What Makes a Reader

Nobody is born as a natural reader. Somewhere along the way, a book landed in your hands, and you kept turning pages, and that made you a reader. But why do readers stop reading, and why do some people never start?

When we were children, we were told to read for several reasons: read to learn, read to earn a prize. Reading in school was a fundamental requirement. We read textbooks for science, biographies and autobiographies for history, and novels for English. Our teachers assigned these texts to improve and expand our point of view on different subjects. With every assignment that required a book, the purpose was rarely for us to just enjoy the story, but for some of us the enjoyment came naturally as the interest in core subjects like history and science textbooks pulled the reader in.

We also read to earn prizes, like certificates, trophies, or even more books. There were outside programs, too, like Pizza Hut's BOOK IT!, where children in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade could earn a personal pan pizza after reading a certain number of books. A free pizza was a small prize, but it was one of many things that taught us reading could lead to higher rewards. 

These early tactics taught us reading was necessary to pass a class or earn a prize, and they helped motivate many children to pursue reading. However, an assignment or prize might put a book into a child’s hands, but it takes something within us to keep the pages turning. That something dulls as we get older.

As we get older though, readers read less and less. Daily life events like school, work, and our social lives become our priority, and we hold on to moments we'll look back on fondly while forgetting moments like a quiet hour with a book can also be enjoyed. Reading is rarely the first thing we choose when the day is already full. On top of that, we are handed screens that are easily accessible.

When we finally get a moment alone, many of us like to enjoy doomscrolling. Doomscrolling is a habit that grows from a person excessive use of social media where a viewer would spend hours consuming online content. For example, short-form videos are everywhere on social media, and thirty-second videos can take up hours of our time without realizing it. Some say that consuming this type of video shortens the attention span of the viewer, and former readers struggle to read, which leads to frustration and a refusal to pick up and read a book in their free time. Right now, reading is spent on an online social media feed that never tells us to stop. 

So, what makes a reader a reader?

Are we readers when we read everyday texts? No. Is it when we read a social media post? No. Is it when we watch a fake Reddit story and captions flash on the screen? Definitely not. A reader is made when a person picks up a book and continues turning the pages. Anyone can read signs, captions, and roadside advertisements. A reader chooses to read:

-                 Novels

-                 Short fiction or nonfiction

-                Autobiographies and biographies

-                Poetry collections

-                Graphic Novels

-                Blogs

 What separates a reader from someone who simply reads is a choice. A sign is read because it is necessary. A video is watched because it is easy. A reader picks up a book because they decide that the time is worth giving. 

Readers aren’t made with prizes and lengthy, required textbooks. A reader is made in the moment we choose to keep going, after the pizza is eaten and the grades are posted. If we want more readers, we must set aside our phones, reserve that quiet hour for ourselves, and pick up a book. Nobody is born a reader, but anyone can become one again. 

Now, are you a reader?