I Write. They Read.
I think it's time that I cleared something up once and for all. I do not read. Ok, I can read. I just don't like to. Yes, I am well aware that as a writer I should LOVE to read. But really, when have I ever done what I should do anyway? So, no. I don't read. And if you do see me reading it's probably 'Sports Illustrated' or 'Texas Monthly', my daily Bible chapters, or something of spiritual or ministerial significance. Don't ask me if I've read the latest Grisham, Sparks, or King. I promise you I haven't.
I haven't always been this way. I read voraciously all through my elementary, high school, and college years and well into adulthood. I loved historical fiction and read everything there was to read about World War II and, more specifically, the Holocaust. I also liked Danielle Steele (long, long ago), Herman Wouk, Leon Uris, Patricia Cornwell, Sue Grafton, Erma Bombeck, and John Sanford. On occasion, I'd have two or three books going at the same time, even when taking reading intensive college classes. Reading was my escape and my hobby.
Then it wasn't. I'm not sure when I changed. Three, four, or five years ago, maybe? I grew bored and impatient. Reading became a waste of time. Not that I was spending my time curing cancer or stopping world hunger, but I couldn't rationalize sitting still and doing essentially nothing for hours on end. I started books and never finished. Other books, recommended reads, went completely un-read. I became a non-reader.
I always say it has to do with my writing. I only have so much time with words and I'd rather write them than read them. I think that this is about 90% true. The rest has to do with my restlessness and inability to focus. And I still can't rationalize sitting still and doing essentially nothing for hours on end. Yes, I watch TV. However, I often multitask while doing it and I can't do that while reading a book. Or so I like to rationalize. I simply do not like to read.
Have I read a few good books since becoming a non-reader? Definitely. Every now and again someone will recommend something and I'll actually capitulate and read. 'The Scarlet Pimpernel', 'DaVinci Code', and 'Conversations with God' are three such examples. Of course there are hundreds of others I either never picked up or never finished and, frankly, I never plan to. I just don't like to read, so unless it promises to be an exceptional read, I'm not even going to think about attempting it.
Honestly, I'm tired of the incredulous, almost horrified, looks that always seem to require and apology or explanation. Just because most writers love to read doesn't mean I have to. I am unique. I'm not going to start reading again simply because I'm supposed to like to read. I know me better than anyone knows me. I know for a fact that I do not like to read. I read what I have to when I have to (for example, the books and other assorted readings designed to prepare me for graduate school), however you will never see me reading anything longer than a magazine for pleasure.
All that said, I love readers. They enjoy my blogs and my stories and eventually they will put me atop the New York Times Best Seller List. It's all good. I write. They read. It works.
I haven't always been this way. I read voraciously all through my elementary, high school, and college years and well into adulthood. I loved historical fiction and read everything there was to read about World War II and, more specifically, the Holocaust. I also liked Danielle Steele (long, long ago), Herman Wouk, Leon Uris, Patricia Cornwell, Sue Grafton, Erma Bombeck, and John Sanford. On occasion, I'd have two or three books going at the same time, even when taking reading intensive college classes. Reading was my escape and my hobby.
Then it wasn't. I'm not sure when I changed. Three, four, or five years ago, maybe? I grew bored and impatient. Reading became a waste of time. Not that I was spending my time curing cancer or stopping world hunger, but I couldn't rationalize sitting still and doing essentially nothing for hours on end. I started books and never finished. Other books, recommended reads, went completely un-read. I became a non-reader.
I always say it has to do with my writing. I only have so much time with words and I'd rather write them than read them. I think that this is about 90% true. The rest has to do with my restlessness and inability to focus. And I still can't rationalize sitting still and doing essentially nothing for hours on end. Yes, I watch TV. However, I often multitask while doing it and I can't do that while reading a book. Or so I like to rationalize. I simply do not like to read.
Have I read a few good books since becoming a non-reader? Definitely. Every now and again someone will recommend something and I'll actually capitulate and read. 'The Scarlet Pimpernel', 'DaVinci Code', and 'Conversations with God' are three such examples. Of course there are hundreds of others I either never picked up or never finished and, frankly, I never plan to. I just don't like to read, so unless it promises to be an exceptional read, I'm not even going to think about attempting it.
Honestly, I'm tired of the incredulous, almost horrified, looks that always seem to require and apology or explanation. Just because most writers love to read doesn't mean I have to. I am unique. I'm not going to start reading again simply because I'm supposed to like to read. I know me better than anyone knows me. I know for a fact that I do not like to read. I read what I have to when I have to (for example, the books and other assorted readings designed to prepare me for graduate school), however you will never see me reading anything longer than a magazine for pleasure.
All that said, I love readers. They enjoy my blogs and my stories and eventually they will put me atop the New York Times Best Seller List. It's all good. I write. They read. It works.
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