Does how influence what? by Eric Beetner

 As fall arrives it brings visions of sitting in a cozy corner with a hot cocoa reading in quiet solitude. Most of us don’t have that luxury of time to sit and read for hours uninterrupted. Does how you read (where, length of time) affect what you read? 

I’ve long wondered if how I read makes an impact on what I like to read. I do think the short snatches of time I have to read makes a difference. There is a reason, beyond my own impatience, that I don’t do well with 1000 page doorstop books. I don’t like being tied up to one novel for months if I only have a short time to read each day.

Before the pandemic shifted me to working from home, I had a nice routine of reading on my lunch break. I’d go out and sit quietly and get an hour of reading in. Sure, people looked at me like I was sad and lonely, but I was thoroughly enjoying myself. For an hour each day, a tight thriller was perfect. A vintage paperback that clocks in at 150 pages made for ideal lunch break reading. Short chapters made it so I never had to leave off in the middle of something to make it back to work. My reading really was predicated on the time in which I could make it happen.

I work from home now and subsequently my day is less structured. You’d think it would make room for more reading time, but usually when I’m not at my desk I’m doing housework, walking dogs, making meals. Somehow the time fills up. Plus, I have lunch with my wife most days so we talk and interact like real humans. I don’t think she’d like it if I pulled out a book and went quiet on her.

So my reading time is even in shorter bursts now. Before bedtime when I’m likely to fall asleep mid-chapter. When I just need a 30 minute break from work to recharge or get my mind on other things. Yes, bathroom breaks make for good reading time and I’d bet 50% of all reading takes place there, even if authors don’t want to admit that.

So still I prefer shorter books, propulsive plots, quick chapters. 

When I get a cross-country plane ride I can luxuriate in a book and I’ve even finished entire books on long haul flights. I’ve enjoyed the few times I’ve read a book in one or two sittings. It’s just not my day-to-day reality. 

I don’t think it has an impact on the genre. I can read across genres in my style of reading. Still doesn’t mean I’m likely to pick up Infinite Jest or Ulysses anytime soon. My preferred genres of crime fiction, thrillers, and westerns naturally have tighter plotting, faster moving storylines. If I only get an hour a day max, I need a book to kick off quickly. I remember when The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo was all the rage and multiple people commented, “The first 100 pages or so if a bit of a slog, but then it really picks up.” Yeah, no. I’m out. No can do. Hook me fast, keep me engaged.

When I see people reading on the subway, at a bus stop, on a park bench, I think they might have the same reading habits as me. Stolen moments of time when a book is welcome companion and a respite from scrolling on the phone. Quite often, those people are reading thrillers or mysteries. 

Any time we go to conferences it becomes apparent that the median age of readers is on the higher side and you can safely say that retirees have more time to read. They are more likely to burn through a book in an afternoon than someone trying to juggle work, family, commuting, pets, etc. 

I admire readers who will dive into a 700-page epic fantasy that is book one of a six book series. That’s commitment. Maybe when I’m retired. Maybe that’s when it will change what I write as well.