Did My Love Of Reading Inspire My Desire To Become A Writer?

I have been a reader since the moment I learned to read. In middle and high school, I remember being addicted to R.L. Stine and his Goosebump series.

Last month, when I was visiting my sister, my niece had to go to the library and take out a few books. While we were there, I stumbled upon an entire shelf of R.L.Stine.

I was transported back to 1993, sitting in my room devouring books.

It could also have started my obsession with all things that go bump in the night and murder mysteries.

Since then, my book choices have slowly evolved. I still read and listen to books from the library, but lately, I have listened to more books than I read.

I am made fun of having headphones on all the time. When someone wants my attention, they must approach or wave dramatically for me to see.

I am so profoundly enthralled in my book that the outside world is often tuned out. I only listen to music when working or writing; for example, now I am listening to this fantastic Handpan YouTube channel.

When I write, I can only listen to something without words, or I will be distracted.

However, I listen to audiobooks when I am working in my garden. If I have a good story, I can be out doing work for hours without even realizing it. However, there are also times when I want to be fully present and will work in silence.

Do you ever find an author and you devour everything they write?

I am at this stage right now.

I love murder mysteries, and it’s even better if they keep me guessing. My newest obsession is a writer named Frieda McFadden. I am on the 4th book of hers in two weeks.

I have been getting a lot of work done in my garden.

Since I began traveling, audiobooks have been my go-to since carrying around a bunch of books is impractical. Now that I have officially moved, I might start adding to my library again and probably should start reading in Spanish, but that is another story.

I often wonder if my love for reading influences my writing.

Although I am not a murder mystery writer, I admire those who can create such interesting stories, and at times, I wonder if I could do that.

I have never tried, as most of my writing revolves around my life, but we all start somewhere. Maybe this is where I begin.

I have also noticed something else regarding my reading/writing connection. The more I read or listen to books, the more I want to read; the same goes for writing.

I took a few months off at the beginning of this year. Mainly, I was burned out and feeling deflated, algorithm changes, and questioned everything I was doing.

I would sit down to write, and I had no ideas. I had ideas and wrote, but it was not to share. It was simply a brain dump, which I needed at the time.

So, I honored my brain and gave it space and time to recoup and deal with real-life issues that I had going on. Finally, I decided to commit to a country, settle down, and see what happens.

Then, a few weeks ago, I began writing again, and now my brain craves it. My ideas are not award-winning, but the need to start to create again has surfaced.

Putting my ideas on paper and getting more organized starts with my writing. I have decided to divide my ideas up into groups, analyze my thoughts, and utilize the fact that different platforms require different methods.

If you follow me here, it will continue to be my ¨diaries¨ of life, no changes.

However, if you follow me on Substack, moving abroad will be more organized, similar to my YouTube channel.

It is funny because some days I wonder what I am doing with my life, and then other days I realize I have a lot of seeds planted, and the challenge is watering them daily.

Some days, I turn to my books and completely immerse myself in their worlds, and all seems right. Other times, I feel the need for complete silence. I am honoring what my body needs each day.

XOXO

S