by Beth K. Vogt, @bethvogt
I used to read a lot of books just for fun before I became an author and writing became serious business.
Once I labeled myself a “real writer” and dealt with deadlines and editorial letters and rewrites, pleasure reading became a luxury I couldn’t afford. I had work to do and reading, well, there was no time for that.
“But Beth,” you’re thinking, “we all know writers need to be readers.”
Yep. I know.
Bestselling author Stephen King puts it simply: “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”
Well said, Mr. King.
As a writer, I’m challenged to read both for pleasure and to improve as a professional.
The question is, how does a busy writer – and we’re all busy writers – make time to read?
- First, we decide reading is important. Reading is as important as anything else we do personally and professionally. We make time for things like exercise and edits, rewrites and rest. Why? Because we’ve decided those things are valuable. Needful. Reading for pleasure – I’m talking something other than a craft book about writing – is worth your time.
- Second, we add reading to our schedule just like everything else. Pick one evening a week or one hour a day as your reading time. Select a place as your reading place – a comfortable chair with good lighting or on your deck or porch. Maybe not your office because you might be tempted to work. Have your book(s) ready and waiting for you. Make reading easy for yourself. Skip TV one night a week and have a reading night – include the family!
- Third, we get flexible with our reading plan. Use audiobooks while folding laundry or on the treadmill. Is your budget tight? Check books out of the library or borrow some books from your friends. You could even host a “coffee and book swap” night. Bring a book along when you’re going to an appointment or waiting in a carpool line. Pull some long-ignored books out of your To Be Read (TBR) pile.
There you have it: three simple steps to get back to pleasure reading. Which one are you going to start with?
Beloved romance novelist Kylie Franklin walked away from her pen-name career as bestselling and award-winning Veronica Hollins the day her husband died. Her loyal readers are eager for the final book in her sensational series. But Kylie’s given up on love, both fictional and in real life. Behind her back, Kylie’s agent contrives a way to get her writing again.
Joe Edwards has made a name for himself with his popular military suspense novels under the pen name Tate Merrick. Yet he can’t quite break onto the bestseller list. What his books need, his publisher suggests, is some romance. Joe flat refuses. However, his publisher is determined and hires Veronica Hollins to save the day—and his career.
Veronica and Tate quickly realize they’re Kylie and Joe, good friends who connected online via a popular word game and their mutual love of trivia. Surely they can wrangle their alter egos into this literary collaboration. But as the deadline looms, their differences threaten the romance developing off the page.
Beth K. Vogt believes God’s best often waits behind the doors marked “Never.” She’s authored 15 novels and novellas, both contemporary romance and women’s fiction. Beth is a Christy Award winner, an ACFW Carol Award winner, and a RITA® finalist. Her newest contemporary romance novel, Dedicated to the One I Love, releases June 20, 2023. Her novel Things I Never Told You, book one in her Thatcher Sisters Series by Tyndale House Publishers, won the 2019 AWSA Golden Scroll Award for Contemporary Novel of the Year. An established magazine writer and former editor of the leadership magazine for MOPS International, Beth blogs for Learn How to Write a Novel and The Write Conversation and also enjoys speaking to writers group and mentoring other writers. She lives in Colorado with her husband Rob, who has adjusted to discussing the lives of imaginary people. Connect with Beth at bethvogt.com.