Win over 20 novels in this Giveaway (U.S. Residents Only)
Or maybe you might want to listen to some music while you read this post? Minutes Before Sunset now has a soundtrack on 8tracks radio. Click here or the picture to listen away.
So onto today’s topic:
I was going through my blog last week when I realized something: I always write about why I write, but I’ve never wrote about why I read, even though I read as much as I write. I’m passionate about both, so I knew I had to talk about why I read and discuss it with other readers.
At first, the answer seems simple. I read, because I like to; it’s entertainment. But then it gets more complicated. Why reading? Why do I prefer to be entertained by reading words over listening to music, watching movies, or something else entirely?
When I really started thinking about it, I realized I started seriously reading at a very young age, and it was generally on the road. My family moved around a lot, especially when I was a kid. As of now, I’ve already moved eleven times, including five states. Between moving, we traveled a lot–mainly because my family was spread across the country, and we drove to make visits. This meant hours–sometimes days–spent in the car with nothing to do…until I started bringing books with me.
To this day, I’m pretty blessed to be able to say I don’t get nauseous when I read in cars or airplanes, and I believe I fell in love with books somewhere along those roads. I was traveling in novels while I was traveling the country, and the new characters became my friends as I did so. After that, I would say my reasoning for reading changed, but it depended on what I was picking up. If it were fiction, it might have been to visit a new world. If it were a memoir, it was to understand the psyche of another, to learn about another’s life. If it were poetry, it might be to challenge myself or even to learn about my own life.
So why do you read? Has your reasoning changed from when you first started to now?
Here are some anwsers from my Facebook Author Page:
Author, Rissa Blakeley: I became an avid reader later in life. I picked up books that everyone was talking about, and finally, I understood the beckon of a book. I read now to dive into worlds. A happy escape essentially. From fitting in to pure joy.
Anette Abernathy: At my elementary school from 4th to 6th grade we had to read 500 pages a month, so I made myself love doing it. Fast forward to my freshman and sophomore years in college and I lost a taste for fiction because the characters became stale. Everyone wrote the same kinds of people depending on the genre, so I started writing. Now I read(mostly non-fiction and articles and blogs) to build characters(psyches, back stories, personalities) for my stories.
Karen Peacock: I read to escape for a while from everyday life. I love getting lost in someone else’s story
One last update:
With careful consideration, I’ve decided that November Snow will no longer be available as an ebook. But it is available as a paperback through Amazon. I did this for many reasons, but I mainly did this, because I wrote November Snow when I was 13 and self-published it when I was 16. Because of this, today’s version might not be what my current readers are looking for; however, I do plan on rewriting November Snow one day, so I can republish it in a more professional manner. Thank you for understanding.
~SAT
Shannon A. Thompson 
I used to read voraciously simply because of my love for books and stories, especially science fiction stories. Nothing was as exciting as those far out adventures by people like Bradbury, Niven and McCaffrey, etc. These days–I guess I’d say my love of stories takes a back seat, since I read mostly to remain sane.
Tonya,
First, thank you for commenting. Second, I’m curious. Did your genre change when you went from exciting far out adventures to maintaining sanity? (I feel that way when I’m too busy with school and work to read anything but textbooks.) Or do you still read the same genre when you can?
~SAT
I do read the same genres, more or less but the themes of the stories I enjoy most these days are much darker than before.
Thank you for responding 😀 That’s really interesting.
~SAT
Reblogged this on Wyndy Dee.
I agree with your commenters above – I read for entertainment, the escape into another world, and for the joyous experience of it. There’s nothing else like it.
I read because I’m basically introverted and sometimes I just have to get away from people. Reading takes me to that private place (even if I’m listening with one ear for a child’s cry or such).
Oh! I think that’s a very relatable reason for reading instead of other entertainments (like a movie, for instance.) Because reading is done by yourself (even if you’re in a book group, you read elsewhere.) And it’s an opportunity to have some time for yourself. I like that. Thank you for commenting.
~SAT
Plus, the writing on TV is SO DUMB!! I can only stand a few shows.
I started reading at four years old and haven’t stopped. I read for pleasure, escaping the real world, knowledge and entertainment. 🙂
I was reading adult science-fiction at ten years old. Pretty sophisticated stuff for a kid. Since then I’ve never stopped reading, and my genres have expanded. Now, as a writer, I often study an author’s style as I read but, sometimes, I have to remind myself to dial down the learning and just enjoy the story!
I grew up reading Comic Books. I blame my long-standing fascination with, what my parents call, “$10 words”, on this early literary vice. Brainy comic-book heroes and villains always threw around fancy words that my young mind could barely comprehend. The stories themselves almost always wrapped around magic, super-science, lost civilizations, extraterrestrials, vampires, werewolves, mutants…no topic of the imagination was off limits. And there was almost always a clear dividing line between the good guys and the bad guys. As I matured, I learned to appreciate the subtleties of exploring the human condition against that ever-changing backdrop of superhero fantasy. The shades of grey of the reality I grew up surrounded by in Detroit, MI, helped push my imagination to a more colorful place full of characters that defined themselves, good or evil, by their actions. During my impressionable years, that was huge.
I mostly read for entertainment. I don’t read novels as much as I used to because I have a really bad habit of reading the entire novel in one sitting…which means I check out of life for several hours. The kids have enough activities that I can’t do it (except when we go camping…I bring a few books with me!) Reading short stories on blogs, or Readers Digest in print form, is what I read most of the time now 🙂
Why do I love to read well I had start reading more when I was a teenager to improve my spelling Imwas not happy about reading but then one day my mom gave me a relly good book to read and that was it fell in love with books I just love them and when I have a book to read I am sad.
Self-published at 16? I self-published at 12 (Now 13.)
That’s very exciting! Congrats to you. I always look back and wish Amazon gave the opportunities then that they give today when I was your age. It’s so great to see so many people being able to share their works earlier on, because of all of the companies striving to make it available. Good luck to your novels, and keep writing 😀
~SAT