I taught myself Spanish by reading cookbooks and newspapers.  I have graduated to more challenging works in art history, science,and wine appreciation.  I am a firm believer in using authentic documents from the culture you are studying to master a language.  Also,you should study topics that interest you to keep up your motivation especially when studying alone.

The payoff for me has been being able to do research in Spanish as well as interviews. As a reader, I have been making inroads into Octavio Paz's Labyrinth of Solitude.

The ultimate reward for studying Spanish is access to one of the world's richest literary languages.  There are other equally rich languages, but right now we have Spanish-language books, magazines, audio books, TV, radio, and Internet resources available in the U.S. that cut down on the cost of learning materials.

I'd love to hear other tips for learning foreign languages. Hosting foreign exchange students and swapping English for Spanish lessons come to my mind.

Ruth :)