My Love Affair with the Written Word

Writers love to read. Writers love other writers. Writers love the written word.

There is nothing that makes my heart and my mind tingle more than a clever, profound, or artfully worded turn of phrase in something I’m reading.

“A fanatic can no more shut his mouth than he can open his mind.” – Will Rogers

“I asked a motorcyclist coming in from the rain if he wished he had a car now. He just shook his head and said, ‘Just wish it wasn’t raining.'” – Jerry Seinfeld

“Chasing an errant swarm of bees is nothing to following a naked lunatic…” – Bram Stoker

“It is never coincidence when strangers meet, each has something to learn from the other.” – Buddha

For years, I collected these phrases in my mind, and I’m sorry to say I forgot more than I remember. Thank God for Kindle’s highlight feature, which not only lets you highlight passages of a book you like, but lets you search for them easily. This has been a godsend for me and my penchant for collecting quotes.

There are longer passages I can’t get over, too. For example, in a passage in Douglas Adams’s sci-fi satire So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish, the protagonist, Arthur Dent, buys a newspaper and a package of biscuits (British for cookies) at a cafe at a train station and sits down to enjoy them. He takes out the sports section and puts the rest of the paper on the table in front of him. Another man sits opposite Dent and reads his own paper. Soon, the other man reaches over and takes one of Dent’s biscuits and eats it. Incensed, Dent is nonetheless British, so rather than confront the man, has makes a great show of taking a biscuit and eating it, reminding the man that they are not his. The man looks at Dent, then takes another biscuit. Each growing more irate with the other, they take turns eating the biscuits until they are gone. With a huff, the stranger slaps his paper closed and marches away. Dent can’t imagine what kind of person just sits down and eats another man’s biscuits. As he stands to leave, he picks up his paper and there on the table under it is his package of biscuits.

The quotes and passages that stay with me the most aren’t just humorous, but become more profound as one dwells on them. By not only reading, but taking time to meditate on what I’ve read, I believe it enhances my own writing. Such deep thoughts inspire me to aspire (alliteration not intended) to write with similar flair and panache. In my soon-to-be-released sequel to Rogue Agenda, I put in a turn of phrase that actually mimics (in an homage, not to mock) the title of a loved and respected colleague’s book. It is an inside reference and only has meaning for us; still, it makes me feel clever and sneaky.

Reading books I love by writers I love elevates my own writing in ways it would be hard to elucidate. I encourage my fellow writers to read, read voraciously, read anything and everything, even things you don’t think you’ll like reading. Just read, and highlight passages that strike you no matter why. Meditate on what you’re reading and ask yourself what you might have learned. I swear you’ll find your own writing improving as a result.

Are there any other quote-geeks out there like me? Share some of your favorites in the comments, below.