Summer is a wonderful time to relax and read a book. Before I leave on my summer vacation, I load my Kindle reader with the books I hope to enjoy. I can’t wait to dig into those stories—and take a break from writing.
Writers often feel guilty when they focus on summer reading instead of writing. But reading actually fuels your writing. Summer is the perfect season to improve your writing through reading.
Writers Are Readers
Ask most writers if they love reading, and you’ll hear a resounding, “Yes.” It’s often a love of reading that spurs people into writing. The more you read, the better you will write.
When you read, you hear the cadence of sentences. You experience the structure of story. You hear dialogue, and you visualize setting and description. By immersing yourself in the story, you learn how to show instead of tell. You absorb the tools of writing in an easy and enjoyable way.
Most importantly, each time you read, you gain a deeper understanding of what readers expect, want, and need from a book. You know how the reading experience impacts you—what you hoped to find in those pages, and whether or not the book met or exceeded your expectations. Because of your experience as a reader, you’re able to write with your reader foremost in mind.
Summer Is a Great Season for Reading
The summer season is an open invitation to read:
- You can relax with a good book on the porch swing. The peaceful, natural surroundings help you engage in what you’re reading. When you read in such a wonderful environment, what you discover in those pages will stick. You’ll remember the whole sensory experience in an inspirational way.
- Summer evenings give extra light, so it’s easy to read one more chapter, and still one more.
- Summer vacation is the perfect time to read, when you have more downtime or need a cool break from all those sunny activities.
- If you have children or grandchildren, you can inspire and join them in their summer reading experience. Help them discover the joys of summer reading, so it’s not just a dreary school assignment.
Instead of feeling guilty when you indulge in summer reading, realize this may be one of the best times of year to grow as a writer by reading.
How Summer Reading Helps Your Writing
Summer reading helps you grow as a writer in many ways:
Reading Grows Your Voice and Style
As you read other writers, you will start to hear nuances in each author’s voice. By hearing the voices of other writers, you’ll learn what is unique and engaging about your own voice. If you’ve struggled to write in your own voice, reading other authors will give you confidence to express yourself in your unique voice.
Reading other authors will help you recognize and grow your writing style. By noticing the cadences, structures, and word choices of other writers, your own style will be reaffirmed. And you might discover new techniques you can work into your style.
For example, you might notice how an author varies sentence structure. This will help you take a look at your own sentence structure the next time you pick up your pen. See how you can try variations on structure for more engaging prose.
For example, if you tend to write in the same rhythm—she said, he did, they went—try a variety of sentence structures to make the rhythm interesting. Instead of “He went to the store after lunch,” try “After lunch, he went to the store.” See how that adds variety? You’ll hear the difference especially when you read sentences out loud.
Reading Stirs Your Creativity
You might not write a word on your summer vacation, and that’s okay. Writers often need time off to recharge. Reading is a great way to refresh. You’ll still be growing as a writer while taking a break from writing.
As you enjoy your summer reading, you’re staying connected to words, phrases, dialogue, the rhythms of writing—without having to write a word. Those experiences will inspire you when you get back to writing.
In your summer vacation reading, you’ll get a sense of what you like about a story. What engages you? What surprises you? What would you like to see more of in that story? What keeps you thinking about the story after you’ve finished reading? All of those insights—whether you reflect on them or just absorb them—will inspire your writing.
Reading Teaches You in a Relaxing, Enjoyable Way
Summer reading is a wonderful teacher. You’ll pick up on so many insights that help you as a writer. And summer reading is an easy and fun way to learn. No pressure, no lectures. Just enjoyable stories that model how to write—and sometimes, how not to write.
As much as you notice what you like in the books you read, you’ll also notice what doesn’t work. Did the author leave out some information you needed? Would you have connected better with more examples? Is the wording confusing, and could it be said in a different way? Those discoveries will be valuable for your own writing.
Enjoy Your Summer Reading
Now that you know summer reading is part of your writing life, and not a distraction, you can enjoy your vacation book list without guilt.
What books would you like to read this summer? You can start right away. Pick up a book you’ve been wanting to read. Immerse yourself in it. Don’t try to turn it into a writing lesson. Just get lost in the book and enjoy the experience.
When you finish reading, if you want to, make a note in your journal about one thing you appreciated about the author’s voice or style. How does that discovery motivate you to embrace your own writing voice and style?
Did the book inspire you in a way that sticks? Make a note of that too. Think about how your own writing will inspire others.
When you reflect on what you like most about a book, you might be surprised at how simple the source of inspiration is. Be encouraged that your writing will likewise bless your readers.
Writing is a journey. Summer reading is a wonderful oasis along your writing path. Enjoy it!
Janet Eriksson 