For The L♥ve of Reading discussion

here's something i was thinking about as i drove to the library yesterday.

do you find that you are a better writer because you read more?

does your desire to write correlate with what you read? in other words, do you read the genres you would most like to publish within?

how many of you write daily? journal, poetry, random thoughts?

do you find yourself drawn to reading because you enjoy writing? or vice versa?

I don't know if reading as much as I do actually changes my writing itself, but it definitely sparks my creativity and gets ideas swirling around inside my head.

I hope to be a YA writer someday. As a result of this, I read as many YA novels as I can get my hands on. They are not the only thing I read, but they do make up a large chunk.

I find that I can't write daily, although I do try to. I can only write when I feel inspired which is sadly not all of the time.

I think I'm a better writer because I read more. I think it helps that I read all genres though, giving me a taste of the whole buffet. It helps me to notice the difference between "crappy" writing and really good writing. There is this author who uses the most amazing imagery, so even if I don't really like the story he's written, I can definitely appreciate his use of vocabulary.

I would like to write YA fantasy, so Kristen, that is also what makes up the largest chunk of my reading. I try to write as often as I can, but sometimes that doesn't include everyday. Sometimes I'm too emotionally distraught to write, like the day was too crazy to put anything to paper.

I carry around 2 notebooks with me to write in and I find it helps to doodle pictures to stimulate my thoughts. I was always a reader, so I think that is what stimulated my love of writing. Someday I hope to publish my novel, but I'll have to finish it first. :P

i used to journal quite a bit when i was younger, but i was very inconsistent (as shown through several incomplete journals). i find it interesting to read these pages now, as an adult, and marvel at the portions of my life that i did find worthy of putting to the page.

my writing today is limited to summers and vacation time from school.

i also keep track of things my daughters says that are particularly funny or wonderfully profound (she's only five).

I haven't written daily in years but I use to write poetry and in my journal I still do a journal when I'm having a bad day or even a very good day. Also if I feel "funky" I'll write and sometimes it makes me feel better.

I write but I have one writing day. I am in a job search so I can't write as much as I would like to. I had a friend suggest I start writing because of how much I read. I just picked up writing book reviews for another website in hopes of gaining experience.

I think writing and reading often go hand-in-hand. Someone whose brain is hard-wired for writing is going to naturally be a reader. I don't think it necessarily runs the other way though. When I taught, I found that my students who were naturally good writers also were well-read. The students who enjoyed reading and really got into their books though weren't always good writers.

i have to agree karli. i have a lot of good writers that are also big readers. but many of my students that read the most aren't necessarily my best writers. i should make that a thesis or something!!

Jo wrote: "I only started reading a lot, a couple of years ago. Before that i would read a few books a year. This year i have already read 30! Anyway, since i started to read more i have found that my writing..."


i think it's great that you are a reader at any point. i might be regretful that you missed some good reads along the way, but you can make up for lost time now! and we can never read all the books we desire, can we?

good luck with the book. keep writing even if it's just for yourself.

Elizabeth wrote: "i have to agree karli. i have a lot of good writers that are also big readers. but many of my students that read the most aren't necessarily my best writers. i should make that a thesis or somet..."

Are you going back to school? Thesis became such an ugly word for me. :P

Karli wrote: "Elizabeth wrote: "i have to agree karli. i have a lot of good writers that are also big readers. but many of my students that read the most aren't necessarily my best writers. i should make that..."

no way! but if i were .....

I don't write. I used to write. But I stopped. I don't have the passion for it.

I LUUUURV writing. And reading does make me a better writer.

Elizabeth wrote:
do you find that you are a better writer because you read more?

Definitely. Absolutely. If I hadn't read all those fantasy books, I'd never have learned that "roan" is a certain color of a horse, and that "coif" is a fancy hairdo and a thousand other words that I would never have heard in day-to-day life.
My language wouldn't be as rich as it is without my having read all the books I've read. Besides being a better writer, I'm also way better at Boggle :P.

I don't know if anyone has favorite words, but I do. Coif/coiffed is indeed one of my favorite (His hair was perfectly coiffed). This one I learned from a movie, not a book, but there are so many I learn from reading. (I still suck at word games though. my mind blanks when timing is involved)

I agree, I have favorite words as well! Of course I'm drawing a blank on them now...

Superfluous. LOVE that word! :)

One of my most favorites is the word usurp. Its been my favorite for years. I just love the way it sounds.

in english...right now i cant remember any, but in portuguese my favoite word is a big word for 'kiss'

I love the word serendipity.

Exsanguinate.

i really like the way 'x's sound..gzzzzz

Elizabeth wrote: "I love the word serendipity."

Yep - that one is awesome! :)

Elizabeth wrote: "I love the word serendipity."

Yes - I love that one too.

Kristen wrote: "Exsanguinate."

I definitely had to look that word up, I love it!

Inconceivable! good word cause it brings about an entire slue of quotes...

LMOA - most of them come from "The Princess Bride", no?

Kristen wrote: "Exsanguinate."

Ugh - seriously, one of my elizazbeth quotes was SUPPOSED to be for your word Kristen. :) So sooooo much better than "bled to death"

Ha, I think that's my favorite word of all time and it is definitely better than "bled to death!"