Writing is a huge part of our lives. We are constantly composing something, whether it is an assignment for school or an email to your co-worker. Reading and writing go hand in hand at every step; you cannot do one without the other. Consequently, improving one of these has a drastic effect on the other.
If you want to excel at reading or crafting words, it will help by doing the other. More often than not, you will have to write something. It may be an assignment or report for school or a project report for your boss and maybe even a book. To be a good writer, you need to learn what to write, and the best way to learn is to read. There is material on every subject in the world, and you can find something you want. For example, if your homework is an essay, you can study prewritten essays to understand how to craft one. The benefits of studying through books are unlimited. The following list will help you tailor the benefits to improve your writing skills.
Reading helps develop critically think
In order to craft the perfect essays, you need to improve essay writing skills, and the best way to do so is by reading. Most college assignments require you to analyze and interpret information at different levels. If you go through many academic journals, you will know how they critique the work of others. With extensive knowledge, you are aware of what others have done and compare them and find any flaws.
Furthermore, you can determine what books you are drawn to, and you can begin by asking questions like;
- Why do you like it, and how is it written?
- Would you classify it as a good piece of literature, and if so, then why?
- What sets this piece apart from the others?
- Is it how the characters are developed and changed throughout the book?
- Is it how the author has incorporated different themes?
If you ask yourselves these questions every time you have a book, you will learn to answer them quicker and quicker. Furthermore, if you analyze each manuscript that you go through, then eventually, the reading improves writing.
Reading exposes to a variety of writing styles
Most people are not aware of writing styles. Unless you are an author or an avid reader, you will overlook them unintentionally. Have you wondered what makes the work of William Shakespeare so different from Charles dickens? Both are well-renowned authors, but their work is different. The thing that sets them apart is how they write.
If you pursue books to improve writing, you should delve deep into the author’s writing styles. Every person has a different perspective, and they channel that into their work. Furthermore, each genre is different. You cannot craft a novel the same way you would a financial magazine article. So, learning how to tweak your style for each document’s requirement is essential for a writer.
Once you learn about what writing styles are and identify them, you can develop your style. It will make a massive difference in your writing and make every piece customized to you, yet it will connect with every other piece of work you have crafted. If you want to pursue a career in this field, your style will become your signature. Over time, it will become a lot more refined and will change as you change in life.
Reading improves comprehension for all of subject
If you are wondering how reading helps writing, then write a marketing essay. Please keep it in your drafts for now. Next week, go through a few marketing articles and then compose a marketing essay. You will notice the differences.
- It will take you less time than your first attempt.
- You will not have to go back and research some terms several times.
- You will know where to begin and how to start.
Marketing is not your field, and initially, you could not compose a document about it with ease. Seven days and a few articles later, you can craft a much better essay. It can be observed in the content and how you have written. Reading about a variety of topics will help you develop an understanding of new concepts and subjects. Each time you learn about something new, you will quickly grasp its ideas and find links with other subjects. For example, if you are an art student, then pursuing a marketing magazine will help create links between the two subjects, and you can incorporate marketing tools into your artwork.
Moreover, it teaches you about grammar and how to use it. Learning grammar and its rules in a classroom are tedious, and students cannot stay focused. When you peruse different books, magazines, and articles, you accumulate knowledge about grammatical questions, how authors answered them, how to use punctuations and phrases. It is educating yourself outside the boundaries of a classroom.
Reading improves your vocabulary
As a child, your mother probably told you to read a book and help with your vocabulary; she was absolutely right. The best way to enhance your vocabulary is by studying anything. Read books and manuscripts of different genres, whether fiction or nonfiction; it will add to your vocabulary.
An extensive vocabulary helps improve writing skills. So, every time you come across a new word, note it down. Then, you can search for its meaning and try to add it to your daily vocabulary. You can set the goal of using it three times a week, and this technique will help you remember it. So, when writing, you will not have to go through a thesaurus looking for alternative words, but you already know them. A vast vocabulary can also contribute to your writing style. If you use different words each time, then it shapes how to craft a story as well.
Reading improves your concentration
If you tend to lose focus when writing, you should try to incorporate studying a few pages into your daily life. The lack of focus is that you are not used to allocating all your attention to one task for a long time, but rather are constantly multitasking. The act of reading forces you to take a step back and focus on just one task, so it helps build concentration.
Conclusion
Every person has to write, but not every person can. It is a skill that takes years to master but one step to get a head start is reading. Reading and writing are two sides of the same coin. Incorporating one into your life will automatically improve the other.
