Reading For Writing

One of the most important things that I do every day is read.  I read magazines, books, articles, newsletters, newspapers, emails, whitepapers, blogs, etc.  Granted I may not read every one of those sources every day, but I probably read a couple of hours total throughout my day.  Why?  Well for one thing, I read to write.

Here is how reading helps me to write:

• Reading helps me to expand my knowledge.  In this way I can broaden the topics that I feel confident writing about.
• Reading helps me to become a better writer by learning from other writers that are more proficient or more experienced than I.
• Reading inspires me to write by helping me get motivated, give me ideas, and understand what information people are interested in reading.
• Reading from different sources exposes me to different styles of writing - styles that differ from author to author and medum to medium.  This helps me to continue to develop my own writing style.
• Reading books printed on actual paper, not online, gives me the opportunity to step away from the computer screen and get refocused and refreshed.

To be successful you must read at least 15 minutes a day (more if you can and books on tape and podcasts count).  It will help you keep up to date with changes in your industry, ensure that you are continuing to learn, help you to stay focused on your goals, help you become a more well rounded person, and help you acheive success faster.

If one of your goals is to become a better writer, take a look at this list of the Top 10 Blogs For Writers for 2007/2008 .  I already subscribe to a couple of these blogs and you can be sure that I will be checking out the others ASAP.

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