Jun 03 2008
The truth of it all
For years I stayed away from reading non fiction. I think it was because of all the required reading I had to do when I was in university. For years I associated non fiction with dry text book style writing. But over the past couple of years, I’ve started slowly introducing non fiction into my reading.
As a freelance writer who is just starting out, I have a gaggle of books on writing query letters, writing fiction, finding inspiration and writing exercises. I love these types of non fiction books as I use them as resources, being able to read them a chapter at a time. And they are the type of book that you can use and reuse time and again. With the writing exercise books, it’s good just to open up to a page and go from there.
A good memoir, to me, is better than fiction. It is also a way to learn about something new without it seeming like work. I find myself reading quite a few memoirs of people from other cultures. I don’t travel so for me, it’s a way to discover new places from the comfort of my couch.
I’m starting to realize that regardless of the genre, a good book is a good book. Who knows? Maybe I’ll even give a romance a try.