1. I read a lot of fiction and feel guilty about it now that I'm in school.
2. I have fantasies of trying to balance a best-selling writing career with a busy, fulfilling career in film composing. Which, given the lack of time I have to write fiction, is problematic. Yeah, not off to a good start with that.
3. I start a lot of books that I eventually finish, but I often take long breaks in the middle of a book. But I do finish them.
4. I never peek. Ever. I get upset if it happens by accident when I'm picking up or moving a book. I once ruined the climax of a book for D, and while I'm pretty sure he's forgiven me, I still feel guilty about it.
5. I have a knee-high stack of books that I've started and yet to finish.
6. I crave stories that are creepy but not gross. I often leave Borders or Barnes and Noble disappointed that I didn't find something to strike my mood (or that what I wanted was something I just couldn't afford). I started writing, really. to satisfy this craving, because truthfully, like lovers, there are very few writers who know how to meet my needs.
7. I love browsing for books. For me, any bookstore that has a coffeeshop attached rocks, because I love having a cup of chai tea or a mocha in my hand while I'm browsing.
8. I've discovered I'm not as into fantasy or horror as I once thought. When I think about it, there are only a few horror writers I really like, and not many more fantasy writers. Good writing is good writing, and I don't care whether it's genre or lit fic, though. I usually find something of merit in almost everything I read, but as I get older, I'm becoming more snobbish. I think that has to do with lack of time, both long and short. I look over my life, and think, "Holy crap. I only have a good fifty or sixty years left of reading. And that's if I keep my memory intact."
7 comments:
No! Don't feel guilty about reading fiction! I'm sure it's much better for you than watching tv. Why else would children at school always have a "reading book" to take home?
I relate to no. 6. It's when I've got nothing to read that I most feel like writing.
I'm a bit confused about the thirty or forty years left to you. I hope to have that much left to me and I'm a lot older than you are!
It's the reading of fiction when I need to be working on school stuff that triggers the guilt.
Okay, okay, I edited the years left. You're right, FHH - I'm not being optimistic enough!
Being an optimist is healthy. If things go right, the optimist thinks "great" and is happy and the pessimist thinks "it can't last" and is miserable. If things go badly, the pessimist can get some pleasure from saying "I told you so" but the optimist is much happier thinking "it's only a blip; I just need to sort this out and I'm back on track again."
A concur, do not feel guilty for reading! It's a good thing! But you do have to avoid procrastination on important things like work and school. Balance is the key, not abstinence!
I usually always peek. And I have a to be read stack that tops 150 at the moment. Because I'm moving, I am going to go on a book buying hiatus and read them all before buying new books.
Being an optimist is healthy. If things go right, the optimist thinks "great" and is happy and the pessimist thinks "it can't last" and is miserable.
Oh, dear. I may be in trouble.
WW, you naughty girl! No peeking!
Hey freddie. I definitely peek. I read the end to see if I like it before I buy the book, most times.
Can't help myself!
I agree with you lots, and on #8, especially, that good writing is good writing.
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