
How does creativity require effort?
What are some bad habits related to writing that everyone should avoid?
Does reading “bad” literature compromise your ability to write well? Should one only read books lauded as “good”?
Yes.
Though that depends on what you define as “bad” or “good” literature.
Your output (or writing) is a combination of what you put into your mind, and your existing ideas and the way you perceive the world. So, it follows that the more garbage you put into your mind, the less quality your own writing will have.
There is a reason every writing blog and teacher will tell you to read, read, read because you need a steady input in order to have raw material with which to work.
Your mind is a machine, keep putting in garbage and you will keep getting garbage out. Put in quality ingredients, and you will see the quality of your own writing improve.
Now, what counts as garbage, and what counts as “good” literature? I could make a bulleted list, laying out what I think is good or bad, a click-bait-like list of what to avoid and the best books to read, but I think it’s best to learn why some writing is good, and why others are “bad.” That way you can learn how to find them and avoid them yourself.
Forget awards, forget reviews, forget the critics, they won’t help you here.
To me, bad writing is something that is like fast food. It’s quick to write, quick to read. It doesn’t burn inside you and is quickly forgotten. It is flashy but unsubstantial. It will arrive with fanfare, and then swiftly disappear. What comes to mind when you think about writing in that way? Probably a large majority of the content we see online.
That’s what I imagine.
On the other hand, good writing is like a well-balanced diet. It’s healthy, but it’s varied based on who you are. Great writing will stick with you, “stick to your ribs,” it will make you lay on the couch once you’ve finished with it like you’ve just torn through Thanksgiving dinner. You’ll put down the book, article, or something, and just sit and think about what you’ve read. It forces you to digest it. It stimulates your thoughts, your imagination. What do you imagine when you think of writing in this way? Probably a number of books or articles that really left an impact. I can name a few.
What is “good” or “bad” depends on the person, and their opinions, and what their goals are for the kind of content they want to write. Do they want to write garbage clickbait articles for Buzzfeed? Then they’ll think other articles of the same kind will be a healthy diet for them. Do you want to write science fiction? Then a steady diet of science fiction is the best for you.
Remember, your ability to write well is the sum of all its parts, and when one of those parts is garbage, you’re definitely not going to live up to your potential.