how do i get into reading?
>inb4 start with the greeks
i want to start reading more often because i feel like it's the most productive thing i can do while still being lazy at home. i really do enjoy reading (although i haven't read very many books), but the problem is, every time i have some free time to sit down and read, i find myself going online/watching tv/listening to music/doing some other brain-dead task instead.
are there any good ways to help motivate myself to read more often? what did you do to help foster your hobby /lit/?
pic unrelated
>>8254739
finnegans wake
>>8254739
If you really, truly liked reading, the solution would be a lot more simple than you are letting on...pull the trigger
>>8254766
as i said in my original post, i'm not trying to get into reading BECAUSE i like it. i'm trying to get into it so i can stop wasting my life doing pointless shit like posting on 4chan.
even if i don't really, truly like it, i'd still like to do it more often
>>8254757
thanks for the rec. i've never read it before. are you recommending it because it's an easy read?
>>8254773
>so i can stop wasting my life doing pointless shit like posting on 4chan.
lol not that anon but i read difficult literature all the time and i still fuck around like an idiot on 4chan.
don't forget. you are here forever.
>>8254739
start slow and short, and intersperse with the greeks
>>8254777
well i would feel less bad about shitposting if i was also balancing it with reading literature
how can be you so dense that you have to force yourself to have a hobby?
>>8254781
i'm just looking to do something more beneficial with my time, as i've stated several other times in this thread. it's the same thing as someone who wants to start working out at the gym. it's not like they actually enjoy working their ass off and getting all sweaty. they just want the benefits of getting good physical exercise
>>8254786
>it's not like they actually enjoy working their ass off and getting all sweaty
you're wrong.
also nothing good will come from forcing yourself. you may just end up getting burned out and even less motivate than before.
and what's this shit about being productive? what does this even mean? reading does not equal studying.
>>8254786
If you don't like the sweating and "working you as off" of reading, you shouldn't try so hard to get into it. It won't be beneficial in the way you wish it to be.
>>8254797
>what's this shit about being productive? what does this even mean? reading does not equal studying.
yeah but it still makes me smarter. it gives me new knowledge and opens my mind to ideas i'd never considered before.
>>8254797
>>8254802
you're right that i shouldn't force myself. but it's not like i'm torturing myself or anything. once i do actually open a book and start getting into it, i enjoy reading quite a bit. the problem is just that i'm lazy and i tend to prefer the instant gratification of mindlessly surfing the web, over putting in the mental effort to read a book (especially a challenging one)
>>8254774
it's a bit straightforward and plot-driven, but engaging enough for a beginner
>>8254739
>>inb4 start with the greeks
The Greeks are actually fun.
Read Lysistrata by Aristophanes. It has the sub title Women against War because the plot revovles around women getting fed up their husbands keep fucking off to battle and leaving them with nothing and nobody to do, so they decide to blueball all the men until they promise to stay home and fuck. It's full of dick and cunt jokes, and would read like a modern work if only the modern world weren't so uptight about nudity.
Lucian is also great fun but from a later period. He writes mocking commentary of philosophers and poets and playwrights like Aristophanes does in his other works, and is credited with starting sci-fi because of his True Story. He also started the true story meme.
>>8254783
If you liked Brave New World, you might also like Huxley's Island (starts slow, but after the first chapter or so, it's probably better than BNW). Though if you want more futuristic dystopia, since Island is set in the current world, you could read We by Zamyatin.
>>8254925
awesome thanks for the recommendations. Lysistrata sounds pretty funny and interesting from your description. i heard about island when looking a bit further into huxley's works and i've been curious about it, so it's nice to hear that you enjoyed it so much
>>8254947
Huxley is always a good choice, Point Counterpoint and Eyeless in Gaza are really good.
>>8254947
>>8254964 isn't me but is right. I felt the need to warn you about the first chapter because some people find the first chapter or so of Island dry and boring and quit, but once it kicks off, it's worth the initial bit of slog.
I love all his shit, even the nonfiction stuff, but keep in mind he has a wide range of books and so don't expect the same type of thing from his other works as Island or BNW, because you might be disappointed if you're expecting sci-fi and get Victorian parties or French monks.
[On the subject of French monks, he wrote a history about a famous possession case, called Devils of Loudon, which was made into an insane film called The Devils by Ken Russell. The movie is actually a tame version of the history in the book, but definitely worth a watch even if they couldn't get the full range of blasphemy released on film]
Lysistrata is excellent fun, but you have to get a bit more into the Greeks to get some of the stuff in his other works.
[The Clouds mocks Socrates, The Frogs mocks the three major playwrights, and so on, so you might want to start properly on the Greeks before getting into the rest of him, though you won't lose anything reading Lysistrata without any background]
We's a very quick read and /lit/ usually calls it the first in the progression We>BNW>1984, so you'll probably find anons to compare and contrast with too.
>>8254783
Since you liked BNW you could try 1984
It's a very light read, plot driven, but is a fun book, to a beginner i would reccomend it
Don't listen to these assholes telling you not to "force yourself" into reading, your working-out analogy is spot on. The only way to do it is making a routine and sticking with it. It will suck in the beginning but after a few months when you start seeing the benefits of it you'll never want to stop.
>>8255268
>It will suck in the beginning
How enticing.
>>8255268
>tfw this asshole didn't force himself into learning Greek
>tfw i learnt Greek to get more of the puns
>>8254739
Your feeling is mistaken.
Wasting your time reading books is exactly the same as wasting your time jerking it and playing videogames.
Why do you think Don Quixote's family burned his chivalric romances?
Because he was the 17th century's equivalent to a NEET with a WOW addiction.
>>8255454
You don't actually believe this. And if you do, you don't belong on a literature board.
>>8255454
>Because he was the 17th century's equivalent to a NEET with a WOW addiction.
Read Moby Dick.
>>8255478
Counterpoint; I play videogames and jerk off plenty too.
thanks for all the recs guys
>>8255246
>>8254982
i actually just read 1984 fairly recently and i enjoyed it quite a bit. still can't decide if i like bnw or 1984 better though. i think the method of control that they used in bnw was a lot more interesting and relevant in today's society. but as far as story-telling, and tying off every loose knot imaginable goes, i think 1984 has it beaten.
>>8255687
>every loose knot
i think the phrase is actually loose ends, but you get the idea
>>8255246
>a fun book
>>8255695
kek don't you have a youtube video to make varg?
>>8255454
What was Sancho Panza? His LARP buddy?
Look, i know that they are giving you great books
but read things that you like. Start with Young Adult or harry potter or whatever you like. Eventually, you'll grow up and start reading things for the theme or the language, and less for the actual story. Honestly, story ends up being less important
>>8254739
Read the sticky you fucktard.
Why aren't fucking rec threads banned yet?
>>8255752
Pretty much; after his family torched his rig he decided to become a lifestyle larper; Sancho lacking much of a social life (read; indentured servitude) hesitantly joins him as his healbot.
>>8255866
I'm not asking for recs. I'm just asking how to make better reading habits. Some anons happen to think that can be accomplished by simply reading the right books
>>8255768
Good advice anon. I've read a few of these books that they're recommending but I think my next undertaking is going to be lord of the rings:^)
>>8254779
>confessions of a mask
>truly a light, beginner read
id say start with some scifi/fantasy and then delve into /lit/
>>8255274
>being this lazy
i would almost guarantee that you have a dadbod at best
>>8255960
>tfw this theory makes a hell of a lot of sense out of Arabella
>Started with the Greeks
Continue with the Russians
Carry on with the beats
Disregard the blacks
Write your own shit
????
Profit
>>8254919
kek
>>8256053
>Disregard the blacks
>disregarding Iceberg Slim
bitch you need some tuning up
>>8256068
Get tuned up like this, shitskin.
>>8256089
shameful post
>>8256089
>i don't read for prose
>read the beats but not blacks
god you're an idiot, and you deserve all the unrequited homolust that is On the Road.don't worry, we all worked out you don't understand greek or russian
