Our best friends are what we love, and what also loves us. If we love our pets, they won’t usually bite the hands that feed them. So maybe the Bible is right, to have friends we must be friendly (Proverbs 18:24). Might this principle apply to more than the pets and the people we love?
Walk through Home Depot, and you’ll soon find a man who loves his tools. They are his best friends because they do the job well and save him time. Writers should love reading for the same reason, assuming they choose the right tools and learn how to use them.
Here’s the rub. Acquisition editors today would reject literature’s classics. If it weren’t for the celebrity of famous authors, their bestselling books would never be bought by a traditional publisher. So if we use those books as models for great writing, we’ve probably picked the wrong tool for the job.
While wordiness, needless detail, and omniscient points of view may not work well anymore, many strengths from the classics and modern bestsellers should never be lost. What should we do?
When reading a book, highlight weaknesses and mentally note how a paragraph could be improved. Choose a strong paragraphs in which you find yourself saying, “I want to write like that,” or “I wish I were that creative.” Then spend fifteen minutes copying and rewriting a better paragraph, brainstorming ways to deepen the point of view and make the writing even better. That process takes the mere reading of words into a proactive practice of stirring new thought patterns.
Do this, and you’ve found a useful tool in taking your writing from wherever it is to something exceptional. Then, both your books and your readers will be your best friends.
Thank you.
Great advice, Frank!