Tales of a Reader’s (book)Harem
Do you RH your books (RH= reverse harem: 1 reader, many books at once)? Or are you a monogamous reader (1 book and only one book at a time)? In a recent post on FB, I mentioned reading multiple things at once- an ARC (advanced reader/review copy), 2 BETA reads (think of it as pre-ARC/ pre-edited reading), and 2 books I’m editing for authors- and it hit me-- wait… that’s new! Since I started reading Romance novels 2 years ago, I’ve been a one-book(boyfriend) at a time reader. So, it’s been a while since I had to compartmentalize my reading (read- share my time with more than one book boyfriend outside of an actual RH book), and surprisingly it was not as hard as I feared it would be. I had been avoiding reading more than 1 thing at a time because I was afraid I would lose the plot line, emotional intensity, or character details if I spread my attention out over too many stories. But there was no way to accomplish what I needed to do without diving into all the things at once.
I’m still trying to figure out why I was so worried about it. I had to do it all the time in college when I took multiple English classes each semester. I’ve always watched multiple TV shows throughout a week and didn’t lose the plot or characters. Was it an age thing keeping me from reading multiple books at once? My brain isn’t as young as it used to be. Heck, none of me is as young as it used to be! And in addition to what I’m reading, I’m constantly focusing on so many things (work things, mom things, yarn things…), maybe I was afraid one more thing would just be too much for everything.
What was interesting is that I started to read all of those things because they were in different formats, so depending on where I was, it was easier to read one thing than the others. The ARC was on my Kindle- portable for waiting rooms, the car, and reading in bed at night. The BETA reads & edits I was working on were in Google docs, and I only read those on my laptop. So, they were couch reading options. And desk reading options on the days I actually made it to my desk (aka my dining room table, which often pulls me toward journaling instead of reading).
The other weird thing is I compartmentalized the ARC as “hobby” reading and the BETA and editing reads as “work” reading. They’re definitely not work. And they’re all romance novels, so it’s not like one was technically more intense. But then again, maybe they were. I read ARCs with a very different eye, and even brainspace, than BETAs and edits. So maybe they did need a different environment to create that specific sense of focus.
I think the fact that I enjoyed everything I read, and was able to write reviews and discuss each read as its own entity, really speaks to the talent of the authors. That each book could be so beautifully distinct that the characters and stories didn’t blend and morph into each other says so much about the writers, the writing, and even the romance genre. And to think some people don’t read romance because “they’re all the same.” Yeah. Not so much.
So what about you? Do you RH your reads? Or are you a monogamist? And if you RH, does it matter what you’re reading? I’d love to know. Send me an email (brayzenbookwyrm@gmail.com) or drop a comment on my Facebook or Instagram post.
