Writing Blog Number 2

20240305 Reading

Reading

Reading is one of the most important things a writer can do. As Stephen King said, “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.” (On Writing, 2000, p. 147).

I have even had that argument here with someone on WdC. They were “writing” a trilogy of fantasy novels, and told me that reading was pointless. This argument came when I said I didn’t mind their outline for chapter one and was told it was the finished chapter. It’s a long story; I ended up blocking them. That means they won’t see this.

However, a survey on Twitter in 2020, which received more than 11,000 responses, indicated 55% of people thought you didn’t have to read to be a writer. That means 55% of people are idiots and probably don’t write, or, if they do write, are not very good at it. (Says the not very good published author…)

Anyway, over the years, I have been asked a few questions about reading. Here is a compendium of the most common and my responses.



Why do people like reading horror?

Because reading about things that are terrible and can’t be real – vampires, monsters, zombies, etc. – or are just over the edge of plausibility, is a safe kind of fear, as opposed to the world around us with its genuine fears. Governments abusing us, serial killers, police brutality, domestic violence, so so so much. It is much better to be afraid of some-one’s imagination than reality. In horror writing, the monster is also usually defeated. Unlike reality. And if the monster lives, then it doesn’t matter because it’s not real. Again, unlike reality.

For that reason, the scariest book I have read in the past 20 years, even though it’s not classified ‘horror’, and the first book to give me nightmares since I was a kid, was Lionel Shriver’s We Need To Talk About Kevin. Why? Because that is real. It could happen. It has happened. It is maybe too real, and that’s why it scared the absolute shit out of me. There are no monsters, just a kid, doing something too many kids have done already. But explained. And what he did to his sister… and the ending… I read it when I was almost 50 yrs old, with 40-odd horror stories published at the time, and it affected me. Scary, scary book. Real horror.



Which books would you recommend to others that they absolutely need to read?

This is a loaded question. Why do they need to read them? My favourite books of all time are not essential reading – I know that, but they give me enjoyment. To say some-one must read a book is a little elitist, in my opinion. And the choices are going to be marred by (a) preferred genre, (b) how the person selecting the books wants to appear to others, (c) what the person has read, (d) their mood at the time, and (e) why a book is felt to absolutely needed to be read.

A few years ago, a list was put out of the 20 Australian books that people must read. Well, half are boring, tedious and just stagnant. Sure, there were some good ideas, but they were overwhelmed by trying to be too clever with the writing or letting a theme over-ride everything or a message that had to be put forth and belted into the reader or, in some cases, having so little action it would have struggled to make a decent short story. But people voted for them because they want to be seen as clever and pretentious. They did not vote for the books people actually read.

Ignoring the Bible and Mao’s Little Red Book, the biggest selling books are all escapist fiction – these include Lord Of The Rings, The Thorn Birds, Valley Of The Dolls, even (and I hate to say it) Twilight. No deep and meaningful messages, no capital-L Literature, no thematic overloads, just simple escapist fiction. None have original ideas, two are appallingly written. They are just books.

So, I would not recommend that anybody absolutely needs to read anything.



Should we make students read more?

This came up when I was a teacher, from a group of parents. We had to explain that getting kids to read – and I taught at lower socio-economic schools – was no longer an issue. And, no matter what she says or does, it is something I will always thank JK Rowling for. The Harry Potter series made every child want to read. Even the kids who were reluctant readers had to read the books so they could understand what was being said. And this led to Collins’ Hunger Games series and Riordan’ Percy Jackson series and so many more. Reading was no longer just something “nerd kids” did. Reading became part of the zeitgeist. And it still holds today… at least, in Australia and the UK.

But, really, you can't force anyone to read. Even if you could make them look at the words, they wouldn't sink in; the person would just be going through the motions.

You need to induce them, to con them, to make them feel that something is worth reading.

And you do that by... well, no-one really knows. It's blind luck. What appeals to one won't appeal to another. But popularity does seem to help. And kids read a lot of books good films are based on. So, for example, A Wrinkle In Time did not fly off the shelves because the film was apparently awful. (Mind you, the book is tedious and dull as well.) However, Percy Jackson And The Lightning Thief was almost impossible to get at the end of last year thanks to the rather successful Netflix (?) series. It has been given a new lease of life.



Do you finish everything you start reading?

I have a 50 page rule for novels. If you haven't got me in 50 pages (or the end of the chapter that the 50th page occurs in), then you've lost me. And with short stories you have 3 pages to get me. I have a huge TBR pile; I don't need to waste time if I don't enjoy something.



Do you read books by the opposite gender, or by people of a different race or sexuality?

Reading books by women? Yes. Hell yes. Lynne Abbey wrote my favourite stand-alone fantasy book – Daughter Of The Bright Moon. Most people I beta read for are female.

As to the rest… I have no idea. I don’t go looking into the background of writers. And I don’t care. I read what I enjoy reading. I couldn’t care what the writer’s background was so long as I am entertained.

I feel the same way about music I listen to. I know some of the artists I enjoy have done things that are problematic, but I separate the art from the artist and just enjoy the art. Many of my friends cannot watch Chris Benoit wrestling matches anymore (if you know, you know… and I am sorry); I still have 2 of his bouts in my top matches of all time.

So, all I want is good writing that I enjoy. Who supplies it does not matter.



Do you ever read poetry for pleasure?

Yes! Many do. In fact, as I write this (March, 2024), I just finished a collected poems of Longfellow book. Man, Song Of Hiawatha is long, isn’t it?



Do you ever read plays for pleasure?

Not as often as I should. In fact, rarely. I do read them if I am writing a play, to remind myself just how different a play is from a novel, but I really should rectify that and read more of them. The last play I read was Romeo And Juliet for the third time, and that was three years ago when I started my sequel.

Yes, I wrote a sequel.

No, it’s not serious.

No, it’s not very good. Two people at WdC have offered to read it and their silence and lack of feedback tells me just how crappy it must be.



And that’s it. If there are any other questions about anything you want to throw my way for this blog, shoot me an email. I don’t bite that hard. At least, I rarely draw blood.