Read To Write

          I was an impressionable child. I believed my mother when she told me “Books are our friends.” They are my friends. By reading books, both fiction and non, I have visited more places and eras than I ever could without them. I have met people and done things that only exist as fantastic collaborations between an author’s creativity and my own imagination. I have experienced events and emotions, even learned to empathize with wildly different perspectives. I’ve done this by immersing myself in stories or being mesmerized by more factual books. (No wonder it is such a wrench to return a library book or give away a store-bought one. )

          My love of reading led to my love of writing, but reading and writing are vastly different. Writing is fun and full of excitement . . . sometimes. Most times, though, it is hard work. Satisfying, soul-deep nourishing work, but still work. Being able to appreciate a good story does not ensure you’ll be a good story creator. Even being able to analyze the pieces that make a story good isn’t a guarantee you’ll be able to reproduce a similar work. I’m not sure what combination of inborn talent, inclination and learned skills creates a writer, but at some point that writer ceases to be just a reader and becomes a storycrafter.

          For some, it is an intuitive process. For others, not so much. I’m one of those not-so-intuitive writers. I used to think otherwise. When my kids were young, I created stories off the top of my head that kept them intrigued and begging for more. Either they were an easy audience or I’ve lost my understanding of how to craft a good story.

          I’m on a mission to rediscover it.

          For the next few weeks, maybe even months, I’m going to read and analyze a stack of my “old friends,” those novels I’ve saved and reread (and reread), many from 10, 20, even 30 years ago. I’m hoping that by analyzing stories I know so well I will be able to see the pieces and the parts and how they were combined to create stories that have lingered in my mind for years. I’ve enjoyed these novels as a reader. Now it’s time to read them as a writer.

          I will go through each book (my goal is one book a week) and list each scene. Using Larry Brooks’ Story Structure Architecture, I’ll determine which of those scenes are milestones and plot points. After that, I’ll write up a short synopsis.

          My goal in doing this is to somehow absorb the structure of a good story so I can better reproduce it. I’ll keep you posted on my progress.