Have you ever wondered the difference between interesting and less interesting? I know. A rhetorical question. And that's the death of things. Because rhetorical questions are less interesting, right? (I did it again.)
I've been thinking about this a lot recently as I've been reading books that aren't my normal fair. There's been a couple of contemporaries and some adult books thrown in the mix. And as great as they are, they just aren't as interesting to me.
I'm not going to name names because that isn't fair, but I wanted to make a general comparison. Usually, reading a dystopian/sci-fi/fantasy/paranormal/apocalyptic or similar YA book, I fly through it. It is usually a matter of days... sometimes hours to read through. These recent books? I stopped reading one. I've been going sporadically for a few weeks on another. Now that I'm thinking about it, it isn't just in YA books. I can read an adult fantasy in next to no time compared to a contemporary.
Don't get me wrong. There have been some contemporaries/memoirs/non-fiction that I just loved. And I haven't tried all the authors out there. I mean, everybody raves about Sarah Desen, but I haven't read one yet. So, I'm not giving up hope. I'm just saying that I'm less interested. Less interested in things that don't have that fantastical element to them. I'll still try the other stuff, but I gravitate to what I'm interested in.
What about you, friends? What are you interested in? What are you less interested in? Does it influence what you write?
11 comments:
Absolutely. There are things that grab you and force you through the book and books that you trudge through. But I find that not all of the trudging is bad. Sometimes the story is meant to trudge, just like life trudges, and you are supposed to connect to the mundane and slow pace. This style is not strong in the publishing industry right now. They don't sell as well.
But my heart belongs to the same kind of books that you described. I'm hopelessly trapped in YA, MG, and Classics.
For me it's not usually the genre that makes it less interesting, but the compellingness of the characters and the story. If the story is slow or the characters are too flat, then I just can't get into it. I've even had that happen with fantasy, which seems counterintuitive because fantasy is supposed to be all complex and interesting! So it's more the style of writing than the type of story for me...
Both of those things are good points. There are definitely books in my preferred genres that I can't push through because of the writing. I'm just a fast-paced well-written story kind of girl, I guess.
I read in a lot of different genres. If I was forced at gunpoint to choose it would be SciFi, or fantasy. Can I have two?
I never worry about what genre a book is before I read it, only if it sounds interesting. That said, I'm probably more forgiving of a fantasy book that doesn't grab me fairly quickly. I will persevere for longer than with, say, a thriller.
I tend to go through spurts where I will stick to one kind of book. Right now it is contemporary YA. I've read a lot of Sarah Dessen recently. Before that it was dystopian YA. Before that paranormal YA.
Looks like I do stick to YA, though.
I'm in the same boat as you! I've read pretty widely, but if you asked me to choose a book, I'd pick something with a fantastical element in it over anything else. I like magic, and I like having a little magic in what I read and write.
interesting...
i like good writing.
less interested in extremes, like horror
but good writing is worth a good scare!
If I'm interested in the topic or characters, I'm involved and read at a fast pace. However, if I can't relate to the characters or situation, I find myself stalling out. It's the same with what I write. I can only write what interests and holds my attention.
Absolutely 100% to all of your questions. The thing is, you just never know. Or, you don't always know. Sometimes I'll pick up a book that a friend is "making" me read, and I'll find I genuinely like it - a happy surprise. :)
But typically, if I'm just . . . not interested? Well, there's nothing much you can do about that.
I get bored with all genres if I read too many in a row. I have to change it up. But my real nemesis is non-fiction--it makes me want to run over myself with a car. Sorry non-fiction writers.
I'm the same.
I like to read contemps and other genres every once in a while, but they definitely take me longer to get through unless I'm TOTALLY in love. But fantasy is where my heart is. :)
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