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Hey guys, this week our weekly discussion is from Brandon Miller.

(oh. me.)

How and What to Read as Writers:

Okay so, we’re all writers, right? We weave words and spin tales and generally have a good go at reality. For most of us though, our love for stories started on the other side of the experience — as readers. Now that we’re writing, it’s sometimes… weird to go back to reading. How many of you have put down a book (at least temporarily) in frustration, because you would have written a scene/line of dialogue/plot twist differently than the actual author? I sure have. But we can’t stop reading. (Not just because we shouldn’t, but because we cannot, as the saying goes, “stop anytime.”) So, how should we handle our reading habit in light of our love of writing? Here’s a few of my thoughts:

Consume Books

I know some writers who, simply put, don’t read.

Don’t be one of those people, please.

You can’t perform on an empty stomach, and your imagination can’t write without the fuel of other stories. You’ll learn so much about different genres, narrative styles, and story mechanics just by reading a lot of other stories.  Find ways to get stories into your head. I, for one, do not like audiobooks. But, as a landscaper, I end up with a lot of time to listen to them. I’m signed up for audible now and working on being a more consistent listener, even when I’m too busy to read. If that works for you, great. If you need to come up with a different method for getting books read, do it. (I recommend signing up for goodreads if you haven’t yet. My reading output about doubled once I could post reading progress where my friend could see it. That’s how my brain works. Just find what works for you.)

Read Your Genre (Especially the Greats)

What do you write? Fantasy? Historical Fiction? How much of it have you read? I write sci-fi, and how much have I read? Not much. About two years ago, I could say I hadn’t really read any. I’ve been making a concerted effort to get more of it on my shelfs and in my mind, and it has noticeably improved my writing.) I still haven’t read a lot of good sci-fi from last century, but I’ve got some Bradbury and Wells locked and loaded on my shelf. (And I am excited.)

When you read in your genre, pay attention to your genre’s strengths. If you’re writing romance (or horror), character development is key. If you’re reading speculative fiction, pay attention to story building and plot twists. Learn how to write a good story in your genre and then…

Read Outside Your Genre

Speculative fiction is not necessarily known’ for its character development. Having grown up reading fantasy (and more recently sci-fi) I honestly had no idea what character development even looked like until I picked up a couple contemporary books. One that really struck a chord with me (and this is not a recommendation) was John Green’s Turtles All the Way Down. The book had issues and I didn’t even really enjoy it, but the main character was SO DIFFERENT than me in like every possible way, but while I was reading the book I became her. It was so immersive, I almost became a germaphobe overnight.

Reading outside of your genre, (or just outside of your usual author, age-range, and sub-genre) will open your eyes to blind spots in your craft you didn’t even know you had.

Read Philosophy/Ethics

This is the stuff powerful stories are made of. Find a really tough ethical issue, find the Biblical solution, write the story. (I recommend you start with some Greg Bahnsen. Great stuff.)

Read Theology

To quote (or at least paraphrase) Steve Laube, “if you’re not in your Bible every day, stop writing.” You can’t teach the truth if you don’t know the Truth. Not all theology is boring. You, as an individual and as a writer, need to be growing closer and closer to Jesus.  Read your Bible and other theological books. Make sure you’re teaching the truth.

That’s all I’ve got for today. Keep writing, keep reading, and keep loving words.

So, what have y’all read recently? How has it impacted your writing?

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