I need some insight / help.

Submitted by drlawsoniii t3_z73oh7 in books

I’m nearly 40 years old and have done well in life. I have a job that pays nearly 6 figures due to being able to pay attention in college and still get good grades. I never read any textbooks or fiction for any class.

When reading all I ever see are just words. I can’t imagine what is happening (unless there’s a movie about the subject, even then it’s a struggle), I love movies, and video games. But even when I play video games I typically cheat so I can blast through the gameplay and advance the story.

I say all this to show that I love stories, and would love to be able to read classic science fiction, and fantasy novels, but I just can’t into it. Does anyone have any insight as to what my problem may be?

0

Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

jumpupsitdown445 t1_iy4jx82 wrote

I am not a doctor and am instead just a clown on a computer, so, like, don't take me seriously. BUT Can you imagine other things in your life? Like, do you create pictures in your head at other times? If I asked you to picture your home could you 'see' how many windows it has in the front, for instance? What happens in your head when you hear a story? Because it's entirely possible you have aphantasia, which is an inability to create a mental picture.
Or it may be a lack of practice. I have heard that creating mental pictures while reading is tied to how well and often you read. So less fluid readers don't get lost in the story the same way others might.

11

Top-Abrocoma-3729 t1_iy4khch wrote

Have you ever taken any learning diagnostic tests? That would be the place to start. There are many things, from dyslexia to attention disorders to autism spectrum to others that might manifest in this way. And no one will be able to say definitely over the internet. That aside, it also sounds like you haven’t gotten much practice. Perhaps start small (10 mins a day) and slowly work your way up

6

AJFurnival t1_iy4lj4r wrote

Can you normally visualize things? Like if someone says 'he was tall and thin with brown skin and white hair and a beard', can you make a picture in your head like that?

3

Aaron_twin_cities t1_iy4k61c wrote

Sounds like aphantasia, and I don’t think it’s uncommon to have difficulty enjoying books given this. Good luck!

1

Bleu_Superficiel t1_iy4oiz6 wrote

Have you tried reading book after watching their somewhat faithful movie adaptation ? ( Harry Potter serie, No Country for Old Man, The Hunt For Red October... ).

Some video game were also developped into books, either officialy or in fanfiction.

There are also whole genre of book where the character is reincarnated as a video game character ( isekai, litRPG... ) or the whole reality is turned into a RPG with numbers ( Apocalyspe System genre... ).

You might also try Audible book, where someone else do the reading for you and you just have to do the listening.

Do you "cheat" video game to bypass annoying/boring challenges or to skip the story itself and get to the ending and the Steam achievement ?

1