In honor of “Read Across America,” I would like to share my two cents on what it means to be a “reader.”
I didn’t always love to read. I have always loved to write, though I never saw myself as a writer. I would get frustrated at myself when I would spend too much time with one hobby rather than the other. I was currently assigned to read some form of classic literature in school and grew tired of it. I did value its importance and to this day encourage others to read classics, but know that it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.
I had entered a writing slump in my teenage years, and instead of writing or finishing my assigned reading, I spent my time reading a fantasy series. Whether it was the guilt of actually enjoying reading or the disappointment in myself for not being productive with my assignments or writing – I will never really know. Though I felt some sort of disdain.
It wasn’t until I read a quote from Stephen King in “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft” that I was able to make peace with it.
He wrote, “If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.”
He then advised, “There’s no way around these two things that I’m aware of, no shortcut.”
From then on my constant indecision between reading and writing didn’t matter. No matter how many advice columns I read on how to discipline myself as a writer, all I cared about was that Stephen King said it was OK to do both. There was no constant pressure to read things that were difficult or impressive. I didn’t feel bad about what I read as long as I was reading.
I did exactly that! I read magazines, newspaper articles, comics, religious history, manga, epic poems, banned books, historical diaries, romance and whatever I felt like picking up that week.
So read, no matter! Don’t forget to write, if you want. Overall, experience as much storytelling and creativity as you can!
