What I’ve Learned About My Reading Tastes This Summer

I’ve suspected for a while that my reading tastes are not what I once thought they were. I used to read fantasy, as I write fantasy. But when I really thought about it, I realised I don’t often finish fantasy books and rate them highly. This summer, I decided to experiment with my writing style, and research and experiment with my reading tastes, too. The results have been interesting!

What broke the reading slump?

I wanted to read a lot of my more literary and longer books during summer, as I had the free time. But no! That didn’t work out because my brain was rejecting them. Instead, the book that did get me reading more, and I actually managed to finish in week 3 of the holiday, was Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid. After this book, I trust TJR with my reading! I will read anything she writes. I read Evelyn Hugo I think last year or the year before, and enjoyed that too. She writes brilliant characters. Her novels are character studies (which I’ll talk about more in a minute).

I then struggled with what to read next! Then boom, I took a day to sort my reading and I started Normal People by Sally Rooney and blasted through it. Again, it’s a character study. So this helped me realise some big things…

Genre

I’ve realised that genre doesn’t matter so much as narrative style, formatting, tone, and voice for me. I actually like a lot of different genres: thrillers, fantasy, adventure, literary, contemporary, historical fiction, memoirs, children’s, and even some romance! So for me, it’s not about knowing what genre or sub-genre I like, it’s about knowing more about the book to know what elements will make it more readable and enjoyable for me. Which leads me onto my next point…

Narration & Voice

Narration is about HOW the story is told. Not everyone considers this but how the story is told is way more important to me, I realise, that what it’s about or what genre it is. Here are some things I think come under narration:

Point of view: third person omniscient (God-like all-knowing voice), third person limited (focus shifts to be on one character), first person (I, me, we), or the rarely used second person (you)Linear or non-linear: is it told in chronological order, or flicks back and forth through time and place?Plot-driven or character-driven: is it mostly about what happens or how the characters feel about what’s happening?Episodic and fragmented: is the novel more like short stories threaded together?Multiple POV: more than one character telling the storyLiterary, classic, simple, character voice: how does it sound? is it more purple prose, traditional, cut to the bare bones, or does it capture the character’s voice in a unique way, i.e. a child’s voice, uses slang, written how a person would speak like with misspelled words and an accentLength and Pacing: is the story very long? this will effect the pacing, thus the narrative feel, and how enjoyable it is

There’s more I can’t think of right now, but this is crucial information for me. Enter my new BFF, ChatGPT! Now, this isn’t about the ethics of AI or about how it may be stealing our jobs, but I’ve found ChatGPT useful for things like this where it gathers lots of information and condenses it for my needs. I’ve been asking this app about books, and it’s helped me more than any other site or book recs video. ChatGPT helps me to know this information before deciding to buy or read a book.

The blurb is actually quite limited. It doesn’t tell you crucial things. I think anyone could enjoy a story about a girl learning to become a swimmer after her dad died at sea (I made this up, but this sounds powerful, someone write this!), but it’s about HOW this story would be told that makes the difference to whether we enjoy it. Some people love and need a story to be told linearly, with first person narration, and to take place across a year. Others need multiple POVs and changes in time, flashing back and forth to stitch together a mosaic of story. But this information isn’t on the blurb, necessarily, so you need to use other tools.

So I’ve learned that I love character studies. I love stories that are about deep, realistic characters. It doesn’t matter where it’s set, what happens, or anything else, but if it’s character focused and those characters are interesting to me, I’m sold. I like non-linear stories, a literary-simple mix, and am likely to get through something quicker if it’s episodic or multiple POV. I love reading about humans and the depth of life in an interesting tale of hope. I like books that feel different. Books that break the rules and play with expectations. Books that are a bit quirky and a breath of fresh air.

I’m so glad I know that now!

Breaks

Lastly, I’ve learned that it’s okay, and perhaps necessary, to take breaks from reading. Gasp! I really do struggle with this. I have a painful awareness of the number of books out there that I want to read. This means there’s no time for stopping or going slow! However, this ruins to experience and doesn’t allow time for a book to digest and mean something to me. It also goes against my desired attitude for my life (slowness, peace, mindfulness).

Taking a break means you are better able to make a good decision about what to read next, too.

Plan going forwards

I know what authors I’ve enjoyed lately, so I asked my book BFF ChatGPT for authors like these, and I now have a list to look out for. I have also written a list of the types of books I believe I enjoy, not the genres or specific events or settings I’m looking for. I also use Story Graph, where I already log my reading, to help me see patterns in what I like and rate highly. Story Graph helps because it categorises books by tone, length, and mood. As I said, this is crucial information for choosing what to read.

Here is my list, if you’re interested, of what I’m now looking for:

Exploration of family dynamicsThought provokingDarker aspects of classMystery and suspenseEmotional depthCultural tensionsMagical realismBighearted/WholesomeResilience and hopeHuman quest for belongingSocial classHuman conditionIntrospectivePower of friendshipJourney of self discoveryChildhood and memoryTraumaExploration of mental healthCharacter drivenHuman spiritGrief (but in a hopeful or artful way)FunnyImmigrant experienceIdentityStruggle with selfhoodSearch for connectionDarker aspects of human naturePlatonic relationshipsOld grumpy person’s life is changed by meeting a special younger person i.e. like A Man Called Ove or The Reading ListBooks about books and readingBooks about writers and writingNostalgia for the 90s and early 00sChildhood friendshipsChanging friendshipsFound familyEpistolary novels (written in letters or journal entries or interviews)Episodic novelsNovels told across time/ flashbacksSibling dynamicsInner conflict with cultural norms and traditions

Authors to sample (because they’re like authors I enjoy already)

Tessa HadleyJojo MoyesElena FerranteNina LaCourRebecca SerleDavid Nichols

(Because they’re genre blending or genre breaking authors of speculative fiction)

China MelvilleN K JemisonPatrick RothfussUrsula K LeGuinMark Z DanielewskiDavid Mitchell

What have you enjoyed reading lately? Let me know!

Sincerely,

S. xx