by Marilla Mulwane

Created on: November 19, 2009   Last Updated: November 21, 2009

One thing I was told many times when I was in college taking writing courses was to read, read, read. I was told it was an important part of being a writer and was one of the many ways I could become a better writer. How does reading help you learn to write? Lots of reasons:

-Read your genre to find out what works-

As a fantasy writer, I have read what seems like tons of fantasy novels of all types. I have tackled the most popular books of now and the past, as well as lesser-known novels. By reading these books, I get a look at what works and does not work in the fantasy genre. I learn what has been done a hundred million times and I know to stay away from it, or to try find a different angle on it. Vampires are a perfect example of that.

This is important for all writers of every genre. By reading the works of other authors who write what you write, you will learn what you might need to do differently, or even the same. You want your voice to be different, to stand out, but at the same time you want to write a story that the world will love because it is what they expect from that genre. You need to learn what that is.

-Reading gives you ideas-

No, this does not mean you steal another writer's idea. However, books can help spawn new and different ideas. A passage in a story might make an idea pop into your head and you will have your next bestseller. Reading for ideas is not limited to just books. Read a magazine or even the newspaper. All of them will give you ideas, something that interests you enough to make you want to write about it.

-You will learn to discern the difference between "good" and "bad" writing-

Let's face it, not every book that has been published is good or even worth reading. Many, many books will make you ponder and wonder how it got into print when yours has not yet. How do you know that it is bad? From reading. When you read a lot of books, your mind easily picks up some of the subtle things that make a book a masterpiece or piece of garbage. Some of the obvious things are a predictable storyline, cliched characters, choppy prose, and unrealistic dialogue. As a human being, you use your instincts when you read, your own emotional reaction to what you read dictating whether you like a book or not. As a writer, you need to learn to use more just your emotions to judge a book, but to use your mind to find some of the bad techniques that were listed above. Yes, this takes practice and lots of reading.

Someday, pick up a book you used to

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