@jamesravey @ludicity : have you a link to that Synergy Greg piece ?
I’ve read https://ludic.mataroa.blog/blog/you-must-read-at-least-one-book-to-ride/ and can’t agree more. I’m even forcing my students to read one book during the semester and had the exact same experience : read books to get better. (before writing my last novel, I spent one year reading 10 books from various authors about "how to write a novel". I thought I didn’t need it. I was already a published author after all. But, wow, the effect on my writing was massive)