Writing worth reading

When I first began to think about the question, "What makes writing worth reading?" I had no idea where to begin. Is it something as simple as it is grammatically correct and error free? Is it something a little deeper such as the topic of the writing or the way the writer uses literary devices to intrigue their readers that makes it worthwhile? I believe the only way to approach this question is to answer it for myself.

I believe that there are many components that work together to make writing worth reading. A few that come to mind are: accuracy, imagination, thoughtfulness, and, of course, the topic. The topic of a piece of writing or the plot of a book is what draws me in first. If the topic of the writing is something that I am interested in then I will usually find that reading worthwhile. If the plot of a book is intriguing and there is creativeness in the way the author writes I am drawn in. I included accuracy and thoughtfulness in my list of components because I believe that it is extremely important for there to be accurate facts in articles and historical readings. I do not think it is worthwhile to read something that is historically inaccurate unless it is made clear that the writing is meant to be fictional. When I mentioned thoughtfulness, I was thinking along the lines of something does not have to be 100% error free to be worth reading as long as you can tell that the author wrote thoughtfully and carefully.

It goes without saying that what makes reading worthwhile is different for each individual reader. There are many aspects of writing that make it worthwhile to read. I never realized that this question could be so challenging to answer. However, I believe that an interest in a topic or issue would probably be one of the top reasons why people would find writing worthwhile.