What (if anything) do you think reading Writers & Lovers before this adds to the reading experience?

I think it's essential if you also plan to read Writers & Lovers! And I highly recommend reading both back to back, in the order they were published. :)

I'm not sure it adds much, tbh.

I had read Writers & Lovers when it first came out, so didn't really remember it well. I did not brush up on it before reading this novel, as I heard it was meant to be stand alone. But now I really want to go back and reread Writers & Lovers! If you did the same, did it feel worthwhile?