One of the best ways to improve your craft is to closely observe those who are more skilled than you.
If you want to improve as a guitar player, you can’t simply learn more songs. You also have to look at what virtuosos are doing. This way, you can see what you still have to experience and master in practice.
This also applies to writing: you must read in the correct way to improve as a writer.
1: Go beyond superficial comprehension.
In school, we learn to read only for comprehension.
But you are a writer, so you must go deeper. When reading, ask yourself: Is this the only thing that the writer wants to communicate? Is there a subtext? How is this message conveyed? Is this working for me or not?
It takes effort to dig deeper, but you will find lots of unexpected insights that will help you master your craft.
2: Observe how techniques are applied.
When you study copywriting and storytelling, you learn a lot of techniques.
These are often nothing more than theories. They sound effective, but can you apply them? It’s not always straightforward to implement new techniques in your writing.
But when you notice those techniques in other writers’ work, you’ll learn how to use them yourself.
3: Read the good, the bad and the different.
“Writers read all the time” said Stephen King.
And you should. But don’t limit yourself to what you like. Read some bad writing as well. For example, when was the last time you read some atrocious fanfiction? Or some low-quality harmony novel? Reading bad stuff teaches you what not to do.
Also, experiment by reading things you would never try; this will expand your comfort zone and give you new, original ideas.