2 | The Writer • November 2019
FROM THE EDITOR
NICKI PORTER
Keep writing (and reading),
Nicki Porter
Senior Editor
@nickimporterRead it and reap
Every now and then, I meet a writer who doesn’t
read.
I’m not talking about writers who are too
busy, frazzled, or exhausted to pick up this year’s
Great American Novel; I’m talking about writers
who have the time, energy, and resources to read
and refuse, because – well, because of a number
of reasons:- They are too busy writing to read. (Fair
enough.) - They are not interested in what Other People
are doing. - They worry it will dull their own Unique
Voice and Thoughts. - They think it’s unnecessary because writing,
not reading, is the only way to improve.
There may be tiny kernels of truth or logic in
all of these points, but I admit I never quite know
what to say when I hear them. Personally, I learn
something new – more often, a thousand new
somethings – about the craft of writing whenever
I read another author’s work. But the lost oppor-
tunity to learn from a master isn’t the only reason
to pick up a book now and then.
Because when you finally finish a manuscript,
you have three options: Either let it languish on
your hard drive while you start something new,
self-publish, or start querying agents.
You cannot query without knowing the market.
You cannot know the market without reading.I am sorry, friends, but there’s really no way
around it: Your future agent will expect you to
name a few comparable titles that are similar to
your manuscript, and you will need to read those
titles and be prepared to discuss them. And any
professional agent is going to have a hard time
swallowing grandiose claims like “it’s Harry Pot-
ter meets Gone Girl.” Choosing lesser-known but
respectable titles in your genre is a much smarter
strategy – but it’s a strategy that comes with
plenty of reading attached to it.
Once published, you’ll be expected to talk spe-
cifically and intelligently about your genre. You
will be asked about your favorite books within
that genre. You will be asked how your writing
compares to Author X and Author Z, and if you
haven’t read Authors X and Z, how on Earth are
you to answer?
But the last reason to read is a simple gracious
kindness, to do unto authors as you would have
them do unto you. Because if you expect people
to read and pay for your work, you should read
and pay for the work of others.
Authors are nothing without readers. So be a
reader. If the entire population decided to forgo
reading in favor of Netflix binges or iPhone apps,
there would be no book sales to put food on your
table or gas in your car. Pay it forward now. Read
widely and generously, and encourage others to
do the same – and when your book hits shelves
for the first time, may it find legions of wide and
generous readers just like you.