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Hello, guys! Can you tell me what are your reasons to read a book? Do you want to escape from reality into the fiction world for some time to forget about the daily life stress and relax? Or would you prefer a book with a deep meaning in the plot, so the reader can think about his own life values and preferences?
Should a novel be mostly for entertainment or should it teach something important?
I noticed that the more I read the less I like the stories that don't have any other meaning in the plot except the pure entertainment.
Even if it's a comedy I want to see the character development that I can relate to real life situations.
My school literature teacher told me once that I thought too much and tried to see the deep meaning where it didn't make sense.
Well, it was hard not to do that when you need to write essays about Russian literature (who read Tolstoy or Dostoevskiy will understand me).
Anyone else there who wants to get from the book more than just a good plot line?

Simple enjoyment. I've always loved reading so long as the story was good and the characters compelling.

Hello everyone!
I just started a reddit community about helping authors with their original works. It's a great place to ask about:
- Writing prompts
- Recommend your favourite novels and writers
- Provide review swaps for others' work
- Advice and help through writer's block
- General advice and encouragement!
So if you're struggling or just want some advice, you're welcome to head over there. The community page is called r/OriginalNovels
The link can be found here: https://www.reddit.com/r/OriginalNovels/

Thank you!

Anya_Nesh I've always had trouble finishing books. Few were the ones I read to the end. The first books I read to the end and reread several times were "Hamlet" and "The Tempest" by Shakespeare. However, I never read them for entertainment, I always started with curiosity and ended with identification. I remember once, many years ago, I read a Yugioh fanfic with more than 200 caps that unfortunately was deleted.
The story had dialogs, which often copied perfectly real dialogs that I had in an old roller coaster relantionship. It was so similar, and repeated so many times that I finally finished reading all 200 chapters in 5 days, staying up all night to read it. What made me have a real and fantasy perspective (too paradoxical this sentence hehe) of my ex relationship.

In short: identification.

In my novels, even if they are adapted, all the casual dialogues and romantic scenes are based on situations already lived by me (except for the death and murder part).

Anya_Nesh That's a great question! In my humble opinion, reading is very much a personal affair. There is no point in reading something that doesn't give you pleasure - but what is pleasure? One man's fish is another man's poison.
Somerset Maugham once said, “To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.” So don't let anyone tell you that you should read this or that, for this or that. Follow your heart and read books that bring you joy, that make you empathise with the characters, that evoke feelings you thought you didn't have, or that spark your curiosity and provoke you to think. A good book should be multifaceted and can bring us more complex enjoyment. Sometimes it is only when the reader has gained enough life experience that they realise the profound meaning of the book, so no need to force it.
“The only important thing in a book is the meaning that it has for you.”
― Somerset Maugham

RodzZ Lord_YuanGe thank you for sharing your thoughts!

I personally read coz it's my hobby, I love reading whatever I come across, so to some of us it's fun, right running away from reality, at times I want to reach other constellations so I read but also to have a big picture so that when I I start writing I have a reference.