I came across another book about writing by an author I am unfamiliar with: “Bird by Bird” by Anne Lamott. Still, I checked it out of the library. Sure enough, one of the first things it has to say is that writers need to read widely and read lots of books.
Fan Fiction
Lots of people love to write about their favorite characters in favorite series. Most of these never show up except, maybe, on a special fan fiction site for that series. This is one way for new writers to practice writing skills.
Sherlock Holmes still has fan fiction written about him. I recently read two. “The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” is an anthology by many authors. Most of them were not even close to the original flavor of the stories. “The Exploits of Sherlock Holmes” by Adrian Conan Doyle (the youngest son) had a dozen tales that captured the essence of the originals.
Getting Ideas
Many genres have a rigid formula all the books adhere to. Think cozy mystery or romance. The challenge for an author is to write something within this formula that is still different. If you read widely, you get exposed to many different styles of writing, some of which can be adapted.
True, the author may end up using a plotline from another book. I just finished a Cat in the Stacks mystery that did this. The plot seemed so familiar I knew who the murderer was and what the set up was almost before the murder took place. There were enough new aspects to rescue the book.
Expanding Horizons
Have you ever met someone who has only one subject to talk about? If you have no knowledge or interest in that subject, being stuck talking to this person is deadly.
If you read widely, you get a chance to see the world from many points of view, go lots of places, experience life in other times and do things you would never dare to do for real. Then you can widen your conversation topics.
For the Writer
Yes, some books may not get finished. There are lots of reasons for putting a book aside without finishing it.
On the other hand, you just might find a book that really resonates with you. One you would never have encountered if you didn’t read something new.
