Finding the Joy of Reading Fiction
by Shereen Vedam
I'm a creature of habit and routine. And being an author, well, that keeps me busy pretty much all through my spare time.
Finding time to read can be difficult.
Or so I told myself when I went for days, weeks, months, and, yes, sometimes even years without having read a fiction book.
Occasionally, I'd be at the library waiting for a friend and pick up a book that looked interesting. Soon enough, I'd often lose interest or get too busy to finish it. Or read it, but not make the time to search out and read the rest of the series.
Life is just too busy, I told myself.
It was a lie.
I found that out recently when I did exactly as before. While waiting for a friend at the library, I found a book and brought it home. I didn't finish it. But then my friend suggested I try one she'd picked up.
I looked at the cover and the description and thought, that's not for me. I mean, the main character sounds like she doesn't believe in anything I believe in. She's a fake medium. Pretending to believe in magic and the paranormal.
While that's all I write about, magic and the miraculous.
And even if it sounds weird, I believe in it!
But I read a few pages. Then a few more. Before I knew it, I'd finished a chapter and was reading the next.
Then I read the ending and loved it!
Yes, I'm that annoying reader who reads the ending before I've finished the book.
Soon, I went back and read the rest of the book. Because I trusted the writer now (she knew how to write a good ending I would approve of).
After returning the book, I checked the library for the next book in the series, and put a hold on it. And while perusing what else the library had, I realized they didn't have book 3 or 4 in this series.
What?
I put in a request for them to buy it.
They wrote back that they wouldn't be purchasing it.
I shrugged and put in an inter-library loan for it.
I've now read books 1, 2, and 3 and am about to put in another inter-library loan for book 4.
What I discovered in this process is that I still love to read.
When properly motivated, I will MAKE time to read.
I will sacrifice other chores, and sometimes even sleep, to read a little bit more.
I tend to read aloud passages that made me laugh or cry to friends.
Reading fiction gives me a quiet sense of joy that takes me to the carefree days of my childhood.
It's been a long time since I've had this much fun.
So, did my friend who gave me the first book in this series read it?
A bit of it, but it wasn't to her liking.
That's how reading goes. Some books speak to us on a deep level. Others don't.
We're all different, with different tastes and tolerances.
Doesn't mean that we should stop reading because the one book we picked up last didn't thrill us. Pick up another.
This kind of joy is rare and worth the trouble to seek out.
Who was this author whose writing spoke to me?
Her series was the Eleanor Wilde Mysteries.
Once I finish this one, I plan on checking out her other series, too.
Comments