Blogger Beth posts about why she sometimes puts fantasy books aside in favour of contemporary YA...
Beth says:
Hi everyone! I'm Beth, and I own The Books Are Everywhere. Today's post is going to be an interesting one with a very specific focus - can you read fantasy when you're feeling down? I know this sounds very random, but it did stem from somewhere. I posted a couple of weeks ago about my preference of contemporary over fantasy, and ended up talking to Kourtni in the comments about how fantasy can actually be quite draining to read! It got me thinking - and she's right. One of the reasons I prefer contemporary is I find it easy to read whatever mood I'm in...where as I have to really focus on fantasy! But why is this? In fact, I think there's a lot of reasons. I'll discuss them more below.
Okay, I think you get it! Fantasy does tend to be...made up. It's imaginary, and it's sometimes hard to relate to our real world! For this reason alone, I find it hard to focus on fantasy when I'm feeling down or have other things on my mind, and it tends to be the reason I read a lot of contemporary.
With contemporary, I'm able to delve right in. With a real life setting and real life people, it's easy to pick up on other things. But put me in another world, with a mixture of humans and fairies and THEN throw in some romance, complications and everything else...and my brain gets confused.
Beth says:
Hi everyone! I'm Beth, and I own The Books Are Everywhere. Today's post is going to be an interesting one with a very specific focus - can you read fantasy when you're feeling down? I know this sounds very random, but it did stem from somewhere. I posted a couple of weeks ago about my preference of contemporary over fantasy, and ended up talking to Kourtni in the comments about how fantasy can actually be quite draining to read! It got me thinking - and she's right. One of the reasons I prefer contemporary is I find it easy to read whatever mood I'm in...where as I have to really focus on fantasy! But why is this? In fact, I think there's a lot of reasons. I'll discuss them more below.
- Fantasy tends to be very fast paced
- Things change a lot!
- Not only do you have to focus on humans, but there's other beings too! How can I focus on all of these things?
- Sometimes they're harder to get into or understand quickly - especially if some elements aren't explained well
- Bad writing doesn't work...at all. You have to be descriptive.
- I can't produce some of the character names!
- Why are there made up words?
- Why is there not a glossary?
So, what do you think? Can you still focus on fantasy or do you have to switch to contemporary like me?
Cathy says:
Great post, Beth... and great question! I read a lot of fantasy as a teen but these days I hardly ever do... I just hadn't thought to question why! Do YOU still love fantasy or is contemporary YA your comfort zone? COMMENT BELOW to have your say!
Contemporary is my main, fantasy I dont mind if it's the right sort. I'd much rather read fantasy over woman's fiction though.
ReplyDeleteI tend to struggle a lot with fantasy too especially when I have a lot on my mind (Which is most of the time these days) I like to read to relax and not concentrate too hard so I read contemporary teenage, YA or middle age childrens books. I manage childrens fantasy ok though and I enjoy it more too! I used to think I was just 'stupid' for not managing fantasy or harder books but I'm glad other people are the same!!!
ReplyDeleteI prefer reading contemporary fiction - it's easier to relate to and more of an enjoyable read! :-)
ReplyDelete