You know what I find so beautiful about books – fiction especially? During the time we’re lost within those pages, we are no longer subjected to the daily problems of life. It doesn’t matter if our bills are paid on time; the reprimand from your boss no longer bothers you; you don’t care who is president or what the stock market did today. For a few precious moments, all you care about is what happens in the next paragraph.
A well written book will draw you so deep into the life of the character that you become them. Five minutes becomes an hour and before you know it, half of your day is gone. Several books have had this effect on me, from any of the Robert Ludlum books to the most recent Brad Meltzer series.
But one of my all-time favorites — which I haven’t read since I was a teenager — were the Dragonlance series by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. The tales told of elves and knights, of another world….I would get lost for hours, often reading an entire book in one day. I felt their love, their hate, their pain. For those blessed hours, it didn’t matter what my friends thought of me, or that my heart was broken. All that mattered was finding out what happened next.
As I write Hand of Justice, I find myself feeling those same stirrings in my soul. I’m not lost for hours yet, but I’m able to experience life through another’s eyes. I love it, and I want more.
Until next time,
~T.S.
What a great post. I wish I was passionate about books in the way you are. I have read, and I do read occasionally, but not as much as I would like to. I saw you mentioned the Dragonlance series, and I remember reading one of those titles.
It looks like you’ve got something good brewing up! Don’t lose sight of your goal!
Great description of what it’s like to be an impassioned writer and reader! I know the feeling, from both sides.