Someone asked, what kind of books do I read.
Well, it's a mixed bag.
In fiction, I lean heavily toward mysteries. But in
the past year and a half I've read a number of Westerns, some historical
fiction, Harper Lee's "Go Set a Watchman," Howard Frank Mosher's
"God's Kingdom" and even Neil Gaiman's "The Ocean at the End of
the Lane."
Who do I favor in mysteries? James Lee Burke, Ann
Rendell/Barbara Vine, Harlan Coben, Ian Rankin, Wayne Dundee, Douglas Quinn,
Elmore Leonard, Mark Billingham, Denzel Meyrick and many new ones I'm
constantly discovering.
In non-fiction, I'm all over the place: history
(particularly 19th century), archaeology, anthropology, travel, biographies,
psychology, philosophy--whatever catches my fancy or may be vital to my
research.
I don't, in general, read fantasy, paranormal
(especially zombies), sappy romances or much sci-fi, but those are personal
choices and not a condemnation of those genres.
I'm currently reading Juliet Barker's "The
Brontes," an in-depth study of that remarkably talented family and JM
Gregson's (another of those authors newly discovered) "A Little
Learning."
Much of what I read, I also review. No one but a
writer understands how important reviews are to a writer, be he/she known or
unknown. So, if you read, please review. It doesn't take much to say you
enjoyed (or didn't) reading a particular book. And reviews, no matter how
brief, help a book rise in the ratings on Amazon and elsewhere. Besides, who
doesn't like to give their opinion on something?
Stephen King says you can't be a writer without
being a reader. And that admirable Brit Samuel Johnson once said, "The
greatest part of a writer's time is spent in reading, in order to write, a man
will turn over half a library to make one book."
