Reading Outside Your Comfort Zone
Written by Marina L. Reed
This is part two in a small series of exposés on the joys and jungles of being a writer.
Have you ever read something outside your comfort zone?
It’s a journey to be sure. It takes your thinking in a different direction; it shifts your perspective. It’s like stepping into a new world and you’ll never be the same again.
My favourite genre, my reading candy, is historical fiction. Rutherford and Gregory are masters in this genre. But to prepare myself to write this Cole Buckman series, I had to move into a genre I had rarely read. And so, I took a deep breath, collected about 30 crime fiction and thriller novels by various authors and dug in. The first few were uncomfortable for me to read, no doubt. But then I slowly began to see the mystery and mastery of this kind of writing and why it is so popular. Each author has their own spin, own style, but the goal is the same…to shock and thrill.
Reading outside my comfort zone is one thing, writing in that zone is another adventure entirely. Because when you read, you are drawn in but only as much as you choose to be drawn in. You can be the voyeur, the bystander. And there’s a safety in that. But when you write it, you are in the belly of the beast. You taste it, smell it, feel it. And if you do that well, the reader will have a rich experience, even if they are on the sidelines.
Was it like stepping into a new world where I would not be the same again? Absolutely.
I know you’ll enjoy the Cole Buckman novels. They are written to shock and thrill.
Be brave. It’s worth the ride.
ON THE EDGE by Marina L. Reed (with Don Hawkins) is coming this fall from Chicken House Press. Pre-order your copy today!
Marina has lived and worked around the world as a journalist, educator, and artist. She is the author of ten books, freelance articles, online workshops and television current affairs programs. She believes in the power and magic of the written word. Marina is currently working on her next novel. Follow her at MarinaLReed.com
