If you want to write, read!

I’ve wanted to write since (at least) the third grade. My urges to become an astronaut or a dinosaur-seeking paleontologist faded (although my love for astronauts, space exploration, and dinosaurs remains undimmed), but my longing to create stories never did. In fact, I can still remember the exact books that made me want to make my own—and (I think) in the the order in which I encountered them: the Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators series, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, William Stieg’s Dominic, Wylly Folk St. John’s The Secret of the Seven Crows, and, of course, The Chronicles of Narnia and The Hobbit. These books inspired not only a life-long love of story and of the written word, but a love of (and, I think, a need for) making, of mythopoeia.

I’m very fond of saying that author’s voice isn’t something that can be taught. It is, however, something that can be learned. There are two keys to learning how to find and use your own voice. The first is to listen. Listen to conversations in your favorite pub or coffee shop. Listen to the sounds of the world—the forest, the street corner. Listen to music. Let the sounds steep in the kettle of your heart and brain.

The second key is to read. No, read more than that. Even more still. Read at least a thousand pages for every one you intend to write. Read in your genre and read beyond it.

I make sure to do just that every day, and as often as I can manage it. I’ve found some remarkable reads lately, so if you’re looking for something (especially in the genre of literary fantasy) to spark your own imagination, I have some terrific books to recommend:

Books

Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution by R. F. Huang is just an extraordinary achievement. It … I don’t even know what to say about this book. It does things that I didn’t know fantasy, or fiction, could do. Here is a story about language, colonialism, courage, and humanity. It is startlingly original. The bar has been raised.

The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow is gorgeous and powerful, and is just magnificently written. I read this book mostly as I was drifting off to sleep at night, and I had to keep waking my wife, because so many passages just demanded to be read aloud. When I passed the book on to her, she returned the favor—many, many times.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab is another one that I read at night before sleep, and it quite literally haunted my dreams for weeks. It, too, is startling original and elegantly written. My to-be-read pile is stacked perilously high, but I am already wanting to re-read this one. It’s another book that just absolutely raises the bar.

Looking outside my own genre, I have to point to The Heebie-Jeebie Girl by Susan Petrone. It’s absolutely terrific, as are all of her books. I’ve often maintained that place should be almost a character in a story. Susan takes that idea one audacious step farther. She and I share a publisher, so beware of bias, but I’d recommend her books if they were published by a terrorist drug lord (they are not). Her work reminds me a lot of Alice Hoffman, and she deserves to be just as widely read.

Audio Books

Andy Serkis’s performance of The Lord of the Rings is without question the single best audio book I’ve ever head. His read of The Silmarillion is also in the top 5, I think, and his The Hobbit is right there, too. Andy told me what a daunting task recording these books was, and it shows. He’s achieved something remarkable.

The second best audio book I’ve ever heard (and it’s so close it’s a virtual tie for first) is The City We Became, written by N.K. Jemisin and performed by Robin Miles, which is just utterly amazing.

Presently, I am listening to Don Quixote as translated by Edith Grossman and performed by George Guidall. It’s just terrific, and I’d forgotten how wonderful a book it is. I’ve never heard a characteristic of the post-modern novel that is not to be found in Don Quixote (everything from the irony to the meta stuff), except that it doesn’t follow any modern novels. It’s also a surprisingly feminist work (the Shepherdess scene alone should qualify it). I don’t mean feminist for it’s time; I mean feminist.

Blogs

If you’re looking for insights into art, writing, and publishing, I have to recommend Lou Aronica’s blog. Lou’s knowledge of the publishing world alone is (I’m willing to go out on this limb) unsurpassed. He’s my own book publisher, business partner, and friend.

For politics and world affairs, Dr. Heather Cox Richardson and Jay Kuo are absolute must reads. They are my go-to first news reads every day. I highly recommend subscribing to both.

Happy reading!