The Cons of Mood Reading

Are you primarily a ‘mood reader’? If so, have you considered the cons of ‘mood reading’? Keep reading to see what I wrote, then check out today’s writing prompt at the bottom of this post.

I get why ‘mood reading’ is a thing, I do. Of course, you want to read whatever you're in the mood to read whenever you read… or do you?

‘Mood reading’ requires a reader to know what mood they're already in when they select a book. But let's be honest. Most people are not fully aware of their actual feelings at any given moment, especially on a regular basis (hello, pervasive and systemic anxiety and depression across the world in the twenty-first century— which are both more conditions and states of being than moods, but still). 

Sure, readers tend to be more emotionally astute and self-aware than non-regular readers, but nonetheless, how often are you really aware of your own emotional state when you’re selecting a book, which can fluctuate from day-to-day, and can also change before you finish whatever book you select based on a prior or fleeting mood?

You might experience fluctuating moods over the entire time span it takes you to finish a book, especially if it takes you a few days or a week to finish a book. What if, for instance, you get in a fight with your sibling and are all about reading a book on fratricide to channel your angst but make up with said sibling before you finish your book a few days later. Will you still appreciate the book in the same way? Or what if you want to read a romance novel, then break up with your significant other? Or read a book about a plane crash right before flying? Etc. Then, what, you just don't finish the book? Or don't enjoy the book?

And what if you are in a neutral mood or relaxed mood when it's time to select your next read? How do you decide what to read when you are in a bored mood, or are feeling indifferent or indecisive? I have a feeling that this mood, the mood of ‘meh,’ is what causes most reading ruts, no? You can't decide what to read next because you don't have a strong mood or pull toward anything when you’re feeling meh, so you just don't read and watch TV instead. Sound familiar?

Most importantly, there's no way of knowing how a book will make you feel when you read it, or what kind of mood it will leave you in when you're finished reading it. I have read self-help books that have made me want to give up or have left me feeling resentful. I have read romances that made me want to forget about love all together. I have read books about vengeance that left me feeling empty and shallow. You get the point. But I have also read thrillers that made me ask philosophical questions, and found hope in stories of tragedy, and so on. 

The point is, there is no way to tell ahead of time where a book will lead you until you go on the journey it offers you and you're done reading it. There’s just no way of knowing ahead of time what type of mood it will leave you in—sure, you can make a good guess, but you won’t be guaranteed an emotional state when reading. 

Just because a book is supposed to be about love, doesn't mean it will make you feel all warm and tingly after you read it. And just because other readers and reviewers claimed a book made them feel a certain way doesn't mean that it will make you experience what they felt when reading the same book.

In closing this post, I will say that I am NOT against ‘mood reading.’ It can be beneficial and can often lead you to the right books to read right now. I am just saying that it probably shouldn't be the ONLY way you select your books ALL THE TIME. 

What do you think about ‘mood reading’? Leave a comment to join this dialogue and share this post with others so they can join the dialogue too. 

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Today’s Writing Prompt