Why books are magical…

You may wonder why I’ve named my blog ‘Magic Writer’.

As a child, I loved reading books. I can’t remember a time when I couldn’t read. My earliest reading memories relate to library trips, where I would take out three Topsy and Tim books every week. For me, the ability to mentally transport yourself into a new world by reading words on a page is pure magic.

I’ve flown on eagles, fought in battles, captured spies and solved mysteries all from the comfort of my bedroom. When I read a good book I stop seeing the words on the page. Instead I follow the characters round and observe their lives. I’m the fly on the wall as they act and speak and carry out their fictional doings. The real world simply disappears.

On finishing a book, I often end up with a book hangover–a feeling that real life is grey and dull after the excitement of that fictional world. It’s difficult to cure and often requires a new book to get me out of it.

The magic is special the first time you read a book. Knowing that you can never read that particular book for the first time again can make me drag out the last few chapters to savour them. The feeling is akin to knowing you will never meet your other half for the first time again. Re-reading can be great–like having lunch with an old friend. It can comfort you and relax you. But it never has that first time spark of wonder again.

I’m a big fan of books with magical story lines. Fantasy, dragons, fairies, spells: all these entice me into reading. The excitement of a world different from our own has a pull like no other.  For me, realistic fiction has its place. But let’s face it, often the world is realistic and depressing enough without reading about it, too. I confess I read for entertainment and escapism, for magic and adventure.

Now, I hope to succeed in writing my own magical book. Creating your own world where anything can happen is magic of a different calibre. Not to mention hard work and a huge learning curve!