Confessions of a serial reader

A while ago I posted about Why I Blog. This is an addendum to that post.

I have a confession to make. I am a serial reader. When my nose is burried in a book, leave me alone. Nothing else matters.

I read like a crack addict desperate for her next hit. My reading is almost carnal. I don't simply read, I devour, a book. I become so completely absorbed in the world the author has created that anyone who desires my attention must resort to strenous antics, loud noises, possibly some shouting or punches to the arm. I may eventually startle as if from a deep slumber, my mind groggy, my thoughts far away. And unless there truly is some type of imminent disaster slated to wipe out the lives of myself and/or those I love so that my immediate reaction is absolutely, undoubtably required, my eyes will continuously dart furtively back to my book for the duration of the rude interrrupter's tirade.

I will read anything, anything. I have no shame. Sometimes, desperate for a fix, I find myself reading the large stack of fliers and junk mail in the recycling heap or the back of the cereal box sitting on the breakfast table or even the informational brochures that come with perscription drugs.

I admire writers. I love them for putting wonderful literature on this earth. I can't get enough of words or the way they are put together. I crave reading, experiencing, language. How this author or that combines things. John Ridley's dark worlds. David Lee Burke's lyric imagery. George R.R. Martin's painstakingly detailed characters and worlds. And this is just a small handful of some of my recent indulgences. There are so many. So much variety in writing styles and genre's. It amazes me. I am in awe at the wonder and the power of language and its uses.

I have known this about myself for a long, long time. Part of the reason I started this blog is not because I am a terriffic writer or anything. No. I did it in honor of the courage of writers. They put themselves out there, bear there hearts and souls for all of us readers, day in and day out. I wanted to honor that courage. I wanted to put something back. This is my tribute, humble though it may be, to writers. I am sharing my stories in my small way, too.