Can Writers Read?

Something that gets my goat (slang for annoys me) is when people insinuate that being an author means you can no longer enjoy reading. Their idea being that when you read, you can't stop analyzing the strategies and techniques the author has used in their work and so you can no longer enjoy the act of reading.

It's like saying that because you know how to cook pasta, you can no longer appreciate going to an Italian restaurant. Just because you understand some of the strategies and techniques doesn't mean you can't switch that part of your brain off. You're not locked into analysis mode for the rest of your life, triggered like some kind of kill switch turning you from Joe Reader into a Pulitzer judge-bot lasering lazy language with your eyes.

So I turn it off. I unplug. It doesn't make me less of a professional; it just makes me someone who still gets to enjoy the very thing I'm trying to share with the world.

In reality I find I struggle with the opposite problem. I can't seem to find a way to analyze a book for its tricks without being absorbed by the plot and forgetting my notepad and pen entirely.

It's a hindrance because I feel the best writing advice isn't what is offered directly, but what you can uncover yourself. I know that when I discover something, the adrenaline and excitement will make me far more likely to remember it, think about it, and integrate it into my own toolbox.

I'm sure there is a happy medium out there, maybe even someone who can read a book and enjoy it while also learning how the author accomplished it. Until I meet that person and they share their sage wisdom with me I'll be over here... Endlessly reading fantasy and sci-fi with nothing more to show for it than a solid amount of enjoyment.

Maybe that's enough though.