Reading outside the comfort zone
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I’ve been reading romance for more years than I can remember now. One of the joys about it is I’m still opening up to new ideas and books.
When I first started reading lo these many years ago now I was strictly a historical reader. Once I went through all the ones in that genre I was still hungry for more so with some reluctance I started reading other genres. Medievals, Westerns, Time Travel, Futuristics – the list goes on. I discovered there were a lot of excellent romance books written in other genres too.
In recent years I’ve been expanding into the paranormal. Well, hasn’t most everyone? I’m still not that keen on vampire romance but other then that I’m pretty open to trying something new.
Just recently I stepped outside my box again and I’ve been really enjoying books written in the first person and much to my surprise I’ve enjoyed them. I’m reading a first person romance right now and when I picked it up, it didn’t even faze me. That wouldn’t have happened a year ago. I would have taken one look, put it down and moved on to another book.
The next step is Grimpsace – a book written in first person, present tense. That will be a new experience for me.
Now some of this hasn’t come easily for me. I tend to stick with what I’ve enjoyed in the past. Same thing when I go to a restaurant. I rarely try something new. I will plan on trying something new and different. But when the waiter is standing right there and I’m about to give my order, I wimp out and order something tried and true. Every once in a while though, I do go for the adventure of something I haven’t tried before and when I do, I’ve enjoyed what I ordered and wondered why I hadn’t tried it before.
While travelling through blogland and message boards, I often see a number of readers claim that they really only read one genre of books whether it be historical or paranormal or fantasy or whatever. As one who used to be like that, I would encourage them to step outside their reading box and try something different. Sometimes it might not work. I have tried vampire romance and while some of them are not too bad, it will never be a steady diet for me.
I still remember the thrill when I started reading Westerns. It was a genre I wasn’t sure I could get into but I did and in a very big way.
The best recent example for me is when I tried my first Urban Fantasy Romance. Now they haven’t been around for that long so I’m too far behind on that ball, but when I did step outside the box and read Driven by Even Kenin – wow – what a delight that was!
So now the sky is almost the limit as far as trying something different for me in the romance genre.
So, what about everyone else? Are you a one or two genre reader? Would you be willing to try something in a different genre? Do you read anything and everything? What book has delighted or surprised you when you did try something outside your normal reading habits?
Now – if only I could be a bit more adventuresome when I’m dining out.
