I always suggest that writers feed their brains with some of the best works of the past, not just the current best-selling novels or the top films (although of course those are also useful).
If you like listening to audio books or stories, below are links to some that I think are worthy of your time. Most allow you to download the file to your computer or your mp3 player or tablet.
Emma, Jane Austen: http://librivox.org/emma-by-jane-austen-solo/ (you can download the book there as well)
The Beauties, Anton Chekhov: http://audio.theguardian.tv/audio/kip/books/series/short-stories-podcast/1291737071426/5335/gdn.101207.ic.Short_Story_Pullman.mp3 (short story)
Collected Stories, Anton Chekhov: http://archive.org/details/AntonChekhov-SelectedShortStories
Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad: http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/99/heart-of-darkness/1688/part-1/ (streaming didn’t work for me, download did. This is Part One, the rest of the novel sections are at the same site)
Flapper and Philosophers, F. Scott Fitzgerald: http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/84/flappers-and-philosophers/ (this was his first collection of short stories)
A Good Man is Hard to Find, Flannery O’Conner: http://manasto.tumblr.com/post/107920720/a-good-man-is-hard-to-find-by-flannery-oconnor (Read by the author in 1959; sound not great but worth it for her accent – short novel)
Bullet in the Brain, Tobias Wolf: http://downloads.newyorker.com/mp3/fiction/080211_fiction_boyle.mp3?_kip_ipx=1760304885-1341099567 (read and discussed by T. C. Boyle – short story, not safe for the office)
There are lots more available, but these should give you enough for now to upload to your brain via your ears.
(All the great authors above give advice about writing, in my newest book, Your Creative Writing Masterclass, available now via Amazon or your other favorite book seller--consider supporting your local independent bookshop by ordering it from them.)
