Catch it while you can.

…you don’t have the time or the tools to write.” – Stephen King, On Writing

For the last couple of years, I’ve really struggled with reading. I used to read a book a day, but last year, I managed to read less than a dozen. I tried to figure out what the problem was. Was it the books themselves that caused my reading slump? Had the quality diminished? Why did so few books hold my interest? Did I have ADD? Was my internal editor too damn loud? I wondered if it was the stress of my crazy schedule that prevented me from connecting to the stories I read. I felt guilty every time I took a reading break, which is hardly conducive to getting lost in a book.

Simultaneously, my writing became a struggle, too. While I’ve managed to remain somewhat productive, the ease with which I used to write deserted me. Making my daily page count grew tougher and tougher, until I finally had to lower my expectations so that I didn’t disappoint myself all the time. I began to wonder if I’d reached a total burnout point and even contemplated stepping back from my career altogether; an odd and distressing mental state to be in considering the multiple new series I’m launching this year.

So I started this year with a reading goal — 52 books, one for every week of the year. I figured that was doable. I’m a really fast reader, thanks to a power reading course I took (and enjoyed). I’m happy to report that I’m ahead of my goal so far. And somewhere along the way, I got my reading mojo back. I can easily get lost in a book again. I’ve had all-nighters, and I’ve shed tears. I’ve laughed, and felt my heart race.

Ah, the joy of reading! How I’ve missed it. How my writing has missed it!

So what screwed it all up to begin with?

I’m still testing out the theory, but I think reading for me is habitual. I have to get in the groove and actively work to stay there. I have to make time, every day to read. Because if I don’t, it becomes my habit to not read. It’s happened to me before. From the age of 17-27, I didn’t read for pleasure at all. Seriously. I gave all my books away. I had none. Not one. It wasn’t until I was a SAHM that I started reading again. And remembering my dream of wanting to be a published author. And sitting at my keyboard to write several books over that first year.

My productivity has a direct correlation to how much I read. All those times I felt like I couldn’t afford to take time to read a book, I really couldn’t afford not to. I know that now. And hopefully knowing is half the battle. Hopefully, I’ll stay conscious of my need to read and make it happen, come hell or high water.

For you writers out there who’ve lessened their time for reading, have you found that it affects your writing? And for the ARC of EVE OF DARKNESS that I offered up on my last blog… Greta, you won it.

©2009 Murder She Writes. All Rights Reserved.

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I just saw the PW review for EVE OF DARKNESS and I’m so thrilled with it! I wrote the partial of the MARKED series back in Summer 2006 and now it’s finally almost here. I’m giddy with excitement.

Eve of Darkness S.J. Day. Tor, $6.99 (368p) ISBN 978-0-7653-6041-0

Exhilarating adventure in an edgy world of angels and demons highlights the opener of Day’s Marked trilogy. After a steamy encounter in a stairwell, Evangeline Hollis discovers that she has been branded with the Mark of Cain, unfairly punished because of a man’s attraction to her. She is now a Mark: a celestial bounty hunter charged with sending rogue demons and other Infernals back to hell. Agnostic Eve feels trapped and wants to leave “the firm,” but that requires the aid of the most famous brothers in history: Alec Cain, God’s top Mark and Eve’s former lover, and Reed Abel, who assigns her bounties. Dynamic and vibrant, Eve is an impressive protagonist, and her fierce spirit and determination to make the best of her circumstances will keep readers enthralled. (May) — Publishers Weekly