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There are so many stories out there that it can be really hard to decide what you should read. I always fear sinking hours n hours into a book that was simply mid, as usually I can tell if I hate something a few chapters or so in. With so many books to read, and how much time goes into reading them I've put together a few guiding principles I use in my curation process.
P.S. there are tips at the end on how I keep myself reading.
creating categories
A major part of curating is organizing and dissecting, with categories I am able to filter what types of books I want. Here are some categories I use and how I use them.
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We're working towards being able to determine what we enjoys reading, obstacles we could come across, and what truly goes into affecting why we pick up a book or put it down (in esence, your reading style).
readability
- How easily can I read this book? Does it have language, formating, and or topics that are difficult for me to read? Older books and non-ficition are generally hard for me to get through. While books with my favorite tropes, written by authors I enjoy, or short stories are generally easier for me to read.
- Factors of readability can include writing style, length (i.e. short stories or chronicles), familaritiy with concepts and or authors, time period, target audience, how much you want to engage with the book, format (i.e. phsycial or digital) etc.
genres, topics, and tropes
- What do you enjoy reading? What's
- What does (insert descriptive word/genre here) even mean?
To provide an example, the King in Yellow, it's a classic in "cosmic horror" fiction and also is a collection of short stories which are typically easier for me to read. However it's also an old ass book with old ass langauge that is hard for me to understand. With this I can categorize it into horror, short stories, and difficult to read.
compiling books
Curation imples a collection, but how and where does one find which books to pick? For me, a varible but limited source of book suggestions provides me with a consistent stream of new books to read.
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trusted voices
- What buzzwords or descriptors or genres frequent your recommendations? How do these coincide or contradict cateogires you've created?
- Who are the authors you've read before? What did or didn't you like about their writing style, their views on the world, or the format they chose? Would you want to read something else by them?
spread your wings
- Don't be afraid to explore, if you know your reading style
sitting down to read
Yes, it's important to be attentive to what you are reading. But, so is how you are reading.
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determining the desire
meeting the need
- Create a picture of what "sitting down to read" look like for you? Can you read anywhere? Do you read digitally or physical media, or both? Does the room need to be quiet, comfortable? What materials do you need? A phone, a book, sticky notes, and pens?
- How much can you read in one sitting? Do you need breaks? I often need breaks while I'm reading as my brain is slightly moldy, I used to look at my phone in between each chapter to keep my interest in the book. Now I can just pause between chapters, think, get up for water, and then come back to the book.