To-Be-Read? How about Before-I'm-Dead...

As a writer, I know that I am supposed to be an avid reader. I also know I should work out regularly, eat healthy, think before I speak, and remember to change the oil in my car on time. But here we are. I wish that there were more hours in the day, or that sleep was a novelty rather than a necessity. The extra time would allow me to actually do all the things I want to in a day. But alas, I am eepy and don’t have it in me to accomplish this ambitious wish. And reading seems to always fall first off of the to-do list.

I’ve treated reading rather unfairly. It has always been one of my favorite activities. It can be relaxing; it can be enticing and exciting. Transporting to fun new worlds, seeing fresh perspectives, understanding concepts otherwise unthought of. Words are powerful, which is why I love to work with them, but in putting most of my effort into writing, I’ve removed reading from my priorities. This is quite funny to me when I think about how reading is what led me to writing. Every time a read something new, I’m baffled at how much I take away, whether it is a new phrase, a new fact, or a new opinion. But mostly, it sits me down and puts my focus on one thing (for once). I always finish a reading session feeling refreshed, and I’ve desperately missed that feeling. Thankfully, I have put a valiant effort into rekindling my love for literary endeavors over the last year.

For a long time, I mostly read fantasy. I grew up with the genre, and I base most of my work off of it to this day. I like to think to myself that there’s nothing more realistic than fantasy, because often we allow ourselves to be the most truthful with our circumstances through the veil of elves, dwarves, magic, dragons, epic battles, and talking trees. Fantasy will always hold a place in my heart, but another genre I’ve found to always pique my interest is super niche informative books. For instance, while perusing my local library app, I found a book called Norwegian Wood: Chopping, Stacking, and Drying Wood the Scandinavian Way by Lars Mytting, and now know a lot about wood chopping, stacking, storing, and drying (by the way, did you know that the first chainsaw was 116 lbs?). This is my favorite way to be well read: finding a book that interests me and reading it no matter the genre or content. I limited myself in the past by avoiding certain genres or labels, and I am relieved to finally let myself enjoy books about anything and everything. I mean, you can never know too many facts, and you can never know too many random facts, especially as a writer. In all, I love being surprised when I’m hesitant about a certain book, but then I end up glued to the pages until the very last word. It makes me excited for when people eventually read my stories.

My goal is to read ten books by the end of the year, and while that seems like a laughable goal, I’m keeping my expectations low so I can dazzle myself at the end of the year. I am also very busy. So here’s my working list of books I’ve finished (because the list of books I started and didn’t finish wouldn’t fit in one post):

• Photography by Alastair Scott

• Norwegian Wood: Chopping, Stacking, and Drying Wood the Scandinavian Way by Lars Mytting

• Magician: Apprentice by Raymond E. Feist

• The Silmarillion by J R R Tolkien