3 Reasons Why You Need To Read More Fiction and/or Poetry

Becoming a thinking Christian requires a lot of things, but it certainly takes reading books on at least some level. In the quest for knowledge, it can be tempting to read primarily non-fiction. As a seminary student I can remember thinking at one point that all of those years that I spent reading fiction growing up where a complete waste of time. All I once thought gain, I counted as a loss! However, after several more years of studying, I discovered that reading good fiction is very important for the intellect. Here are some reasons that I have found to make more room in your reading list for good fiction and poetry:

1. Fiction and poetry engages the imagination.

    Many non-fiction books can been dry. They are usually written to communicate information rather than stimulate the imagination. Dr. Ellsworth Kalas once told me that seminaries and other academic institutions did not put out many skilled writers. Good writing, imaginative writing is not the goal of most professors. Content, no matter how dryly conveyed, is king. All it takes to become a success is a good peer review. However, a perusal of great Christian intellects will reveal imaginations that were alive and kicking. Just read G.K Chesterton or C.S. Lewis and you can see why they are still so popular today--they loved stories and poems and it showed through in their creative thinking.

  Adults lose their sense of wonder. The older we get the more it takes to impress us. To a three year old, a rock can be quite magical. A thirty-three year old can look at the same rock see something a lot more pedestrian. Chesterton asked the question of who was right in their thinking--the adult or the child? Reading fairy-tales and fantastic tales of adventure can give us some of our long-lost wonder back. Poetic language can inspire us to see common-placed items or scenarios in a new light. Imaginative thinking can be just as important as informational thinking.

2. Provides memorable illustrations and metaphors for writing and speaking.

  Some of my favorite authors and speakers are people who know the power of a good illustration. Literature, or even popular fiction, can be a great source to draw from when trying to connect with an audience. I can still remember a speaker using an illustration for Stephen King's Christine in a talk he gave in 1993! If he had never made the connection, the subject he was illustrating may have been forgotten long ago.

  My preaching professor had all his students read good literature and look for possible sermon illustrations. I chose Crime and Punishment and was pleasantly surprised by all the insights into human nature that it offered. He didn't just assign a novel, however, he would also read us a poem at the beginning of every class. By the end of the semester I rediscovered my love of literature and poetry and realized that my English degree could be a real asset to ministry and had't been a mistake after all.

  In addition to providing a treasure trove of illustrations, stories and poems give readers more linguistic tools in their tool box. One of my mentors, Dr. Steve Elliott (loving known as Pastor Steve), has shown me the value that good literature can bring to the table in crafting a great sermon. He doesn't mine books simply for illustrations; he allows his explorations into poetry and literature flavor the very language, metaphors, and cadence of his sermons.

3. Creates possible connections with secular intellectuals.
  Actually, this point could be made in relation to anything outside of a narrow field of study--art, music, even television. If you are a Christian thinker, artist, philosopher, apologist, or student, you need to find intelligent ways of connecting with non-Christian thinkers. If you are reading a steady diet of books on atonement theology or textual criticism, you may be able to debate your topic with others, but, chances are, you will have a difficult time connecting with them. However, a line or a thought from Chuck Palahnuik's Fight Club or George Orwell's 1984 may help you bridge the gap.

  A couple of years ago I watched the documentary Collision in which Pastor Douglas Wilson went on tour debating notable atheist Christopher Hitchens. Both men were voracious readers and both shared a love for P.G. Wodehouse. In the midst of all their debating, the documentary cut to one scene where both men where trading favorite Wodehouse quotes back and forth and genuinely having a good time. Even though Hitchens strongly disagreed with Wilson on many major issues, he said that he respected him as a thinker and person. I have found that secular thinkers tend to respect well-read Christians--especially Christians who are not afraid to engage the culture through the humanities.

  In a nutshell--thoughtfully engaging poetry and fiction will keep you from being dry and crusty as a person, speaker, author, or intellectual. A steady diet of reading dissertations, journal articles, or how-to books will suck the creative life right out of you if you are not balancing it with some good writing and stories.

What are some other reasons to read more fiction?

7 Tips For Reading More Books

If you're a book-lover like me, then you probably have a growing stack of books to read and not enough time to read them. I love my books, but they seem to mock me from my shelves and beg me from my Kindle. Come on! If I wanted a guilt trip, I would call some of my many neglected friends and family. What to do? Here are some ideas to help you whittle down that mountain to more manageable proportions.

1. Set goals.
Have a plan with a date. Noting pushes me like a good deadline and accountability. I use an on-line site called Goodreads to help me catalog my books and set goals for reading. They have a built in tracker that lets me know if I'm behind. This pressure keeps me motivated to stay on task. There are several on-line tools that you can use for this purpose. Or you may decide to go the old-fashioned way and make a paper book-list and year-end goal. Either way, the important thing is to take charge of your reading.

2. Read How To Read A Book by Mortimer J. Adler
I heard about this book from Howard Hendricks some years ago and have had it recommended to me by several people since. I finally gave in and read it through a couple of years ago. I found it beneficial for navigating different types of reading material. Here's a hint: you don't read every book in the same way.

3. Hit the highlights
Several years ago I asked my Inductive Bible Study professor and mentor how he got through so many books. He has a personal library of over 3,000 books in his office and another, supposedly larger one, at home. For a man who picks through Scripture with a fine-toothed comb, I was surprised a what he told me. Here it is in a nutshell: don't worry about reading non-fiction books in order, try reading the first and last page of the book and then read the first sentence of every paragraph. For many books that will be enough to give you the information for which you are looking. But does this count as having read the book? According to several scholars I have interviewed or read, Yes! I still struggle with method of reading but if it advances my progress even a little, it is worth it.

4. Audio books
Many people I respect use audio books to get more reading done. There are services like Audible to which you can subscribe. I have used the public library's audio book selection quite a bit, and recently I have used librivox.org to download to my Kindle Fire. I have a thirty minute commute to work, so I have an hour a day to listen to something. Thus far, I have only used it for fiction, since I usually mark up my non-fiction reads pretty heavily...but to each his or her own.

5. Cut out "time-sucks"
In this day and age, it is becoming increasingly difficult to unplug. I don't know how often I have found myself reading at the table with my laptop right in front of me with Goodreads or Twitter or Facebook pulled up. Needless to say, those where not very productive reading times. Other people like to read with the TV or radio going. All of these forms of media cause unwarranted distractions and suck time away from your intellectual development.

6. Pause or quit books that aren't engaging at the moment
Too many people feel like they have to finish a book before they can move on to something else. If their book stalls out, so does their productivity. Here's the deal: life is too short to waste time on dull books. Give yourself a pass to either pause the book till a later date or quite it altogether. Then move on to something more interesting to you.

7. Quit shopping and start reading
This is something I have to tell myself every so often. The fact is that I'm not sure which I like more--reading or getting new books. I'm a bit of a book collector--my wife thinks of it in terms of hoarding--so rather than spend my free time reading, I often find myself at Half Price Books or Goodwill or Amazon.com. Declare a shopping fast and shop your own book collection. More importantly, use that time to actually read.

If you have any additional tips for getting more read, please leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. I might even edit this post and include it!