For the Love of Reading

Repeat post from my family blog.

You all should know I love reading. What's not to love? I get to snuggle in bed, or on the couch, or relax in the tub with a good book and escape into a fantasy world. Then I get to imagine myself in that fantasy world. That is just the best.

What is not cool? When people "kill the buzz" as Bella says in Stephenie Meyer's "Breaking Dawn". Second known fact: I am a Twilight enthusiast. Some would call me obsessed, but I would say, "Not to an unhealthy degree, which is o.k. by me." So when some unknown person posted the whole of an unfinished manuscript of "Midnight Sun" (Twilight from Edward's perspective) on the internet without the permission of the author, I was determined not to actively seek the spoiler. What happened instead? Stephenie Meyer was so upset that she decided to indefinitely put "Midnight Sun" on hold. This means we may not ever get to see the book in completion. Ms. Meyer also offered up the unfinished story on her website. I am still determined that I won't read it, with hopes that Stephenie will one day decide to finish the story.

I have to admit that as a fan I felt robbed and even betrayed. Not by Stephenie, but by the thoughtless person who decided to leak the story. I feel nothing but sorrow for S.M. right now. As an author it must be bad enough to give your finished work to the public to be scrutinized, but to have something that is in it's rawest form be given over without your permission, it must be equally terrifying to know the world is judging you. I mean just look at what happened with "Breaking Dawn". I would say about half (or more) of readers didn't like it, and blamed Stephenie for "ruining the book" and even going so far as calling it bad fan fiction. How cruel can people be? I enjoyed the book, and can accept Stephenie's vision for HER story.

That brings me to this point. I was reading over on Shannon Hale's blog (author of "Princess Academy" and "Goose Girl"), and she wrote an amazing post on liking or disliking books. She made some good points. Overall message? Find books that you enjoy reading. It is not fair to blame an author if you don't like a book. If you don't like a book, put it down and figure out why you didn't. Then proceed to find one you will like. Please go check out the article here, and let me know what you think.

You may have noticed a banner I am displaying on my blog. It is in support of Stephenie Meyer after what happened with "Midnight Sun". As fans, it is our duty to let Stephenie know we still care about her writing and show our support. Please show your support by refusing to read the unfinished manuscript of "Midnight Sun". Stephenie deserves that respect. Don't you think?