Reading and writings go hand in hand. I wanted to be a writer because I loved reading so much. I wanted to do for other people what writers were doing for me.

In a presentation to a large group of teenagers, I was once asked about the connection between reading and writing. An eager looking young girl put her hand up at the Q&A part of the session, got hold of the microphone and asked: ‘Do you have to read if you want to be a writer?’

Dozens of answers flashed through my mind, but I went with the first: ‘Yes.’

Her reaction? ‘Oh, bummer,’ she said, downcast.

I’m not sure if she suddenly saw her entire career path flying out the window at that moment or what …

Part of my mission in life is to turn non-readers into readers. It makes them better people, for a start, and it might help me stay in a job. When I was still working as teacher and writing part time, one of my colleagues was a physics teacher who would proudly declare he hadn’t read a book since he finished Year 12. And, as an aside, isn’t it interesting how some people say that proudly, as a badge of honour? I would have thought it to be a secret shame, but there you go. Read More