Do You Read When You Write?

ps1 · Oct 30, 2006

I'm a newbie to this site, so hello everyone. I've already found it very helpful. I've finished two manuscripts, working on a third. I was curious if anyone else reads other work while they work on their manuscripts?

I think it was Chuck Palahniuk who said that he didn't read anyone else because he doesn't want to pick up their style while he's writing.

However, I find myself getting ideas and inspiration when I read my favorite authors right before writing. Even though I've read their books over and over again, I still find them as a muse for myself before I write.

Does anyone else do this? And if so, who do you read?

For me, it's Chuck, Will Christopher Baer, Craig Clevenger, and Bret Easton Ellis.

KiwiChick · Oct 30, 2006

Hi ps1,

Welcome to the site!

I tend not to read so much when I'm writing just because I only have so much time, so it's either one or the other. That said, I do have a few favourite books in my genre that I go back to again and again when I'm runnng low on inspiration. I'm not concerned about "contaminating" my writing or anything (if I only I could write like them!), but I can't say I'm not subtly influenced (in a good way) by what I read.

(Sorry about the incoherence. I'm in a bit of a rush.)

KiwiChick

Nakhlasmoke · Oct 30, 2006

I don't do both at the same time, because it's hard to type while I'm reading.

Other than that, yeah, I read. If I stopped reading just because I was working on a book, I'd never get to read. And I think that I'm a reader before I'm a writer.

As for style, one of the things I do while writing something is look at how other, far better writers, have tackled things before me. For example, while I was stuck with some first person/third person scene jumps, I went and re-read Alias Grace to get a feel for how Margaret Atwood dealt with it. What I don't do is read books with the same or similar subject matter to what I'm writing, in case the actual story influences me.

inanna · Oct 30, 2006

When I'm really wrapped up in my own story, I often end up not reading out of sheer ADD. Sometimes all it takes is just a certain word to trigger my memory of a scene I just wrote, or phrase I've pictured my character saying, and then I'm off in alpha-wave land. It's very slow going trying to read in between brainstorms.

NicoleJLeBoeuf · Oct 30, 2006

I can't stop reading. I've gotten to the point where I can't get to sleep at night without a book. But if I'm worried about style bleed-over, usually I chose something that's really, really different. It's good to read outside the genre, anyway.

Recently I discovered the use of reading something I hate. Knowing full well I'd get fed up with it by page 100, I picked up Sheri S. Tepper's The Fresco at the library. It is probably the worst, most egregious example of her setting up strawmen and knocking them down with glee and schadenfreude. BUT. It was useful. And not only because her overuse of exclamation points makes me painfully realize how badly I was overusing them myself. But because for all the yuck, she was at least addressing the issue of "why did aliens decide to come to Earth, of all places?" which helped me look at the same issue in my own short story which I am still revising now. Got me moving in a good direction there.

It's surprising how often one has to answer the question, "Why exactly are the aliens there?"

(Tepper's older series The True Game is much better. When did she forget how to construct worlds with moral ambiguity? Sigh. I mean, she still has the Sage Who STands In For The Author And Preaches, but it's once in a while, not continuous. Most of the moral lessons are more subtle and complex. What the heck happened to her?)

The Lady · Oct 31, 2006

Aw, I used to love Sherri Tepper. I remember Grass. Loved that book. True Game as well, great book. Although I did note the moral stuff creeping in, but I just didn't identify it as such. I just used to get annoyed that she would assume we, readers and all were on the same side about various issues, and we just weren't, well, not me anyway. I used to overlook it cos she told a great story. Then I read Six Moon Dance and the story was pap, so I haven't bothered with her since. Anatomy of how to loose a fan, I suppose.

As to reading and writing, worst advice I ever got in a "How To Write" book was real writers don't write cos they haven't got the time. Rubbish.
Realistically speaking, you're not going to spend every waking hour writing, when it comes to downtime and relaxing, it's better for you as a writer if you relax while reading. Depending on what you read, you will

a, continue to improve your vocab and prose

b, observe other writers in action and see how they handled things

c learn new stuff, if it's not just fiction you are reading

d be inspired by brilliant writers to improve your game

e be consoled by rubbish writers getting published and realise the publishing world is crying out for you to finish your masterpiece and submit it at once so they can stop publishing this drek. (On a good day anyway)

CaroGirl · Oct 31, 2006

I'm always reading. I can't not read. At least one novel is on the go at any one time.

However, if you think reading a novel while writing one might influence your work, try reading other things. Read non-fiction books, newspapers (of course), magazines, literary jourals, short story collections, cook books. The list of things you could read that are not novels is almost endless.

aadams73 · Oct 31, 2006

Count me in with those who "read all the time." I'm at the point where I've found my own voice now, so reading others' work doesn't affect what I'm writing. Carogirl is right, there's tons of other written work out there besides fiction, so just pick something.

Amiton · Oct 31, 2006

I don't so much worry about picking up another author's voice or being influenced or something. My problem is once I get an idea in my head I end up focusing on it intently until it runs its course.

As such, I tend to not read books while I'm writing. On the other hand, reading a novel in between finishing and revising a draft works really well for me!

Amiton.

Shadow_Ferret · Oct 31, 2006

ps1 said:
I think it was Chuck Palahniuk who said that he didn't read anyone else because he doesn't want to pick up their style while he's writing.

If it was that easy to pick up someone else's style, I'd be reading everything by King, Koontz, Crichton, et al until I picked up their style of success.

So, yes, I read while I write, and no I don't believe I've picked up anyone else's style, unfortunately. It's still my own crap I'm writing.

Jack_Roberts · Oct 31, 2006

I do. I used to be worried about that but a friend pointed out that the more different authors you read, the more you’ll stick to your own style instead of copying any one of them.

Jack_Roberts · Oct 31, 2006

Amiton said:
My problem is once I get an idea in my head I end up focusing on it intently until it runs its course.

I hear that! She just won't allow for reading breaks!

Still, I need something for the bathroom...

PeeDee · Oct 31, 2006

You know what's interesting, I was just talking about this yesterday to someone.

When writing short stories or scripts -- things which tend to be more mechanical and instinctual than anything -- I can read whatever I want, and generally read a couple of novels at a time.

When it comes to writing longer works, be it a novel or a series, I've noticed recently that I tend to get "stuck" in my reading. That is to say, I'll have five or six books that I just keep reading over and over again while I write. They tend to be books I already know very well. It's like that gear jams while the other ones are spinning.

sammyig · Oct 31, 2006

I am always reading something. I personally have never had a problem accidentally picking up someone else's style, but maybe that is because I have a unique writing style. I don't know.

ChaosTitan · Oct 31, 2006

I don't read as much as I should, period. Lately I have been spending the majority of my free time banging away at my WIP (and visiting my pals here at AW). But I did finish reading a novel last week (Yay me!), the first I've managed to finish since August.

I think one of my other issues (besides time) is that I tend to gravitate toward books with a similar writing style to my own. It keeps me fresh, and I feel like my own prose gets a kick in the pants. If I can't get into a book within fifty pages, I don't read it, hence the lack of finishing novels lately.

But I have a hundred others waiting to be tried out, so I won't run out of books in the near future. I just need to better balance my writing and reading time.

K_Woods · Oct 31, 2006

The Lady said:
As to reading and writing, worst advice I ever got in a "How To Write" book was real writers don't write cos they haven't got the time. Rubbish.

I know you meant "read," but this was too funny not to pass up. Bad advice indeed!

It's been a long time since I've had any really good wordcount days (on the order of years), but I don't recall sacrificing reading for writing. That was also during the time that I'd check out 10-15 books from the library at a go, it did eventually overwhelm me, but that still had nothing to do with writing.

Amiton · Oct 31, 2006

chaostitan said:
I don't read as much as I should, period.

I feel like I don't read as much as I should, too. My wife, however, thinks I read too much. I'll get into a book and use any fifteen minute window to squeeze in another chapter. She'll start six books at once and maybe see a page out of any one of them in two weeks. Needless to say, she doesn't finish a lot of books. She also tends to group my time reading into the time I spend writing and the time that I spend on the internet. It's all time away from her.

In the end, I guess it's a fair trade. I still get to write and read my books, but I still have my family

Amiton.

Sesselja · Oct 31, 2006

I_Shrugged said:
In some ways, I can be like a chameleon--whatevers nearby causes me to change colors.

I'm the same. But I still read when writing. Which is probably why my attempts so far sucks horribly.

I do the same when talking to people. They think I'm mocking their speach impediments or that I'm pretending to talk in their accents, while I'm not even aware of doing it.

Azure Skye · Oct 31, 2006

Absolutely. I love to read and have never even thought about it spilling over into my own writing.

Carmy · Oct 31, 2006

I read all the time. I've developed my own voice so I'm not afraid of being influenced by other writers.

Lately, I seem to be picking up books by some bad writers, even well-known writers. Gerunds? Adverbs? They abound. I'm also aware of unanswered questions and lost connections in novels. Writers can't fool me and I know when they waffle or pad the word count. Often the storyline is weak and doesn't satisfy me.

In many ways, reading bad writers is as good as a writing course.

I write better stories with better grammar but I'm not published - yet.

MyFirstMystery · Oct 31, 2006

I read all the time, writing or not. The trouble comes when I use reading to procrastinate on my writing. So I do both, just not usually on the same evening.

MFM

RG570 · Oct 31, 2006

I read when I write. And it does influence the way I write sometimes. I think there is nothing wrong with this.

In the first draft of what I'm working on, I can see the shifts in style that come with whatever I was reading at any given time. That might sound undesirable, but that's what second drafts are for.

It's still your own work if you subconsciously imitate someone else's style. It probably doesn't really come out anything like the person you're being influenced by, except to your own eyes, unless you did it deliberately.

jbal · Oct 31, 2006

For me, the odd part is that I can't picture Chuck Palahniuk writing like anyone else. It's hard to imagine him reading someone else's books and suddenly writing like Nora Roberts or something.
I've been working on my wip three months now, the last one took four. How could I stop reading that long? If I start to sound like someone else, oh well. Something I'll have to live with I guess.

vmtwriter · Oct 31, 2006

For me, it's a read or write kind of thing. I'll use my writing down time to catch up on my reading. But, I don't read in the genre that I write. Mostly because I can't find a lot of books that are similar to what I write. But, I love to read some freaky off the wall kinda of stuff by Tim Dorsey. Or, I'll catch up with the latest Kay Scarpetta murder mystery. Just picked up Predator by the way.

I know when I've gotten a lot of writing done when my TBR pile starts to get out of control.

The Lady · Nov 1, 2006

Quote:
Originally Posted by The Lady
As to reading and writing, worst advice I ever got in a "How To Write" book was real writers don't write cos they haven't got the time. Rubbish.

K_Woods said:
I know you meant "read," but this was too funny not to pass up. Bad advice indeed!

It's been a long time since I've had any really good wordcount days (on the order of years), but I don't recall sacrificing reading for writing. That was also during the time that I'd check out 10-15 books from the library at a go, it did eventually overwhelm me, but that still had nothing to do with writing.

Arrrgggghhhh. Can't believe I wrote that. Hope it's not freudian. Though I half believe that silly woman was trying to sabotage future generations of writers by giving such bad advise.

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