I like writing, but I must admit I have never been much of a reader. So basically I am looking for some good books/writers to help me get started on reading and also help me with my writing. I barely own books, but I got a library nearby so anything popular won't be a problem. What would you advice? I do own a pile of stephen king books I inherited from my mother, some of which are older than I am. I know he is one of the world's best selling writers, but are his older books also still worth reading? EDIT: I am not very picky when it comes to genre, as long as it is written well I think I will like just about anything
Huh, I've never really thought about which books would be best for someone who isn't very well read. To be honest, I've always wanted to be a writer but I only read like 2 non-mandatory books per year in high school. I didn't start reading heavily until someone on another writing forum called me out for it back in 2012 haha. I started out with The Hunger Games, which I really enjoyed. I figured I'd be most interested in fantasy and science fiction so those are the genres I tackled. Not sure how 'beginner friendly' these are, but these are some of the books I read in my early adult life that helped stoke the flames of that hope I had since childhood to become a writer: HUNGER GAMES, by Suzanne Collins TIGANA, by Guy Gavriel Kay OLD MAN'S WAR, by John Scalzi MISTBORN: THE FINAL EMPIRE, by Brandon Sanderson (despite the title, this is the FIRST book in this series, I swear ) A FIRE UPON THE DEEP, by Vernor Vinge THE NAME OF THE WIND, by Patrick Rothfuss Those might be some good places to start. I'd also recommend making a Goodreads account if you hadn't already. You just punch in the books you've read, rate them on a scale of 1-5 stars, and it will recommend books for you based on what you've read and enjoyed!
Goodreads sounds nice I will do that. The Hunger Games is a series of books, right? I will get some form the library thank you!
I actually dig Stephen King's older books much more than his newer efforts. I have a shelf of them that I just can't let go of and re-read occasionally. I've been thinking about reading IT again since I'd like to see the movie version. I wouldn't really recommend a newer reader start with that one though, because it's kind of convoluted and extremely bloated in a bunch of places IMO. If your mom passed on The Dead Zone, I can recommend that one as an example of his non-traditional horror books. The Shining is great too for more straightforward horror, but keep in mind it's nothing like the Kubrick movie that was made about it. They're also both relatively short compared to his more gargantuan works.
I would suggest just starting with what jumps out at you. Go through a book store and look at the back of a few books and decide if it sounds interesting (maybe even check for some reviews) and go from there.
If there are movies you like that are based on books, try and read those books? Maybe that way it'll be easier to get started on them because you know you'll like the story. And once those books have gotten you 'into' reading, it'll be easier to pick up other books. I have only read 'Carrie' by Stephen King so far, none of his other books. But it was very easy to get through, and I think, if I remember correctly, I enjoyed it.
Until I was nineteen years old, I only read textbooks and encyclopedias. Then I read Crime and Punishment because I was reading a textbook about crime and it was recommended. That started me reading the classics (Madame Bovary was my favourite). Eventually, at thirty, I started wondering about modern literature. What a confusing array of murder and sex to choose from! At first, I chose from the best sellers, but after a couple of years, I discovered the other aisles in the bookstore. Nowadays, I only use Kindle, so I'm missing a lot of different books I used to find in those other aisles.
