We all want to be better at our craft, and we've likely all heard that to be a good writer, one must first be a reader—and that we need to read A LOT. Stephen King said it pretty plainly in his book On Writing (highly recommend, especially in audio), "If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time or the tools to write."
But I want to exercise a word of caution to the "read A LOT to write better" advice and offer up an alternative.
Don't get me wrong. There is no greater teacher, one so readily available to you as the novel on your nightstand—or, if you are like me, there are probably ten.
The problem I see with writers who take the approach of reading a lot to write better is the speed at which they consume material (way too fast) and without analysis.
I should know; I've been as guilty as the next hungry writer.
Instead of rapid, near-rabid consumption of fiction, I offer a deliberate and deep approach to reading that many writing articles call "reading like a writer."
Today, we will discuss how to approach reading deeply to hone your craft, break it down, and make it manageable: going from macro to micro, using the same approach you'd use if you were in a gross anatomy class. (Thank high heavens we're not. I never liked it; the bodies I didn’t mind, but the smell always got me.)
Reading Like a Reader vs. Reading Like a Writer
When we come to a story as a reader, we're in the mindset to be entertained; we're thinking passively like a spectator, not like a detective searching for clues as to why the author made certain decisions about their narrative design.
There's nothing wrong with wanting to be entertained and reading for pleasure when you're trying to improve your craft. In fact, I insist you do it. We're writers because we love what story does for us. You'll pick up some craft this way, too, but nothing will help you like the experience of deep, deliberate reading.
What Does Deep Reading or Reading Like A Writer Actually Mean?
Deep reading is analytical reading for the purpose of learning, and it requires intention setting prior to starting. It's also a skill set, something most of us are not used to. Yes…it's slow work, but work that will pay dividends—promise. Also, it's just part of the job.
If you are willing to slow down and ask questions, you'll begin to see the author's choices, both big and small, and you can ask yourself if you want to try something similar in your own work.
Learning to read deeply will result in crafting better story structure, more compelling plots, and dynamic characters. You’ll write better dialogue and descriptions, add more suspense and heart-pounding tension, and form more exciting and original conflicts. Plus, you’ll get better at developing tone, and style, and stringing together stronger sentences.
Now who doesn't want all that?
But there’s a catch..
The catch is that you can't get all those things at once. Studying and absorbing the macro and micro simultaneously is hard, if not impossible. Just ask the economics instructors of my past. 🙂
So we will begin with the macro elements: author intention, characters, conflict, plot, theme, POV choice, setting, and tone. Then, circle back to the micro: language, description, dialogue, characterization, show vs. tell, transitions, and the like, in a future article.
How to Approach Reading Deeply to Learn the Macro Elements of Story:
For reading in general: keep an eye out for books that grab you and make you go, "Whoa, I want to write something like that."
When you find one, reread it. But before you do, decide what you want to learn.
Think of it as a lesson in anatomy because you are about to do some serious dissection. You'll need to be in an analytical headspace, one requiring patience, and you'll be asking why the author made this choice and that choice. What if they had made a different choice here?
Reading deeply involves asking questions and making observations and connections to better your creative work.
Initial Questions:
Before you begin to reread, ask yourself the following questions:
- What was the book about? What did it say about the human experience?
- How did it make you feel as a reader, and why?
- What did you like? Why?
- What didn't you like? Why?
- Would you like to write a book like this? If yes, you've just found yourself a mentor text.
Evaluation of the Macro Elements: Intention of the Author, Characters, Conflict, Plot, theme, POV Choice, Setting, and Tone.
We'll break these down one by one here with a list of questions to keep track of as you reread.
Intention:
What was the author trying to accomplish here? Can you get a sense of how they were trying to make you feel or what they want you to think about? In what ways did they deliver that experience?
Can you identify the central point/theme the story speaks to? Think very high-level here; it could be something as simple as love prevails over duty. Another way to think of this is to ask yourself what argument the book was making. By the end, what did it prove?
Characters:
Characters are the story's beating heart; without dynamic characters who are real and relatable on some level, we just don't care.
Identify the primary characters and how they changed throughout the story. Compare their starting motivations and values to their ending. Ask how this corresponds to the theme or big takeaway the book is speaking to. Think back on the moments in the book where their change was shown. How did the author do this? What would have happened if they did something different.
When you reflect, can you identify the primary character's wound, false belief, fear, major flaw, and/or false persona?
What about other characters? Did they experience a change? How did they support the main characters' arc of change (if there was one)? Read more on how to create compelling characters here.
Conflict:
Story is about change (yeah, I know, we get beat over the head with this, but it's still just as important), and conflict is what forces change to occur.
Conflict forces our characters to take action by forcing them to make decisions on how to deal with the dilemma in front of them, and their choices will be based on what they value and believe to be true as well as what they desire.
Identify the main sources of conflict in the story.
How did it cause problems for the protagonist?
Ask yourself how the conflict forced the protagonist and other characters to make uncomfortable decisions that moved the story forward. Read more on types of conflict here.
Plot:
Plot is the order of the story's events that your characters experience as they pursue their desires based on their values and beliefs. Plot events result from the combination of the character's desire smashing up against the antagonist's force of the story. This can be positive or negative.
Identify the major plot events in which the main character makes a decision (or is forced to) that changes the story's trajectory and the reader's expectations. We thought things were going one way, but now they are going another.
The major decisions represent the story's big turning points and the novel's structural architecture. To better understand the overarching plot/story structure, check out this blog post reading guide and story structure PDF.
Identify the story's subplots and how they a) advanced the narrative and b) contributed to the main storyline. Read more on subplots here.
Theme:
We've already touched on this, but the theme is what the book is about at a high level: the main takeaway or point the novel is making as represented by the global change in the story.
A story can touch multiple themes and make several points, but the one defined by the book's global change is what you are looking for.
How did the author marry the change experienced by the character and the global situational change of the narrative to the theme?
Can you see how those changes work together to demonstrate the central theme?
Tone and Setting:
Tone
Tone is a literary device related to the author's intention, driven by diction and syntax. It shows the narrator's attitude, which supports and is interconnected with the other macro elements of the story, especially the theme. Together, they create the mood of the story.
Tone is driven by word choice, so we will discuss it more in depth in another article that looks at the micro-level elements of the story.
For now, notice and reflect:
How would you describe the narrator's attitude?
Does it relate to the genre? If your mentor text is a romantic comedy, the tone may be fun, light, satirical, or flirty. If it's a thriller, the book may feel edgy, pessimistic, or desperate.
Write a list of three to five adjectives that describe the narrator's attitude and how it made the book feel.
Setting
Setting informs the characters' world and influences much of their emotions, which translates directly to the reader. It can also help drive conflict, plot events, and theme.
Questions to ask:
Did the setting create a sense of atmosphere in the book? If so, how did the author accomplish this?
Why do you think the author chose this particular setting, and how does it enhance the other macro-story elements, especially character, conflict, plot, and theme?
How did this setting contribute to and enhance the author's intention and tone?
Did it enhance the experience at all?
What would have happened if the author had used a different setting?
POV Choice:
The Point of View is the vehicle that drives the narrative of the book and has an immense impact on the readers' experience.
First person is so intimate, often gripping, but it can also be claustrophobic.
Second person can be very engaging, but challenging to pull off long-term.
Third person limited can be both intimate and give more narrative leeway.
Third omniscient can be distancing, but no less compelling.
What POVs did the author use? How many were there?
Why do you think the author made these particular narrative choices? Consider the genre of the book here too? Is this POV choice common to the genre? Why might that be?
How did the POV choices make you, as the reader, feel about the story and the characters?
How would the book feel if it was written in a different POV?
Read more about POV choices here.
Wrapping it up:
That was a lot!
The first step is to select a book that you feel drawn to, one that makes you want to write something similar. Keep your eyes open for that as you read for pleasure.
You don't have to read a ton of books to learn to be a better writer; instead, you need to read with intention and have an analytical mindset, which requires patience and practice. You get better with it over time.
To simplify the approach, I made a quick PDF to help you annotate (yup, take notes) on the next book you decide to read deeply to improve your craft. You can find it at https://www.writeitscared.co/readdeeptowritebetterfictionguide
https://www.writeitscared.co/readdeeptowritebetterfictionguide
Soon, I'll come back with part two: Reading Deeply to Learn the Micro-Elements of Story. Here, we'll discuss things like language, description, dialogue, characterization, show vs. tell, transition, and the like.