The World Within

Have you ever read a book which states that by the very act of picking it up and reading it, you have become part of the writer's world? I just love this idea. Anything that begins: 'You have not found this page/website/book by accident...' and I am totally, utterly hooked. Call me naive, but the thought that the writer and I are co-conspirators in some kind of magic experience is highly attractive.

When I read I am transported to another world. Now where that world is and how real it is are questions I can't answer. I am aware of my surroundings when I read, although it is easy to get lost in the story, but I am also aware that there is a world inside my head, different for each book, with its own atmosphere and cast of characters. I can 'see' it.  This is the wonder of reading.

It doesn't have to be a novel though. Non fiction too has its own 'feel' and within a few words, unless the words are written in so clumsy a way they interrupt the flow, I am transported.

I get this same feeling when I write, particularly fiction. After typing for a little while the screen in my mind begins to fill with pictures. It's a weird sensation, sitting in front of the computer typing away while simultaneously seeing things unfold in my head.  Magical stuff indeed!

Comments

[Jane Steen]

And that's why we read for fun--I think the ability to live in the world of a book is what makes a reader. The (unfortunately increasing) percentage who say they don't like reading may not have learned the trick, and have to rely on images on a screen for their entertainment.

Of course when you discover you can make up your own world, you become a writer. I love how the writing can take hold of you - how you can start writing a scene with just a vague idea in your head and then suddenly dialogue is writing itself! It's such a gift.