Slightly longer answer: yes, a lot! all reading is good, but not all reading is equal. All reading will help you absorb the effective use of written language, will increase your facility with words, will enhance your vocabulary, etc. But if you're really serious, you should spend at least some of your time in conscious, directed reading in the genre of your choice. They break down the plot structure of great books in order to understand how things flow they look at characterization and dialogue, and see how great authors use these tools to create compelling reading they analyze the strengths and weaknesses of different books, and try to understand why the great books are great. In your case, you want to become better at blogging, so you should not just read but study blogs. Find blogs you don't enjoy and spend just as much time analyzing the problems there, so you'll know what to avoid. You want to work on clarity, so i would recommend looking at the structure of the blogs you find effective.

You're not reading for content so much as you're reading for style and technique. this story originally ran on pr daily in april 2013. if you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time or the tools to write. I first made the connection when a student said she read jane austen with her mom at age 5. Subliminally, i had probably known this reading/writing connection for a while, but that student, that class, and that biographical detail brought me to an ah ha moment. Figuring out the formula for being a good writer and how to teach the formula to the next generation has become my passion. To make this connection, i created a favorite authors presentation so students could share their favorite works with one another, thereby reinforcing the value of reading. But over the years i’ve noticed two things: the broad ranging readers are also the strongest writers, and most students hate this exercise.

Recently, a student commented on his experience with my class, asking for less busy work, specifically favorite authors. I wondered, though did he have a point? determined to convince the majority of my students that reading makes them better writers in any media, i looked to some experts: improve your writing skills, painlessly. in his new book, how to not write bad, journalism professor ben yagoda supports the premise that reading matters. After 20 years of grading papers, yagoda observes that almost without exception, good writers read widely and frequently.

He further assures his audience that reading is the best and most painless way to absorb the rules of the language. take advantage of your ability to read. choreographer, author, and macarthur genius twyla tharp quotes mark twain: the man who does not read has no advantage over the man who cannot read. In her book the creative habit, tharp explores how she uses reading to inform her creative process, for growth and for inspiration. Most important, she reports reading archeologically going from the present sources to earlier and earlier literature as she delves into a new topic. land a job. recently, i asked some former students about how they viewed the connection between reading and good writing. I feel that it’s a good way for students to learn what their peers are reading and interested in, and it’s a way for students to learn about other authors that maybe they’d never heard of but might enjoy reading. Now, how do i convince my students? jill stewart is a lecturer in the college of communication at depaul university in chicago.

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This story first appeared on her blog culpwrit. whether you rsquo re learning english as an additional language or you rsquo re aiming to hone your writing skills, there are countless books out there that promise to help you ameliorate your skills. Let rsquo s take a look at some of the best books to help you improve your english, whether you rsquo re an esl student or an aspiring novelist. I absolutely love these books for children and esl adults alike, as they clarify parts of speech in a way that rsquo s hilarious and endearing. With titles such as hairy, scary, ordinary: what is an adjective? and thumbtacks, earwax, lipstick, dipstick: what is a compound word?. Although the link above will take you to a boxed set, the books are also available individually.

These are essential for anyone who rsquo s learning english as a second language esl. English is an extremely complicated language, and unless you rsquo ve grown up speaking, reading, and writing it, there are subtle nuances that take a long time to pick up. These books cover a wide range of skill levels, and can help you polish up both your writing and conversational skills. This book is a brilliant reference for writers of all ages, but i tend to recommend it to high school and college students because it rsquo s funny, clever, and explains punctuation in a memorable way. Remember that good punctuation is vital, as it rsquo s the key to either knowing your shit, or knowing you rsquo re shit. By david olsen, michelle bevilacqua, and justin cord hayes if you rsquo d like to expand your vocabulary, this is the book for you.

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By learning words like ldquo halcyon rdquo and ldquo sagagious rdquo which you may come across in books or wish to add into your own writing as well as ldquo schlimazel rdquo and ldquo thaumaturgy rdquo ask your english teacher to define those on the spot! , your fluency with this magnificent language will explode in the most brilliant way imaginable. Everything this author writes is pure genius, and the mother tongue is no exception. Bryson weaves a fascinating tale about the origins of the english language, and peppers it with solid insight about the utter weirdness that abounds in the language. A vital resource for anyone who intends to write fiction, this book will help you craft a refined sentence, develop characters that readers don rsquo t want to disembowel, and avoid trite cliches.

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Gardner rsquo s a tough teacher, but if you can put your own delicate ego aside, you can learn a lot from this book. If you only want a few reference books in your library that deal with english grammar and writing, let this be one of them. Probably the most comprehensive guide for style, grammar, usage, and formatting, it rsquo s as beneficial to students as it is for those in business.