Quote:
Originally Posted by queentess
You don't read? I've never heard of a musician who doesn't listen to music or an artist who doesn't view other art... Who's your favorite author? How do you know what you're writing is marketable or will appeal to today's audience? (Unless you're not trying to make a living at this, in which case, as you were.)
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No, no, no! Please don't misunderstand. I've read literally thousands of books. I grew up without a tv. My mom and dad would read while listening to records every evening and I spent most of my time at the library when not at school. When I turned 14, I learned about fantasy and began reading Piers Anthony. My wife and I have been avid readers and I generally chew up a fantasy novel in a day.
My favorite authors are David Eddings, Anne McCaffrey, Alan Dean Foster and Glenn Cook.
When not reading, I took long walks . . . (not on the beach, I live in the mountains), listening to my walkman and imagining different worlds. I'm also an avid D&D player, DM and world builder for my group.
I haven't read a book in the last 3 years, not because I've lost interest in reading, but because I've been interested in developing the stories in my own mind. I just finished the first draft of my second book, and I made a couple of game modules for Neverwinter Nights that totalled 400,000 words of dialogue. I have a full time job and write in the evenings and weekends when not spending time with the family. My hobbies of reading, gaming and painting miniatures have been set aside for now until I either succeed or fail at writing.
I still like reading, but I want to get the ideas that have been dancing around in my head down onto paper. I know what I want to write and like the way I'm writing at the moment. At times, I look at examples to get a feel for how other authors have done things I like, but the system I have works for me at the moment.
And I know the world doesn't HAVE to be larger, but I like it that way. It works for me and fits the vision of what I'm writing.