: Re: What is the best approach to balancing reading and writing for improving my writing skill? A while ago, I would casually read and and casually write, and I was satisfied with what I achieved.

@Sue2132873

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Honestly, reading helps you write in the same way studying cook books helps you cook better. If you read them a lot, you start to learn which spices are usually used with which different meats. You learn which vegetables take longer to sauté properly and what order you should put the food into the pan when you plan to sauté. You will learn that there are certain specific ways you must mix tomato juice and cream when cooking so the cream doesn't curdle. You study the cook books so you don't have to waste time muddling about making mistakes that other people have already learned not to make. If you read enough cook books, eventually, you'll not just learn recipes. You'll learn how to improvise in a pinch because you've learned all the cooking rules.

But until you actually start cooking, you're not a chef. It's not enough just to understand the rules. You have to keep practicing all the techniques so that you can mater them. No matter how many times you read about the best way to mince onions, you're going to need to mince them several times and mess them up while doing it several times before you are any good at mincing. Reading cook books and watching cooking shows help greatly, but they aren't enough.

Anyway, there's no magic formula. You can't just tell someone to read x number of books a month. It's not a prescription. It's not magic. You just read as much as you feel like. You read the kind of books that you want to write, and you eventually learn the usual techniques, themes and cliches. It's not enough to read just the classics. You need to stay on top of the field by seeing the new techniques and trends in your field of publishing.

Finally, you shouldn't only be reading because you feel that you "have to." It should be something you do because you enjoy doing it. You should enjoy reading so much that you do it so often that you have to force yourself to stop so that you can get other things done. If you feel like you need to force yourself, then you shouldn't do so. It's not like medicine you take. It should be a treat you enjoy. It just happens to help you write better.

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