Reading can take us places we may or may not ever get to visit. There’s a chance you’ll get to explore Italy and visit the restaurants named in "Eat, Pray, Love" but I’m not sure if a trip to The Shire from "The Lord of the Rings" is all that realistic. The point is that we sometimes seek comfort in stories as it can act as an escape from the daily grind.
Our imagination is allowed to roam free, instead of being tied down by instructions or “helpful guidelines.” Why think about the three by four cubicle you sit at for eight or more hours when you can be transformed into a new world with new people? Get away from that rude coworker with the loud voice and find a hero to root for. Whether you're into fantasy or creative non-fiction, there’s something out there that you can connect to.
Some may seek happy endings but I think there’s a majority of us who lean towards tragedies. It somehow makes sense to pick up a tearjerker after having a rough day. Crying that we’ve induced ourselves can ironically be the perfect pick me up. You get to let out all the frustration in an efficient way. It also allows for a comparison check: should you really be complaining when someone out there has it way worse?
Sure, the character in your book may be fictional but the situation they’re in might not be. It can really put life into perspective and make you think, “Huh, maybe I don’t have it too bad.” Besides that, it may help those who feel alone in a certain hardship and show that their struggle isn’t singular.
As bad as it sounds, sad events are always going to be more interesting to read. You can’t have a great novel without some surprising character deaths thrown in. Does anyone really begin reading "Harry Potter" (a series of seven books) and expect nothing majorly upsetting to occur? Sorry to anyone who thought the answer was yes, but in the end, emotion sells.
That’s why authors so desperately try to create characters that seem real to readers--to make it feel as though you're apart of the story and are traveling those 600 pages with Harry in order to save the world, yet again, from "He Who Must Not Be Named.”
This is all possible due to the amazing ability of a select few who can make any setting seem realistic. Suddenly, you find yourself relating to a centaur because one of his many hairy children was just killed off by the bad guy. This moment is down-to-earth as it is similar to what goes on around us everyday. All we have to do is flip on the news to hear about the newest murder case.
We have grown used to all the bad in the world because there’s nothing us average people can do about it. Thus, tragic incidents weigh less on us and are soon forgotten.
