The
sad thing about today is that there are so many books to read. My TBR only gets
longer and I seem to have less time to read. It’s a never-ending book cycle. No
matter how fast you read there will always be too many books waiting. So, in
order to protect your time, you have to decide which books you should invest
your energy into reading and as a writer studying.
1.
Read the
first page
This
is what professionals in the publishing industry do. They can often tell by the
first page if this is going to be the kind of book that will draw them in or if
it just isn’t strong enough. What the first page does is show you what kind of
book will be. It often gives you an idea of what the main character wants and then
you can decide is the journey to get what the character wants will be a journey
you are willing to take too.
2.
Read the
back
The
synopsis on the back will give you a quick idea of the scope of the book. This
gives you a better idea of the struggles, the hopes and dreams and the journey
that will be focused on than the first page does. It goes further than the
first page can and gives you a more complete concept. It can also hint at what
is to come in ways the first page can’t. Sometimes knowing where the book is
going can change your mind about a bland first page and keep you reading until
the good stuff starts.
3.
Read the
last page
The
last page will tell you if the journey was worth it for the main characters and
if it is truly the kind of ending you would like to read up to. This one,
however, is a bit tricky and may depend on your personality. Some people have
to read the back, but others can’t because then they know all the surprises and
reading them unfold is no longer fun. I rarely use this one because if I know
how the story will end then I don’t often care to read the journey. So if I use
this it is probably because I’ve already decided I don’t want to read the book.
Just know yourself. If reading the last page makes reading the rest of the book
less fun, don’t do it. But if it makes it just as fun or more fun, then do!
4.
Take the
advice of friends you trust
Trust
is the key word here. Sometimes friends know our tastes, sometimes they just
tell us things they like. Knowing the difference can save you some time or give
you a reason to employ the steps above. Still, friends are a great resource for
finding good books. They are a personal reading army that can save you from
reading books you don’t need to and multiply the search to find the next great
novel. Either way they save you time and will help you in your book search.
5.
The writing
is everything
In
none of these was there “Look at the Cover.” A cover has no value in
understanding if a book is ultimately worth your time. What matters most is the
story, the characters and the journey. A cover may enhance the mood or catch
the eye, but it may not have anything to do with the book itself. Often covers
are created by a different individual/artist who most likely has not read the
book. This is not always true, but even if the writer also made the cover,
there is no way to tell if the writer is a superior artist or a superior writer
or both with just the cover to judge. The only way to tell if a book is
actually worth your time is the writing. Some beautiful, enticing covers mask
poor, boring stories and some bland, dull covers are the façade of beautifully
intricate, deep tales that will make your heart sigh with longing.
These
are just a few ways to vet your TBR pile into a more manageable size and keep
you from spending time on books you really don’t have time to read. Are there
any other ways to help you find the books you’ll love? Tell me about it!
-Christina J. Adams
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