Some people say the only reason people read fiction is escapism. Life is hard, and the only way to enjoy it sometimes is to live in a different one. This may be true at times for me, but it is by no means the main reason I read fiction. This morning I read the introduction to a short story anthology, Stories: All-New Tales, edited by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio. Gaiman has hit the nail on the head for me. He says:
"When I was a child ... I wanted stories, and I wanted them always, and I wanted the experience that only fiction could give me: I wanted to be inside them. Television and cinema were all very well, but these stories happened to other people. The stories I found in books happened inside my head. I was, in some way, there. It's the magic of fiction: you take the words and you build them into worlds."He then explains that for him, the joy of fiction comes down to four words:
"...and then what happened?"In the introduction, Gaiman also says:
"G. K. Chesterton compared fantastic fiction to going on holiday--that the importance of your holiday is the moment you return, and you see the place you live with fresh eyes."It is not about escaping this world. It is about coming back to it.
For me, it is about the beauty of the imagination, and being able to see my own life, my problems and blessings, in a new light. Sometimes a story can remind you how lucky you are that your life is the way it is. Sometimes it can help you understand something you couldn't before. It's less about learning something practical and more about learning something about yourself, something philosophical. Sometimes it can inspire you to do something. Quite often, good fiction makes me want to write.
And at times, fiction helps you not take life quite so seriously. We all need a bit of that sometimes.
"There is something waiting for you. So turn the page."
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