to the question of what books they had read or were reading... there was silence. I felt as if I had been sucked into a vacuum as I waited for the answer. Finally, one boy in the room held up a Terry Goodkind novel to show what he was reading. The others, well, reading apparently doesn't figure into their lives! I was astounded.
How, I asked them, can you be a writer if you aren't a reader? How would you know "good" writing from "bad"? Would they skim the titles in the NY Times bestseller list to see what they "should" be reading? Do they have opinions -- good, bad, or indifferent -- about the titles that appear. Let's face it, "good" books are subjective. I have tried to read some NYT bestsellers and barely made it past chapter one. But, the point is, I do read. I explore words.
What kind of writer would you be if you didn't have something to compare your works to? How do you learn to break the rules of writing if you don't know subtle ways of breaking them and, more importantly, why to break them?
Whether you read blogs, books, or newspapers, feeding your brain a daily dose of words, phrases, cliches, or simply awful prose is a way to 1) expand your own vocabulary and 2) avoid writing that is horrible. (Who hasn't heard, or read about "It was a dark and stormy night..." Sure it works for Snoopy,
but in "real" writing, unless you are using it as a joke, avoid it at all costs. If, however, you think you have the absolute worst opening line, then by all means submit it to the Bulwer Lytton awards... oh yeah, you don't read, so you wouldn't know a bad line if it jumped off the page and bit you.
My words of advice, for those who read them today(!) are, read, read, read -- it will make you a better writer. Mark my words.
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