As I mentioned in my post about the necessity of reading as a professional writer, reading is, indeed, essential for strong, educated writing. I also wanted to dive into a bit more detail on the reasons why reading is so essential for strong writing, so that’s what we will do today! Can you guess what some of these will be? Read on to find out!

My top 4 reasons reading matters so much as a professional writer

To be totally honest with you guys, I had a hard time narrowing down this list to the top 4 options. It shouldn’t be a surprise for you to learn that I’m a huge fan of reading, and I strongly support it at all stages in life (whether you’re a writer or not). So, with a huge amount of struggle, here are the top reasons why reading supports strong writing.

1. It enhances critical thinking: At its core, critical thinking is when you can form a conclusion by evaluating and analyzing facts. It helps you get from problem to solution in a logical way. Whether you are writing business content or social media content, critical thinking is essential for a strong plan on how to achieve the goal you are aiming for.

2. We learn how to explain things to readers: This one is probably a bit obvious, but I think it needs to be said. Writers, teachers, and parents often take it for granted how simple it is to explain things to those who are listening, but it can be extremely difficult to do this. Reading any kind of content helps us understand how to use words and comparisons to explain things as needed. This is especially important in technical content writing or infographics!

3. We can take a necessary step back from our own perspective: This is a sneaky reason to advocate for reading as part of writer training, but I use it a lot in my own professional writing. When we read any amount of content (it doesn’t matter what type or what medium), we learn how different narrators deliver information. There will be some ways you like or dislike, of course, but regardless of your opinions, you can learn how to step into the shoes of your readers so that you can say things effectively, ethically, and clearly.

4. We use the page as a tool: If I had to pick a favourite, this one would be it!  This is something that I learning while in the poetry chapter of one of my creative writing classes. While I am not a poetry person, I really appreciate how poets can use the page as a medium.  I now pay attention to how the page is used in all forms of writing, and store things away for my own education. It all matters, even if it doesn’t feel useful at first!

Professional writing depends on reading

The reason that you see so many TED Talks and so much content out there about reading influencing strong writing is because it really, really does. So much so that these 4 reasons are just the tip of the iceberg on the relationship between reading and writing.  

I’d love to know what you all think; do you feel that these reasons are important? Do you have any of your own reasons for the importance of reading that you’d like to share?