Being a good writer means you are a good reader. You have to be able to read to write. Reading opens doors, horizons and develops the mind.
Don’t feel bad if you’ve not picked up a book or novel in the last few month, knowledge-packed blog posts make excellent reads too! The idea is to read something of quality everyday. And thanks to the E-readers, reading o the go has never been so easy. I can think of a book, and start reading it in few seconds if I like.
Reading does a lot to improve our writing, here are 4 significant ways it does that –
- Reading enhances your imagination
Reading challenges you to think about different possibilities. It pushes you to begin to explore taking your writing to amazing depths and perspectives.
- Reading gives you the facts upon which to base your writing
No matter what you write you need to lay a good foundation and research is the best place to start. Imagine writing a blog post. Reading exposes you to facts and information that will come in handy in your writing.
The facts build your references and will give you instances or real situations to mention in your writing. This makes your writing richer as it will become more informative, resourceful and useful to your readers.
- Reading opens you to different world views and perspectives
Whatever you write is always aimed at engaging your audience. To engage your audience you need to be able to understand them – what they like, what they believe in, what their problems are and how they have been dealing with their problems. This will help you write pieces that are of interest to your readers. Reading exposes you to other people’s way of thinking and when you reflect that in your writing, it helps you form a stronger connection with your audience.
- Reading helps you learn new words, phrases and modes of expression.
Every time you read something new you are bound to learn new words and meanings. These words will help improve your vocabulary and make your writing richer.
New words are not the only things you learn. You also learn how to use them effectively in your writing. Your writing becomes clearer and stronger. It helps you learn how to drive the message home. Although it will take a lot of practice, it is worth the time spent learning how to use those words and phrases.
Do you enjoy reading? I love reading and I am currently reading She Means Business by Carrie Green on my Amazon Kindle, which I am learning a lot from.
What are you reading at the moment?