As an author, it can be a fine line to walk in reading for work and reading for fun. I have been studying the French Revolution so much lately in preparation for writing my next book that every word felt like a task to complete…not exactly relaxing, though not unenjoyable either. But it definitely isn’t the same as curling up in bed, setting my little pillow on my lap to prop up my book, and disappearing into the mind and hearts of familiar characters I have come to love as friends and family.
I take my reading time before bed seriously. I like to have about an hour to get good and tired, and usually that’s all about it takes. It’s such a great activity to not only keep my mind and imagination active and sharp, but it slows me down too, makes me really picture what I’m reading so I can watch it play out right inside my mind.
Occasionally, I’ll meet someone who says they don’t like to read, or they just can’t because their mind thinks of other things. I get it. My mind does that too. In fact, it just did it right now. I was reading The Drums of Autumn in the Outlander series and I thought, “hey, I haven’t written a blog post in a few days”, and off I went. My husband is like that 24/7. His brain is always in hyper drive so he has a hard time reading unless it’s reading to learn a new skill.
Night after night, I’ll see him playing on his phone before bed and I think of all those studies that say you should give yourself 30 minutes of no screen time before bed to really relax and decompress from the constant stimuli in our lives; ie TV, tablets, computers, phones. Reading is a great alternative unless you’re one of those Kindle/Nook enthusiasts. I’m not knocking it, I promise. It’s just not for me. I’m too much of a page sniffer to ever give up a physical book. I have been enjoying my Bookbub emails every morning, though, to snag a good free Kindle book once in a while. My digital library has grown enormously this way, and yet I never seem to go for my tablet to read (unless I get stuck somewhere like in a lull at work or in a doctor’s office. Then, it’s perfect!)
What started as a nice little post about getting back to the good feelings that come from reading for pleasure as an author has quickly turned into rambling nonsense, so I’m going to get back to reading. I hope you all have a lovely night!
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