When I read, I find that I am most comfortable in a quiet place. Loud sounds, like my siblings playing our out of tune piano downstairs, irritate and distract me and keep me from delving fully into the story. Aside from silence, I like to be in some place where I can just curl up for a few hours. Usually, this means my bed or my hammock, which I keep set up in the back yard. I quite enjoy having a cup of hot tea beside me when I read, and a bit of chocolate never hurts either. In all, I like to have a relaxing, calm environment when I read. It helps me zone out so I can get drawn into the story.
I think I write quite a bit like Cornelia Funke at times. She has a tendency to describe some scenes and people with great detail, pointing out small things to paint a more vivid scene just as I do. We also both use a lot of metaphors in our descriptions. I read her books a lot as a kid, and I still read them fairly regularly. I always loved them and the descriptions in them, so I think I probably picked up a bit of her writing style through this repetitious reading. I try to avoid emulating any writers. I want to have a style all my own, although I will admit if a piece of my writing sounds like someone else. I think it’s hard to completely avoid echoing others’ writing styles.
It’s nearly impossible to pick a favorite book or series. I simply love far too many. However, Tolkien and Funke have got to be my favorite two authors. I simply love both of their writing styles. Every word of theirs just sounds like poetry to me, and their stories pull me in like a black hole of words. I become so completely immersed in their books, and not only can I not pull myself back out, but I find that I don’t want to. I love being pulled in and taken into another world, and both these authors do that so masterfully. I can’t express in words just how deeply or exactly why I love the works of these authors, but all of their works mean so much to me that I know they’ll remain favorites as long as I live.
I believe that the more someone reads, the more likely they are to become a writer. It doesn't much matter what they write, be it stories, songs, or poetry, I heavily believe that their reading habits will influence how they write. I think taking in the written words of others helps us learn how to develop our own ideas, as well as sentence structure and vocabulary. I think reading ingrains in us a love of words and makes us want to write pieces of our own, and also gives us the skill to do so.
Tolkien is my husband's favorite, too. I like what you say about our writing "echoing" that of a writer who has mattered to us or influenced us in some ways. I think that's a great word for it. And I think you're right that a love of reading can spur a love of writing, too--both are quite magical.
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