Three Books on A Desert Island Question For Readers and Writers

Have you ever been asked that question? You know, the one about which books, if you could take only three, or one or five, would you take with you to a desert island? Ah the seriousness of it all, the conundrum. Which books to take? Rack  your brain. Think, think, think.

Well, I’m a long time reader and writer and I have an answer. Nope, not a list of which books I’d take and a lengthy explanation as to why I chose those particular books. It’s much simpler. I’m not big on clutter or complications.

Here it is.

I’d take along an Ebook reader – and a solar charger.  In my case that would be a Kindle Fire, but for others it would be something else. Whatever. The Kindle plus solar charger would take up less space (if that’s an issue) and provide a whole lot more than the basic few books. In fact I could load it up with my old favorites that I like to read more than once and then hit Kindle for lots of freebies I could add to the memory and catch up with discovering new authors. That’s not to say I couldn’t purchase a number of books I’ve been meaning to read along the way as well.  How about Game of Thrones, the complete set? That would keep me busy for quite a while and take up little space on the reader. Whohoo! Just don’t hit any ‘delete’ button accidentally. There’d be no recovery.

And the reader, if it’s more of a tablet, would let me take a few downloaded movies and/or music along as well. Ah, the modern age. The wonderful world of digital. The other nice thing is I could read in the dark. Most screens are backlit so I wouldn’t be forced to attempt to ready by torch light or candle or something.

Only downside is if anything happened to the reader/tablet/Kindle/whatever, or the solar charger, there would be no ‘hard copy’ books or anything else to read, listen to or watch.

Sigh.  Well, we can’t have everything (though I’m not quite sure why not…it’s just that my Grandmother said…well, you know).  Maybe I could then pound palm leaves into some sort of paper and use charcoal from burned out palm stumps to write my own books. It’s a thought.

Anyway, that’s my answer. I’d risk it. Hopefully if it was a castaway situation I’d be rescued before something untoward happened to my electronics. 

Reading is Not Boring But Writers Are A Little Crazy

I Suspect Writers Are a Little Bit Crazy 

Yes, I mean you and me and all those other writers out there (regardless of what they write).  There are a lot of reasons for my suspicions but I could write another entire book on that so I'll just keep to one sub-topic beneath the general heading for today.

I can't tell you how many times I've heard aspiring writers say, "I'm not a big fan of reading...I just don't have time to read."

What?

You intend to write but you don't read?  I mean if you don't read what the heck makes you think other people are going to read what YOU write?

Oh, they say, I'd rather just flip on the game console or maybe send a text (with letters that look like little better than gobbeldy-gook) or surf the net.  Reading is pretty boring they tell me.

What?

So you don't think YOUR writing is going to bore someone else?

Ahem, let's analyze this truly twisted thinking a bit. From many conversations and my own observations this situation plainly stems from not the reading, but WHAT those people were reading.
Many young people read only because they've "had to" for school or for some learning endeavor.

Remember being forced to slog through a 'classic' in literature class that didn't interest you? Remember being assigned a long read in a dry text at school that held no more interest for you than dust?

Then, maybe later remember when you 'had' to read some technical manual for your work?

Granted, all that can be boring, but it's not reading's fault!

Okay, so I think the problem is plain and if you plan to write or simply want to have a better life you are going to have to read.

Sorry, that's the way of it.

Doesn't matter how you read, whether holding a book or a magazine or at your computer or on your tablet, you have to read.

So, putting aside for the moment the stuff you'll still 'have' to read over time, the key is to find things you're interested in, things that entertain you and/or ignite your passions. Novels, politics, science, whatever floats your boat. Trust me, reading will then be fun.

And, as a bonus, once you've found those things that inspire and fire you, and you actually begin  to enjoy reading, you'll discover lots of new ideas and topics that will engross you for hours, even days.

From there you'll leap into new perspectives, explore new frontiers. On top of that, reading will lead to better writing. Whether you desire to be a 'writer' of some species or just need to write clearly for your job or to communicate with friends, family and colleagues, reading will aid you in those endeavors. New ideas, new words, new perspectives.

And all of that will change your world. And one change spurs another. It's a process that goes on continually. One I've no doubt you'll come to love and embrace.

Write. Read. Be a little crazy.

The Read and The Write Of It

Sometimes as writers we forget and take for granted the marvel of reading.

And it is pretty much a marvel you know.

We all read, well most of us read, well, a large number of us read and it's kind of funny how we don't think about it, but just do it. A part of every day. and thank heavens writers aren't the only ones who read!

Here's a definition of what reading really is:

..."a complex cognitive process of decoding symbols in order to construct or derive meaning...a means of language acquisition of communication and of sharing information and ideas. Reading boils down to a complex interaction between the text and the reader, said text shaped by the reader's prior experience, knowledge, attitude and community.  The reading process requires continuous practice, development and refinement."

photo by Chance Agrella

 Or the more dry dictionary definition:

"the act or practice of one who reads...the study of books; academic material."

The second doesn't tell you nearly what the first does, but you get it. The first definition makes it much more clear just how complicated and fascinating the act of reading is.

There are types of reading other than the written word such as symbols, pictograms and music, but let’s stick with what we scribblers know best - reading a book.

Plainly the first requirement of reading is that there's sharp contrast between the letters and the background they're printed on (don't you just love red on black?) and aside from that, readers, don’t you just love it when the text doesn’t fit your computer screen and you’re forced to scroll from side to side, back and for, repeatedly? (er, I think I can see that you don’t). So fiction writers, copy writers, all writers keep in mind the readability factor in the visual.

The other thing about reading is it is usually an individual activity. One person; book or magazine or whatever in hand, reading. Oh, occasionally someone will do a ‘reading’ and read aloud to a group. And, readers, did you know many writers use reading out loud as a tool when crafting what they write? Reading out loud fosters better comprehension, meaning it allows the writer to catch many of his or her errors and to correct them. Handy, huh?

Did you know also that reading really is a pretty intensive process because the eye moves back and forth assimilating text? Very little of a sentence is actually ‘seen’ accurately, thus the puzzles where you can figure out a whole sentence with lots of words or letters missing. That involves eye movement and visual perception which you can Google if you lile, but it’s a whole ‘nother subject.

So, back to reading. Yep, it’s a very active exercise for your mind as pooped to say watching TV or just listening to music. When you read your brain cells engage in activity as the words you read are automatically translated into vivid images painted on your consciousness from the story the reader is absorbing. Fascinating, don’t you think? But there’s more. Your brain is actually a muscle which really does need to be exercised regularly like any other muscle in your body. If you don’t, you risk dulling yourself down. You must keep your mental faculties constantly engaged to keep your brain from getting bored and that will keep you smarter. Yes, smarter I say. But don’t believe me, research that yourself.

Those of you who are regular readers, think about it. When you read you’re bound to explore the works of a variety of authors and thereby be exposed to different literary styles, learn new words, phrases, idioms, and because of that learn to use those things in new ways yourself.

So, be of good cheer, readers and obsessive readers because readers are generally more knowledgeable folks and more knowledgeable are generally more creative and more creativity leads to innovation and the ability to think more ‘out of the box. So keep reading and you’ll find you’re definitely more creative in whatever are of life you aim to excel.

Want to read a bit more and give me your thoughts? Hop over to The Importance Of Reading For All Of Us. Good article for more info.