I have been in a terrible reader slump for months now. I posted a TikTok about it.
My hobbies are cyclical in nature, but usually I am reading near constantly.
Lately, I have been DNF (did not finish) a lot of the books I start.
I seem to have lost the ability to give a shit about the characters. I have loved some morally grey and border line sociopath characters. I have loved sunshine everything is awesome characters. I have loved characters that ran the full spectrum from hero to villain.
But boring, meh, too mysterious characters make me want to throw the book into the recycling bin. I need the characters to WANT something. They don't have to be brave or beautiful. They can be a pacifist who runs from confrontation faster than my kids devour a platter of dino nuggies. They can be an aggro bad ass who punches first and asks questions later. But the characters need to have something motivating them.
I respect an air of mystery. I understand not explaining the whole story in the first three pages.
But when I am 50-100 pages in and I don't even know who the main character is? DNF
40 pages in and I don't even know what the main character is hoping for? DNF
Halfway through and I can't remember the main characters name because they are boring AF? DNF
Is it a new trend to make stories world centered instead of character centered?
I think it may have started with the Author Who Shall Not Be Named and their very popular series. The world building was INTENSE in that series but I found the characters very one dimensional. If I had to hear about one more whirlygigfizzbangypoppamajig without finding out whether the characters were even breathing I thought I was gonna start screaming. I barely made it through all of those books and I still maintain that the movies were better. (That is not something I ever say. At best, the movies are a good interpretation. But that series I have never re-read and I donated my copies of the books. Yuck.)
Do you prefer amazing worlds in your stories or characters that are compelling?
I like both when possible but I would rather forget what Main Street looks like in the story than forget the character's name. 🤷♀️
The TikTok I mentioned can be found here: https://www.tiktok.com/@enchantedtypewriter/video/7382208646391926046
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