Think about this . . . when you buy a book, what inspires you to finish the story? Lately, this question has plagued my brain because more often than not, I dive into a book, ready to invest my whole mind sorting through the plot, but usually, I only make it halfway to the end. I lose interest and put it down. Recently, only a select few stories have compelled me to continue to the finish line. So I'm wondering, is it me or the books?
Maybe I've become too picky. Once upon a time, I read with a reader's mindset, but somewhere along the way, I shifted into a writer's mindset. Now when I read, my brain edits everything, and it drives me INSANE! I have NO control over it! Gone is my patience for overwriting and clunky dialog. If the story doesn't MOVE, I toss it.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not an arrogant writer. I don't approach other writer's works thinking I could do better. That's not the issue. In fact, I constantly beat myself up over my imperfections, but for whatever reason, when I read ANYTHING, it's like my brain adopts every word, as if I wrote them myself, and then, it attacks or it settles into the story.
It has become nearly impossible for me to fully lose myself in a book because my mind skims the surface, chipping away at unnecessary words or switching around sentences to accommodate my taste. This is great for my own writing, but not so fun when I want to read for pleasure.
I want to know how to SHUT OFF the writerly half of my brain. Does any of this sound familiar to you guys? How do you make the switch from writer to reader? Maybe there isn't a solution, but I thought I could at least gather your thoughts on the subject.
Until next time, happy writing or whatever makes you smile. :)
I'm feeling ya!!!
ReplyDeleteI do it too. But I have two reading modes:
#1 the edit mode, where I think like you and keep fixing stuff
OR
#2 the insecure writer mode where I think, man this writer is so much better than me...I suck. Then I get depressed and sad and the story isn't as fun.
YOU ROCK!!! LOL, just thought I'd get that out of the way. I'm glad I'm not alone. I do the exact same thing! Maybe we all do. :)
DeleteI have the same problem. My feelings are that once it's turned on you can't turn it off again. You can't make your self not be self aware.
ReplyDeleteAlthough, if you're sick and on cold medicine it gets a lot easier to go back to just being a reader.
Ha, S.P.! Next time I get a cold, I'll take full advantage of that blissful feature! :)
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ReplyDeleteSAME HERE. From now on, I'm trying to read books in which the prose has been praised so my editing turns off. It's hard, though.
ReplyDeleteHey SC,
DeleteSounds like it's a switch that gets flipped in all of us writers. I'm trying the same approach you're using! :)
Yeah, I have the same problem. I rarely finish novels anymore. It takes a writer with an exceptional ability to tell a story to get me to follow all the way to the end without skimming. I didn't used to be that way either, but I just don't have the time to invest in something I'm not in love with anymore.
ReplyDeleteL.G.!!!!! Yesss! That's exactly it. I guess we're forever changed! :)
DeleteI am not an author, but as a reviewer I give every book I read a chance, even the ones that don't impress me right from the start. Sometimes the saving grace of a mediocre novel is in the last chapters, sometimes the author finds the right pace in the secong half.
ReplyDeleteI envy you, Mina! I used to do the same thing. I can't say what changed my brain, but it made a huge impact! I can't wait for you to read Sebastian Falls!!! :)
DeleteOh yeah, I have that problem too. I think that there might be enough books int he universe that we really don't have to read anything that isn't really great. But it does make it hard to pick up new stuff.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how to go back, but I do know there are books good enough to make my inner editor shut up and pay attention.
You too, Rena!!!! Yep, I've come across a few myself. Looking forward to reading more. :)
ReplyDeleteULGH. I'm in the same boat. It's so hard to really enjoy a book now a days! I finish them. I can't not finish a book I've started, but sometimes it takes me months.
ReplyDeleteI only started writing fiction about 2 years ago but I've been an avid reader all my life. Now it seems that I can't simply read a book and enjoy it. I will never read in the same way, ever again... which is quite a sad thing.
ReplyDeleteWriter In Transit
Reading all these comments eases my mind. I was thinking I'd just become a grouchy reader, but it seems all of us writers deal with this issue. :)
DeleteI hear your pain. After learning all these rules about writing, I now notice whenever they're broken in the books I read. As a reader, I never noticed dialogue tags, even the unusual ones. Now I immediately notice whenever the author uses something other than "said" or "asked." Makes me wonder if only writers are bothered by them.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I nominated you for a Liebster Blog award. Go here if you want to learn about it.
Me too! Speakers tags jump out at me like a flashing,red light! From what I'm seeing, it's only us writers who suffer from over analytical reading! :)
DeleteOh yes. It's horrible. I've completely lost the ability to read for pleasure. I haven't finished a book in a year; I rarely make it past Chap 1. I'm just way too critical now, since I have to be about my own stuff and my CPs' stuff too. I just joined Goodreads, but I'm afraid that was optimistic. How am I gonna review anything if I can't finish it?
ReplyDeleteIt's like we need a brain transplant, Lexa! It's crazy! :)
DeleteI have yet to figure it out. If the story's greater than the errors and I'm not bored to tears, I keep going. One of my favorite books has a buttload of errors that make me want to publish an edited version, but I love it anyway because the story's so good (the author also died soon after, though, so maybe she didn't get to edit it).
ReplyDeleteInteresting, Debra! I bet that's exactly what happened! What is the book title?
Deletehey baby girl! so, yeah, weird thing, the more i write, the more i critique or go wowwow over other books. hey, guess what? it's just the writer in us. no worries. you ever do that to my book...i will no longer late night chat with you!! ahahaha...just kidding...no really :)
ReplyDeleteHey, hey, foxy lady!
DeleteLOL, I'll be kind because I must have our late night chats! Nobody else knows how to live it up on FB in the wee hours of the morning! :P
This is a big problem that I face! I can't read like a reader with my own writing.
ReplyDeletewww.modernworld4.blogspot.com
I feel ya, lady! I wish we could find a way around this problem, but it looks like there isn't a cure! :)
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