I’m a day late and it’s already JUNE! YOW!
I’m currently reading these two PRINT books right now.
Recently, I read an article about how owning print books feels different from owning e-books. The research comes out of my undergraduate alma mater, The University of Arizona, and Twoson University. The article doesn’t go super in depth, but when I read it I kept thinking, duh. Of course, it feels different than owning an e-book. The experience is different because of the physical structure of the book, but when they pointed out the emotional aspect of it, that really hit home.
The study found that research participants “described being more emotionally attached to physical books, and said they use physical books to establish a sense of self and belonging.”
That puts a finer point on why it is I feel more connected to reading a print copy as opposed to the distance I feel in reading an e-book copy. For me, it feels like a wall springs up between me and the text when I read e-books. My preference is definitely print, but every so often an e-book or even an audio book sneaks into my reading rotation. What do you prefer?
Overall, I’m fascinated with how to describe and understand our emotions. They are so nuanced and each person has such a different experience when reading a book and in everyday life. It’s putting those emotions down into a novel or story that can be a challenge. Especially in showing specifically why someone reacts the way that they do, but oftentimes the why seems to be the driving factor.
Check back next week for my second Q and A with an aspiring author post.