I had been under the pretense that reading is inherently meant to be an endeavor made for fun. That is, until I came to college.
I have encountered a selection of people for whom classics and nonfiction dominate “Read” and “To-Be-Read” lists. This is not to say that such categories cannot be fun to read, but it is to say that they are not often the first thing most think of when they hear “fun reading.” At times, I have been unnecessarily made to feel that I am the odd one out for preferring to spend my personal reading time with a good, fun, fantasy or sci-fi novel.
I have also noticed that many people tend to be “purists” in their reading taste, sticking to one genre exclusively and, subtly or blatantly, putting down others for having different tastes in fun reading. This, in turn, risks impacting those people’s engagement with reading for fun.
But why is this?
Why do some feel the need to justify their definition of fun reading at the expense of others, and why do I feel the need to adjust my personal reading habits in response?
Insecurity is among the most prominent root causes.
Insecurity inhibits reading for fun in two distinct ways: First, insecure people can be cowed out of reading what they enjoy simply because someone shames them for their choices. Shame can also come from oneself. Secondly, insecure people can belittle others for having different preferences than their own because they want to feel validated for their own reading preferences.
Regarding the former, the solution to this insecurity is simple: do not allow others’ opinions to influence the fun side of your reading habits.
Though the answer is simple, it is not easy, said Aaron Housholder, professor of English.
“If you’re reading for fun, make sure that it’s something you like, regardless of what people think about it,” he said. “I would rather people read books than not read books. And so I think they shame themselves out of reading for fun because, you know, ‘What if somebody sees me reading this fantasy novel?’ Just read a book.”
Avoid external input while choosing books you personally find exciting, and then commit to those fun selections. This can begin to quell insecurities, and you can start building a healthy habit of disregarding input which hinders your reading journey.
At the same time, it is crucial to avoid self-imposed insecurities about your book choices. In college settings, it can be especially difficult to ignore what others are choosing to read, even if they are not explicitly advertising their preferences as the best. This can lead to feelings of guilt over one’s own choices.
“That kind of guilt is externally imposed, and you just don’t have to allow it. You don’t have to buy it,” Housholder said. “We have to become adults here in college, where ‘I’m going to do the thing that I need to do or want to do and I’m not going to worry about other people judging me for that.’”
It is important to remember that what others consider to be fun is not the end-all-be-all of what can be fun.
As for the latter point, that some insecurity can result in imposing one’s own definition of fun onto others, the solution is the same: do not allow others’ opinions to influence the fun side of your personal reading habits.
It is okay for different people to enjoy different genres and topics and styles of books: That is why so many different books exist. People have varied interests and tastes, and those translate into stories which are picked up and enjoyed by readers with varied interests and tastes themselves. One book may be perfectly fun for one individual but woefully boring or tragic for another, and that is okay.
There is no need for anyone to impose their definition of fun reading onto another reader. There is no need to justify one’s own reading preference by claiming it is the best. All reading is beneficial, regardless of the genre, Housholder said.
If your idea of a good time reading involves settling in with a sophisticated book of philosophy, that is wonderful! If you instead jump for joy at the prospect of a soft sci-fi novel, that is fantastic! Either way, it is important not to fall into the insecurity pitfall of believing your choice reading is superior, or inferior, to others’ preferences.
By rooting out insecurities and learning to be confident in each of our own unique reading preferences, we can open ourselves up to intellectual and meaningful conversations with readers who have different definitions of fun, and we can expand our own definitions of fun.
