Readers Rock

[mrdreamjeans]

I've been chatting with Robert (lowfatmuffin) in depth about a variety of subjects in the past couple of days and enjoy it immensely. One of the questions we've asked of each other is if we are readers. The answer for both of us is an emphatic yes. I've also been thinking about the relationships I've had and both guys were avid readers. I think readers rock!

I read constantly...anything I can get my hands on....fiction, biographies, political works, magazines, papers. You name it, I read it. I like to be informed; I like to know things; I want to write great things and have original thoughts. Reading is my escape and my continuing education. I can't imagine a world (and escaping to its world) without books; I can't imagine not finding the time to read or ever not making reading a priority.

When I was 11-13 years old, I was being teased constantly for being a sissy. Boys who can sing and dance and have fashion sense are often targets:) Reading was my escape and my salvation (not in a religious sense) from being out of sync with my peers. I figured - grind them into the ground with your intelligence, knowledge and ability to be the best. Readers often excel in the classroom and in testing. I think that is indisputable. At the very least, they have highly developed imaginations that can serve them well in diverse venues.

I still live with that desire to excel...still strive on some level to be the best, to prove the bullies were wrong...to feel worthy.... It stays with you....no matter how much your personal story changes.

The Boise Renaissance Man asked me what my favorite books are. I know that I love and have read and reread Anne Rice's "Cry to Heaven" and Alan Hollingshurst's "The Swimming Pool Library Club". I collect everything that Rita Mae Brown writes, as well as Janet Evanovich, Lillian Jackson Braun, Ellen Hart and Armistead Maupin. I really enjoy Robert Parker too. You can see the trend is toward mysteries and suspense. However, I also read dozens of political and theatrical biographies, enjoy historical fiction, Gay & Lesbian works, investment books, so I guess I have fairly catholic tastes.

Tim (BarakSF) loves fantasy and science fiction and a wide range of edgy literature. I know Tim (bluedevilsf) loves comics. (Is graphic novel an interchangeable term for this genre?) Are you a reader or do you prefer visual mediums such as film, DVD or television for entertainment and information?

If you are a reader, do you think it makes you a better writer? I know it makes me a better speller. I'd like to know if this activity is a quality of life issue for you. I know that, without books, my world would be a much more limited and limiting place.

Comments

Do comics count? :o)

[mncuddlecub.livejournal.com]

I know they do, for I love them. A great way to get both data from the text, which can be surprisingly poetic even in a "funny book", but also gives me some art to look at, and it is so great when the artist and writers style compliment each other. You'd be surprises how a bad writer can ruin good art, or vise versa.

I never read many novels or anything growing up, but have recently been finding a joy in the "Harry Potter" books. I'm reading those and finding myself wishing they had been around when I was younger and maybe I would have read more, well them at least. I've even been inspired to begin a series of "Harry Potter" illustrations, that will be partly for the portfolio, partly for fun, and in the dream category, I'm going to send some off to the publishers of the books, and maybe something could come of it... keep your fingers and all other extremities crossed, though it's a little ways off before I do that yet.

Also, you know how you always hear, "The book was better than the movie"? And most of the time I have to agree in the few books I've read that were made into movies, though so far the "Harry Potter" ones have been closer than most, anyway. My favorite book is "Jurassic Park" and I have decided to make a fully painted comic adaptation of the prologue in the book "The Bite of the Raptor". Anything in "" in the book will become speech in the word balloons, and the rest of the dialog will be transfered into narration boxes, or (and this is where I come in) into a script for what my artwork will need to convey. Again portfolio padding, and fun, but I plan to send this off to the publishers of that book, and see if anything could come of that... I'm a busy cub with lots of plans :o)

But let's not miss how good television and movies can be. I can't tell you how much I love the series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and it's counter part "Angel". Both have rich stories, that combine, Sci-Fi, Comedy, Drama, Action, and I'm sure other styles into one beautiful program, with awesome performances... and, and, they're just really good. But when you think about it, those were written to begin with, but now the story is being given to us in a different format. I guess I'm saying reading is good, but other forms of media can be good as well, and they even could compliment each other, it bothers me, when someone gets all nose turned up-y about television and movies, "I prefer to read". I am NOT saying that's what you are saying, just so you know.

Okay, I'll shut up now. Oh, and my spelling sucks, but has been improving since I started to read more. NOW I'll shut up :o)