Last month, I wrote about how reading helps you with your writing. We do need the kind of relaxing, reading for fun that I discuss in that post. But that’s not the only kind of reading we writers need.

I already pointed toward one thing you can do to make sure to use your reading to improve your writing: make note of unfamiliar words and where you found them and look them up in a good dictionary when you have a minute.

There is, of course, more you can do to read like a writer, or what you may remember a teacher calling active reading.

First, a caveat.

As I say above, you do need time to just enjoy much of what you read. For me, that means reading cosy mysteries or fantasy novels. I often get the first as audiobooks and the second as paperbacks.

Why the difference? Cosy mysteries have predictable plots, so I don’t need to hold onto every detail. For me, they’re well-suited to audio form because I don’t take in detailed information well that way. However, I do find them hugely entertaining, and they help me find the motivation to do dull things I’d usually avoid, like folding the clean laundry piling up on the dining table (surely, it’s not just my house where that happens).

Paperbacks are better for fantasy for me because good world-building requires detail and paying attention to that detail requires the focus and concentration that I only get when I’m reading something on paper. I’ve tried listening to fantasy novels; it’s infuriating getting 50 chapters into an epic tale, only to realise I’ve forgotten all about a character who was introduced in chapter 5, then disappeared, but turns out to be crucial to the plot.

When I read such novels on paper, I remember these things. When I listen, I don’t. I know this about myself and plan my reading accordingly. You’ve likely noticed that I italicised the words for me in the previous two paragraphs and I in this one. I did that to emphasise that I’m telling you what I do, not giving you instructions on what you must do to be a good reader/writer.

You may have noticed I haven't mentioned eBooks or eReaders. I don't enjoy reading on screen, so I avoid those as much as possible.

How you read doesn't matter. Figure out what works for your brain and life, and do that.

What is active reading?

There are different kinds of reading. The reading for pleasure I discuss above, where you just let the words and story wash over you, and more active kinds. Active reading means you’re using the text for some purpose other than pleasure (that doesn’t, however, mean that pleasure isn’t a laudable goal in and of itself).

The Open University, in a post about how to read material that’s been assigned to students who will be assessed on how well they understand it, says the term ‘simply means reading something with a determination to understand and evaluate it for its relevance to your needs’. They advise, annotating the text, taking notes, and finding ways to review the material repeatedly. Most of you aren’t pursuing degrees, so you don’t need to commit everything you read to memory this way.

However, reading actively does improve your understanding of your field and how others write and talk about it. Below, you’ll find some examples of active reading, though this isn’t an exhaustive list.

Reading for answers/information

This is how much of what you write will be used; it’s how this blog post may be used. When readers are looking for answers, they only read as much as they need to in order to answer the question they have.

The danger, of course, is that reading becomes a procrastination tool. You don't need to read everything that's ever been published on your topic before you start writing. When I suspect a client is using research to avoid writing, I make these suggestions:

• List the questions you actually need answers to.
• Read through that list before you start reading the book(s) / article(s) you’ve identified as potentially useful.
• When you find an answer to one of your questions, take detailed notes on that answer and, this part is crucial, how you’ll use what you found in your writing.
• When you’ve answered all the questions in your list, stop.

Stopping is the hard part. We like learning new things, but at some point, every writer has to put the books aside and write. When I’m in ‘research mode’ or talking to a client who is, I’m always reminded of a story about how George Henry Lewes helped George Eliot (Marian Evans), his wife in all but law, finally start writing Romola: he took her books and notes away.

It was that simple and that drastic. If she’d kept them, she may never have finished the novel. While the novel isn’t to everyone’s taste (Henry James famously said it stank of the lamp – aka, was over researched), it’s my favourite Eliot novel to think and write about, not to read. It was also one of her most profitable, but that’s a tale for another time.

If you don’t have a Lewes in your life, you’ll have to be self-aware enough to realise when it’s time to stop researching and start writing.

Reading to learn about innovations in your field

Even when you’re not in the midst of or preparing to write anything, it’s important to keep up with what’s happening in your field. This doesn’t have to be a huge undertaking. It simply means following people who write or produce other content about what your field of expertise is.

When you come across a piece from one of them that you agree with, promote it to your audience. Your readers will appreciate it, as will the other writer.

When you come across something you disagree with, think carefully before you publicly disagree with it. Sometimes such public disputes are useful, but often they’re really not.

If you decide not to take the disagreement public, you could use that disagreement to inform you next choice of topic – write about the topic in the way you think they should have.

I’ll use myself as an example, I don’t think writers should use gen-AI. If you’ve known me for long, you’ve likely already gathered that. However, I don’t call out any of the many people who advocate for using gen-AI in writing.

Instead, I consistently write about how using your own words and taking the time to do the writing (from idea generation to polishing it) yourself. My next blog post is a good example of this – you'll just have to come back to read it and judge for yourself.

I wrote it immediately after an infuriating meeting with an AI company who hadn’t identified themselves as such before I agreed to the meeting. I could have gone on their socials and started arguments. Instead, I took what I’d learnt about them and wrote about why doing things, in this case idea generation, yourself is better for you and your readers. If I were a business coach, I'd have written about the ethics of making sure people understand your intentions before agreeing to give up time to meet with you, but I digress.

To summarise this section, keep up with what’s going on in your field and make informed decisions about how that shows up in what you write.

Reading to learn about writing

The style of much of what you read will be unnoteworthy: neither objectionably bad, nor astoundingly good. You’ll still, largely unconsciously, learn about writing through reading such material, but it’s unlikely to dramatically shape how you write.

The writing that will shape yours is noteworthy, literally. Try to get in the habit of reading with a notebook nearby. When you come across a word, phrase, or sentence you love or loathe (both are important), copy it in your notebook (always taking care to enclose the quotation in quotation marks and note the author/source), leaving some space after it. Later, look back at your notes and spend a little time making further notes on what you loved/loathed about the things you quoted.

Taking this time to engage with writing as writing will help you see what you like (and don’t) and how it works. That understanding will help you use the same techniques, though not the same words, in your own writing.

What have I been reading?

The best way to learn what I’m reading is to subscribe to my newsletter, Write Easy. It's one newsletter, but I sometimes include segments that are specifically for people who write books or for those who write blogs and other shorter content. Many of my subscribers subscribe to both, so choose the button that suits you below:

Each week, in addition to tips to improve your writing, I share a couple of things I've read about writing, some free resources I've created for you, and a bit about what I've been reading for fun.