Reading Survey

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Besides books I read a lot of internet and newspaper articles, mostly about anything that piques my interest; that is, usually, music, language, and less often, current events and politics. These articles usually don’t require a significant time investment in order to learn a lot on the subject. They tend not to be lengthy but at the same time provide a lot of information. I also have a few foreign language readers at home. These are good for building vocabulary if I happen to be studying a language (though at the moment I’m not). I guess you could say that most of the time I read to learn, although I do read novels for pleasure once in a while, and it is often pleasurable for me when I read to learn.

When I read for pleasure, there isn’t any particular way that I use most often to choose the books I read. Sometimes I choose them because I’ve seen the shows or movies on which they’re based or that have come from them, and liked them. A time or two I’ve read a book based on a friend’s recommendation (The Fault in Our Stars). And, of course, at times I just pick something off the shelf in a store that seems interesting.

I don’t usually reread books. Once a few years ago I reread the Harry Potter series, but apart from that I’ve never reread a novel. It’s not necessarily that I don’t like to do it, only I would usually quickly lose interest in a book I’ve already read, unless I really loved it.

In general, I feel that reading can often be pleasurable, but a problem that comes up once in a while for me is that I start reading a novel, and soon after stop reading because in the beginning the “set-up” portion of the story is too long. It’s often hard for me to invest much time in a book if I’m not hooked right away.

My goal as a reader this semester is simply get into the habit of reading more, so that even after this course ends I’ll continue to read for pleasure often. I know that currently I definitely don’t read as many books as I should or would like to read.

In terms of technology, at home my family has many laptops, smartphones, iPod touches, and iPads, but most aren’t mine and those that are are outdated and would not be very useful in class. I don’t have a Kindle or Kobo. I have a Twitter feed, but I use it mostly to follow and retweet other people – I haven’t tweeted in about two months. I do have a blog as well, on Blogspot, where I’ve a written a few short stories and reposted music that I like. I haven’t posted there for at least more than a year. I’m open to learning to use many different social media platforms in creative writing.