Fiction versus non-fiction?

I'm wondering today if readers read one or the other or both.

Me personally, I adore fiction. For me, reading is entertainment and I want to be swept away. I want to go somewhere I've never been, experience something new, relive the feeling of falling in love, laugh, giggle, even cry. I want excitement, adventure, romance, comedy, drama...all in one book if possible. :)

I read non-fiction books on occasion, but honestly, its gotta be a topic I am completely passionate about or something I am interested in and need to learn about. I've tried reading biographies and such...and even when it was someone I really admired, it was tough. I ended up skimming. I really can't put my finger on what turns me away.

So, what do you read? Do you read both? Likes? Dislikes? What do you love about fiction? What do you love about non-fiction?

Why is it wrong to escape into a book?

I know some people think it is a waste of time to read fiction. There's nothing to learn. The brain isn't stimulated.

Well, I completely disagree.

No, the purpose of fiction is not to learn facts, but I sure as hell learn a lot when I read it. If I'm reading a book about a rancher, I learn a little bit about what it's like to work that job. If I read a book about a fashion student, I learn a little bit about design and clothing. If I read a book about a football player, yeah, I learn a little more about something I knew nothing about before reading the book.

And yes, all of these scenarios are books I have recently read.

My point is that fiction does not have the main goal of informing it's readers, but the readers sure do learn something.

I read fiction for entertainment and escape. I like to forget my daily life and lose myself in another world. When I read Lone Star Trouble, it was real fun to "travel" to Texas and "meet" some people who raised cattle, got dirty, and worked hard. I never knew so much about vintage clothing until I "met" Lizzie Nichols in Queen of Babble and it was really interesting. Made me wanna peruse some yard sales for fabric treasures. And as a girly girl, it was super interesting to immerse myself in the world of a female high school quarterback in Catching Jordan.

I read for pleasure and entertainment....and if I learn something too, great. I don't think it makes me a less of a person because the books I choose to read are filled with imaginary people. As an author I know how difficult it is to create and imaginary world and do the research necessary to also make it realistic and believable.

Way too fun to pass on this blogfest!!!

This blogfest sounded way too fun to pass up!! HUGE Thanks to Brenda Drake for hosting!!

So here's the deal. I need to post the first 250 words of my manuscript and you all have to guess how old my main character is! It's all based on the voice of my character!! :)

So here it is!

Only once in her life had Bobi Jordan felt pretty, sexy, and desirable, and it was nearly ten years ago. But that had all changed.

Pulling open her cardigan, she showed off her latest purchase.

“You’re right. Those are some of the nicest boobs I’ve ever seen in my life.” Her sister, Marcy, couldn’t have been more monotone if she’d tried.

            “See. I told you. Now you gotta touch them.”

            “Oh no! I agreed to look at them. I draw the line at feeling you up.”

            Bobi smiled, shaking her head at her prude of a sister, and caught a glimpse of her reflection in the full length mirror, brand new 34 DD’s on display. Would she ever tire of looking at them? And they were so damn perky she didn’t even need a bra. Never again would she be made fun of for having the smallest boobs in history.

            “I personally think they’re too big,” said Kim.

            “Oh, you’re just jealous.” Finally Bobi had something her lifelong friend could be jealous of. “Besides, my doctor said these are the most popular size for implants.”

“Yeah, if you’re a Dolly Parton impersonator.”

Bobi recalled the day she’d gone for her consultation. She’d been working for Dr. Michael Gellerman, plastic surgeon, for almost four months. He’d approached her and mentioned the great discount he gives his employees.

“My staff is my greatest advertisement,” he’d said and winked at her. “All the girls have breast implants. You should think about it.”

So there it is! Leave me a comment and let me know how old you think Bobi is! I'm interested in hearing the replies!

Fiction only or some non-fiction too??

When I was a teen, I wrote newspaper articles for a club I was a member of, the FFA. I was the reporter and it was my job to tell the world (or at least our little part of it) about club happenings. My articles were published in small papers designated for individual neighborhoods in our city (Bee Papers, The Metro, and for my neighborhood- The Riverside Review) and one even made it into the big newspaper in our city (The Buffalo News). My writing was included in a county-wide agricultural paper too. That year at the FFA NY State convention, I was awarded the State Reporter's award. A huge deal for me! I applied to two different colleges: one for journalism, one for Floriculture Merchandising.

I went to college for floriculture, got married, started my wedding flower business and started a family. I started writing again but this time I was drawn to fiction. It started as something I just did cause an idea popped into my head. But quickly this new found passion grew and in record time I finished an epic novel. It was only the beginning for me and once again I craved publication.

I tried to write non-fiction again and found it to be incredibly difficult. The only pieces I wrote that satisfied me at all were about topics I knew A LOT about...things that were dear to my heart. All the research in the world didn't help either...I just did not have the gusto that is needed to make an article great.

Do you excel in fiction or non-fiction or can you do both well??

One positive thing ....

That comes from resting an out of whack back...tons of writing gets done!!!

After sitting on my couch for seriously 6 hours..with one or two bathroom breaks and a lunch break, I added 2300 words to my novelette!! I am stoked about this!!!

Now comes the hard part. I am almost to 9000 words. It needs to be under 10,000 to submit to the magazine I am writing it for. So, I now need to finish this story in 1000 words. I think I can do it....but I am afraid the story will end too abruptly and problems will be solved too easily. I hate the thought of writing it out without thinking of the word count...and then having to cut out a ton. The story is so short and to the point that I'm not sure there is much that can be cut out. With writing something so short, I have no choice but to stick to the main story (which I think I'm really liking by the way!!), so there really isn't much there that's useless information. I can think of one scene that may be cutable....but we're only talking 500-750 words.