I admit it; I am addicted to the written word in all its glorious formats. If I am awake and not talking or working, I am reading. I was watching Capote the other day and was stunned by the difference 50 years can make in the accessibility of things to read.
In the movie they show a scene of the author reading selections from his third book. This was a big event that drew a large crowd and garnered much media coverage. So many fewer books were published in those days, and the availability of what a reader could get their hands on were limited to the local newsstand, bookstore and library. Nowadays, the true junkie has a multitude of options available and can spend every waking minute reading and still not make it through all the available text that they find interesting.
The Internet offers enough options to keep the most avid reader going night and day. It may take some time to separate the wheat from the chaff, but there are fantastic offerings for everyone, no matter how obscure your interests may be. Personally, I have my "can't miss" blogs that I check in with everyday; I want to know the latest happenings for the folks that I find interesting.
I love the multitude of voices within several forum communities that I visit often, and sometimes feel that I simply must chime in. The Internet gives me the option of checking news from other places. I am out here on the left coast and love to read the right coast view in the online version of the New York Times, as well as the views of the middle as represented in the Chicago Tribune.Magazines are another way to kill some hours reading. Running a company, I am sent free subscriptions to a multitude of publications that offer insight into my industry and the newest technology.
I skim them all, reading articles that catch my interest and scanning the rest. Additionally, my business partner is always trying to help me with my pop culture cluelessness by passing on his Stairmaster reading, like People, TV Guide, and Entertainment Weekly. I keep these to read in the car when early to an appointment, or pop them in my bag to peruse while waiting in line. They are great for situations where I will be reading in bursts, as nothing requires full attention or concentration.Books, printed and bound, will always be my number one love. My space is truly overrun with books, as I read 5-9 books a week and always have more coming in.
I read in the morning, before I sleep, while I enjoy a hot bubble bath and any extra time I can squeeze out in my day. I try to trade them as much as possible so I have as many going out as coming in, but they are still stashed in every available nook and corner. I adore everything from non-fiction books on building a business to biographies of people who have achieved greatness in their field.
Mysteries are a great way to exercise my powers of deduction from the safety of my own bed. Some fiction offers insight to far away lands or into the lives of people who experience life differently or from past times. Trashy romances provide pure escapism and mindless entertainment.
Some people say that books will soon be a thing of the past, replaced by ebooks and other electronic formats. While I love reading the reading I do online, I only read books in their printed format and don't think they will ever disappear. After all, I can't take my laptop into the bathtub.
.About the Author.Jessica Hardwick is founder and CEO of a startup, http://www.SwapThing.com that changes the way people barter goods and services through the Internet.SwapThing is a site focused on building a strong swap community online for consumers and businesses.This article comes with reprint rights.
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By: Jessica Hardwick
