A writer in the querying trenches caused a bit of a stir on social media recently when they claimed they don’t read.
I have to admit that if I’m deep in edits or on a roll with a section of the novel I’m writing, my TBR pile mounts ever higher. But I can’t conceive of a life where I didn’t read for pleasure. Creativity flows out but it also flows in, replenishing the imagination, and firing inspiration.
Is it possible to write in a vacuum? At the very least, writers need to be familiar with their genre. Agents and publishers will ask for comps when you’re submitting your novel to them. How can you compare your novel against others – how will you know where your novel sits in the bookshop – if you haven’t read any? That goes for commercial fiction, and literary too. It’s probably easy to believe you’ve come up with something completely original if you never read books.
When I had the idea for what was to become my debut novel, I thought hard about what sort of book I wanted to write. I had only the vaguest idea about genre at that time, and simply asked myself what style would suit me best. I turned to books. I read thrillers about similar disasters and historical novels about events that shaped a community. I toyed with introducing an element of the supernatural, but eventually I created a saga, and it became a series. I get great satisfaction from chronicling the lives of the characters I create over a period of time and through multiple perspectives, and revisiting them, like old friends (or enemies), in subsequent novels.
Ever since I was a child stepping over the threshold of Upperthorpe library in my home city of Sheffield, I’ve devoured anything I could get my hands on, and I re-read a lot too. A regular go-to is Hilary Mantel. I’m just about to dip once again into the glorious Clara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro, and recently finished the Booker winner Prophet Song. I stand in awe of this incredible novel and will be seeking out other titles by Paul Lynch.
Upperthorpe library has been so important to me that I couldn’t resist giving it a small part in my third novel, The Watchman’s Widow. Built in the 1870s, it was the first branch library in Sheffield, after the main library was opened in Surrey Street. Library services haven’t changed all that much. You can catch up with the news of the day, borrow books – these days, across all formats – and be part of a community.
And it’s free.
In the latter part of the 19th century, the Victorians opened up a world of reading for those who couldn’t afford to buy books or newspapers or magazines. They became popular with girls and young women who were in service. One of the carved stone figures above the entrance to Upperthorpe (pictured) depicts a Sheffield factory girl, intently reading her book.
It’s a shame so many libraries are now under threat of closure. These wonderful institutions mean there’s really no excuse not to read – especially if you’re a writer.
