What do the writers read?

[ANNIE]

I was just curious about what books you like to read when you're not writing.

Who are your favorite authors? Favorite books, you know the ones you read over and over again.

Me? I'm exremly eclectic in my reading from Tolkien, to Nora Roberts. I read for pure escapism and have currently discovered Robert Crais and his Elvis Cole series. Also love Jennifer Roberson, Michael Connelly, Lee Childs, Jonathon Kellereman, and Terry Brooks-- for starters!

[Perks]

I recently finished Hugh Laurie's novel, The Gun Seller. It was so good that I don't want to read anything else for a bit. It'll just be a letdown. It's a certain kind of humor that doesn't resonate with everyone, but it's also a spy thriller, so something for everyone... well, something for lots of people anyway. I thought it was fantastic.

[Richard White]

Anything by Glen Cook. His Garrett P.I. series is my current most favorite, as he does a beautiful blending of noir and fantasy.

The latest books in the Star Trek series. Partly because I'm a fan of the shows/books, partly because I know most of the authors and partly because I'm using them for research for a possible book. (Gotta love tax write-offs that are also fun.)

Just started the Black Jewel Trilogy by Anne Bishop

Currently reading "The Land that Time Forgot" by E.R. Burroughs. I found a 1924 1st American Printing at Shore Leave this weekend. I'm being VERY careful turning those pages, doncha know? ;)

Other authors I enjoy: Katherine Kurtz, Anne McCaffery, Tee Morris, Barbara Hambly, Holly Black, Tony Ruggerio, Steve Roman, Roger Zelazny, Robert Asprin, Fred Saberhagen (his Dracula books and his Berserker series), and a slough of other authors.

[KTC]

Favourites? hmmmm...

Michael Chabon
JD Salinger
Jonathan Lethem
Jane Urquhart
Dave Eggers
John Kennedy Toole
Sylvia Plath
David Sedaris
Mark Twain
Anne Rice
Stephen King
Naguib Mahfouz
Bohumil Hrabal
etc, etc, etc.

[triceretops]

Poul Anderson (my late, great wonderful mentor)

Joseph Wambauh
Allan Dean Foster
Pete Benchley

Try to combin irony, humor and tragedy all in one book, and you have these examples. Plus style. Oh, yeah!

Tri

[BenMears]

At moment I am reading three books: "Lessons from a Lifetime of Writing" by David Morrell, "The Keep" by F. Paul Wilson, and "A Working of Stars" by a favorite uncle.

Long-time favorites include: Stephen King, Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, Elmore Leonard, John D. MacDonald, JRR Tolkien, John Le Carre, ER Burroughs, A. Conan Doyle, Wilkie Collins, Alexandre Dumas (pere), Robert Louis Stevenson.

[veinglory]

The books right by my bed now:


* Robin Hood by Howard Pyle (ah, nostalgia)
* The Velvet Trap by Kirk Westley ('she spent one night with a woman--and never wanted a man again', 'nuff said--1970's yellowback)
* Caedmon's Song by Peter Robinson (psyc thriller)
* The Doyle Diary (copy of a scrapbook made by Arthur Conan Doyle's father in an asylum)
* The Romance Revolution: erotic novels for women and the qyest for a new sexual identity by Carol Thurston

[Carlene]

Ah, too numerous to list! One of my all time favorite authors is Joy Fielding - her "Whispers & Lies" is a super mystery. I don't know what happened to her lately but her last two book were ... not good. Still love "The Silence of the Lambs," some early Stephen King - like "Misery." Oh, stop me before my hands cramp!

Carlene
www.crdater.com (http://www.crdater.com)

[Azure Skye]

Right now I'm reading:

Witches, Roald Dahl
Jenna's Freelancing book

I've been spending a lot of time studying Agatha Christie. I love Poirot! And, to break up the monotony of life I'll grab one of the Dragonriders of Pern books by Anne McCaffrey.

[conniekay]

I just finished Janet Evanovich's "Eleven On Top" her 11th installment of the Stephanie Plum series - I'm hopelessly hooked.

I'm also reading:

"Scarred by Struggle, Transformed by Hope" by Joan D. Chittister (who is a Nun) - I'm reading this because a. I just lost my job two weeks ago, b. I'm caring for my ill aged parents, and c. my writing isn't exactly paying the bills...yet.

"A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole - Recommended in a Writer's Digest article. Toole wrote it in the 1960's, commited suicide in 1969 at 32 years old, and his Mother persisted and finally got it published in 1980. I just had to read it with that kind of history.

I'm also reading a book on writing resumes - but it doesn't seem nearly as interesting as the other books.

Sorta of a strange collection of readings; but it keeps things interesting.

Connie

[sunandshadow]

I've been reading any historical romance which looks tolerable, preferably fantasy ones, trying to develop a better understanding of plots for this type of book (since that's sort of what my WIP is). Also reading non-fiction websites as research for developing my magic system.

[KimJo]

Since I write YA contemporary fantasy, it tends to be mostly what I read, along with other genres of YA. My only problem with it is my local library is woefully lacking in it YA section and every time I go to the bookstore there are just way too many good books to choose from.

[zarch]

John Grisham, Annie Proulx, Joyce Carol Oates, Jonathan Kellerman, and I recently read Some of My Best Friends are Writers, but I Wouldn't Want my Daughter to Marry One by Robert Turner...published in 1970 (so the content is a bit dated) but entertaining and at least a little bit informative nonetheless.

Oh, and baseball books...love baseball books.

[DragonHeart]

I read mostly fantasy, though I'm planning on branching into other genres, particularly non-fiction for a change of pace.

Right now I'm re-reading Dragon and Phoenix by Joanne Bertin and wondering if the third book will ever be put on the market.

I'm considering The Belgariad again as well, once I buy the last two books. I liked the first three, but it ended in the middle of an event. Curses.

Lately I've also been reading Michael Crichton's books again; I own copies of almost every book he's ever published.

~DragonHeart~

[Saanen]

Currently I'm rereading The Pirates! in an Adventure with Scientists by Gideon Defoe, which I highly recommend. It's very, very witty.

Mostly I read nonfiction. I love a well-written nonfiction book as much or more than an equally well-written fiction book.

[BlueTexas]

I'm currently reading The Dark Tower by Stephen King, and The Woman with the Alabaster Jar, non-fic about the Holy Grail.

Some current favorite authors are Margaret Atwood, Isabel Allende, Jonathan Franzen, John Irving and Edward Rutherford. The authors with the most shelf-space in my house are Stephen King, Anne Rice and Hemingway, closely follwed by Twain and Steinbeck.

[brinkett]

Mostly I read nonfiction.
I'm in the same boat. I buy and read about one fiction book for every ten nonfiction books.

I just finished Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas by Elaine Pagels. I've just started The Jesus Mysteries: Was the Original Jesus a Pagan God? by Timothy Freke. Waiting in line are The Spiral Staircase by Karen Armstrong and Blood Storm by Colin Forbes.

In addition, I'm reading several books on publishing. I find that I can read only one fiction book at a time. However, I can read numerous nonfiction books and keep them all straight in my head.

[hpoppink]

I'm currently reading:

Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss
Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde
1984 by George Orwell
Stranger in a Strange Land (unabridged) by Robert Heinlein
Quicker Than the Eye by Ray Bradbury

I usually don't read so many books at once, but I was doing one of UJ's assignments and wanted to find a good first chapter to type out. I got sucked into quite a few books that way ...

Choosing a random bookshelf: George R R Martin, C S Lewis, Tolkien, David Eddings, Robert Jordan, Anne Lamott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, George Bernard Shaw, dictionaries, computer science textbooks, and role playing materials.

[Button]

Me and Kim Jo are on the same page. YA Fantasy. Cornelia Funke, Garth Nix...

For fun, I read VC Andrews (I have since I was twelve and just keep buying them.) I like the Liam Hearn series. I'll read anything with an ancient Japanese or Chinese theme to it. I like mysteries that are in the olden days. (Sherlock Holmes, etc.)

I'll read the historical romances sometimes. I will pick up fantasy short stories if I can find those.

Um... other than that, it's just random turn of a book cover. And I do pick books based on the cover. Sorry. :p But I do.

[SeanDSchaffer]

I am currently reading Elvenborn by Andre Norton and Mercedes Lackey.


I also found an Anne McCaffrey book that I'll be reading probably soon after I'm done with the book I'm reading now. The Anne McCaffrey book is entitled The Skies of Pern.


Other favorite authors (and corresponding books) include:

George Orwell (Animal Farm)
Jane Yolen (Dragon's Blood and its sequels)
Piers Anthony (Dragon On A Pedestal; Heaven Cent)
Robert Louis Stevenson (Treasure Island)
Ernest Drake (Dragonology)
E.B. White (Charlotte's Web; Strunk & White's Elements of Style)
A.E. van Vogt (The World of (null) A; Slan)
Lawrence Yep (Dragon Steel)

[jules]

I've been reading so much diverse stuff lately I don't think I have any favourite authors any more. Looking at my 'recently read' and 'will read soon' stacks I see books by Anne Rice, Stephen Baxter, Ken Kesey, China Mieville, Sherri S Tepper, Wen Spencer (I'm currently awaiting the next 'Tinker' story with anxiety -- I made the mistake of reading the first chapter on her web site...), Raymond Feist.

The only threads: mostly SF & Fantasy, with a bit of literary fictino thrown in for good measure.

[Perks]

I'm currently reading The Dark Tower by Stephen King, and The Woman with the Alabaster Jar, non-fic about the Holy Grail.

Some current favorite authors are Margaret Atwood, Isabel Allende, Jonathan Franzen, John Irving and Edward Rutherford. The authors with the most shelf-space in my house are Stephen King, Anne Rice and Hemingway, closely follwed by Twain and Steinbeck.

I just read 'Woman With The Alabaster Jar.' Fascinating. Sent me back and I re-read 'Holy Blood, Holy Grail.' That's interesting too, but a bit of a chore.

[icerose]

I read just about every book from most genre's I can get my hands on. I like to visit the library and browse and read the backs of books. A few of my favorites

Mary Higgins Clark
John Grisham
Michael Crition (sp) *not his latest ones though too much language for my tastes*
Peter Benchley
Anne McCaffrey (when I was younger not so much now)

And many other authors I love but cannot remember their names off the top of my head. :D

[BlueTexas]

I'm currently reading:

Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss
.

I loved this book. Her historical asides were fascinating!

[Diviner]

I am fairly eclectic. Some fiction writers whose work I enjoy: Margaret Atwood, Michael Chabon, Louise Erdrich, Sue Grafton, Tony Hillerman, Sharon Kay Penman, Terry Pratchett, Annie Proulx, Anna Quindlen, and Anne Tyler.

I could just as easily add ten more, including books from childhood, few of which I have reread recently. I remember adoring Dumas and Scott as well as Tolkien. A whole raft of books on writing sits on my book shelf, all of which I read with interest and pleasure, including Stephen Frey, Stephen King, Annie Lamott, and William Zinsser.

[LightShadow]

I read everything I can get my hands on. After reading Shoeless Joe (the book that inspired the movie "Field of Dreams") I read Harry Potter, then Whiskey Sour (a mystery), then Steven King's On Writing, then the first three Lemony Snickett books, now Antartica by Kim Stanley Robinson (which by the way is good). I always have a book in my hand, except while I'm operating my construction equipment. Books at work are for break and lunch.

[Kiva Wolfe]

I avoid reading any fiction while I am writing, as it becomes too much of a distraction. I'd rather mindlessly zone out watching the TV news or do Yoga. I did enjoy Patricia Cornwell's Ripper book, though I passed on the peeking at some of the pictures.

[AprilBoo]

I'm reading The Da Vinci Code right now (two years after it matters) and trying to get through it as fast as I can because I have Ian McEwan's Saturday sitting on my bookshelf waiting for my attention. I want to read those before the end of the summer - one of my professors for the fall sent his reading list out and I've got ten novels and some non-fic to tackle between August and December.

[Jamesaritchie]

I avoid reading any fiction while I am writing, as it becomes too much of a distraction. I'd rather mindlessly zone out watching the TV news or do Yoga. I did enjoy Patricia Cornwell's Ripper book, though I passed on the peeking at some of the pictures.

I've heard others say the same thing, but I've never understood how not reading fiction while you're writing works? I write six days a week, forty-eight weeks per year, and I know many others who write more often than I do.

For a writer, I think the only thing more important than writing regularly is reading regularly, but if I didn't read fiction while writing it, I would literally never read anything.

If you don't read while writing fiction, then it would seem your either aren't reading often enough, or aren't writing often enough.