Thursday, September 24, 2009

Writing About Reading

For me, the first couple pages of a book usually determine whether or not I'm going to keep reading it. I think reading should always be a pleasurable experience, so if those first couple of pages don't really ring true there's no point in killing yourself trying to read the book. On the other hand realizing that you fully enjoy a book from the very start can sweep you away into the depths of your room, buried in the book for hours. Finding books that can give you the later effect can become an amazing experience, making reading something that can take you away from everyday life and bring you to any place you want.

When reading it's best to have a peaceful setting, laying on a sunny day in your hammock or sitting next to the window with the pitter-patter of the rain being the only thing you can hear. But if your book is good enough you can read anywhere. You could care less about the sounds around you, all you know is that the main character of your story is about to spend the rest of his life in prison if he doesn't figure out a way to pull off this bank heist. A lot of the time with a book like that I'll be reading in my bed up late at night and make a mental note:
"Ten more minutes then I'll go to bed, i need rest for tomorrow." Ten minutes will turn to twenty and twenty to thirty, before you know it you wake up in the morning with a book on your face and the alarm clock going off.

I'm not a very fast reader (but again there is an exception to that if the book is enjoyable) so when I have a project deadline for a book I always have to choose an enjoyable book in order to get through it fast enough. When I'm faced with the task of not being able to pick out a book for a project, after a few days if i don't happen to like the book i have to force my self to read it. When ever this happens I become consumed by the fact that even if later on the book gets better I'll still have the same negative mentality. Still I have trouble stopping myself from giving books my preconception, but I'm getting better and have realized that although some books don't start great right off the bat they can surprise you later on. With this new knowledge i hope to be able to try reading books that i wouldn't normally read and further expand my interest in different book genres.