I do that with Game of Thrones, except I don't necessarily go back. I've read everything about Arya. Most of Tyrion. Most of Brienne. The others? Meh. (If the Tywin of the books was the same as the Tywin of the TV series, I'd read him too, but in the books the evil is not accompanied with the same kind of fascination.) Kindle of course makes this a lot easier.
I like Arya best, but I’ve read the others. Except I haven’t read the most recent book, whether that was
I definitely feel that there is a big difference between "filler" and "sub-plots". That's certainly a distinction that many writers need to make. Sometimes I worry people may confuse sub-plots with filler, and that doesn't help anyone. "Filler" to me is a scene that really has no bearing on the main story and also doesn't work to develop anything about the character(s) involved. Think about all the TV shows with filler episodes - The characters are just acting like they always act and are going on some other adventure, but nothing really changes about anything that matters. Anyway, that bit of your post stood out to me and I wanted to speak about it.
"A Dance With Dragons" was the most recent book. I actually read all of the books within a year or two, and read through every single character chapter. I may read QUICKER when I get to a scene or chapter that doesn't interest me as much, but I still make the effort to read from page 1 to the last page of any novel I pick up. Non-fiction books, like history books and so forth, are the only ones where I skip around. In my opinion, even the most mundane character in the Song of Ice and Fire series gives insight into the story and world and other, more interesting characters. Not all are executed as well, of course, but it's worth reading.
Filler can be relevant to the story, but be tedious as all hell. That is why I used Angelmass as an example. It explains a lot about the inner workings of how the whole thing functions, but at over 100pgs it feels more like filler than actual story element at that point. IDK I haven't read too many stories with subplots that go absolutely nowhere, but a few that just kinda leave them unresolved which I guess is the same thing.
I'm one of those readers who also finds POV switching a bit difficult to deal with in some books. I think it has to do with cliffhangers. I'm not a fan of them, and if one POV character is left hanging off a cliff, I'm very VERY tempted to read ahead to see what happens to them. Sometimes I do this. I don't feel it spoils things for me to go back and catch up later ...which can drive other people nuts. However, even when there aren't cliffhangers, I sometimes still find that a POV change can be unsettling, even though I know that changing POV characters is common in novels, and is something I do myself, as a writer. The advantages of multiple POVs outweigh a temporary disconnect, so I've found another way to deal with the feeling that I want to stay with a character, rather than switch to another one. If I start feeling I want to read ahead (and the older I get, the more patient I am!) I find that simply putting the book down and walking away from it ...even for an hour or two ...usually does the trick. I don't mind a change of POV character at all, if I've taken a wee break.
I just think you're likely to miss things and not even know it if you're not reading a book in order and skipping around or skipping over parts you don't think are important. While reading, we can't always tell what's important right away. And is it really that hard to just read a book? We are writers and I sure don't want people skipping over sections of my book. Things wouldn't be there if they weren't important. I love reading. Maybe other people don't, but then it could be argued why they are trying to be writers at all.
There are times when a POV change irritates me, but I read the book in order regardless. However, if someone buys a book I don't think it is any business of anyone how they choose to read it or not. If someone buys my book and then want to hack the thing up with a machete and piece the words together in an entirely new order, that's fine with me. So long as they buy the book.
Emphasis mine: Wow. Those are some pretty insulting character assessments, given that they seem to be based purely on how I read one set of books. You owe me an apology. I'm not joking. I don't like Game of Thrones. I dislike the author's writing (in that series--I seem to remember being OK with it in Sand Kings), I dislike braided stories where it takes forever to get back to each person's plot, I dislike war plots, I dislike books with lots and lots of rape, I dislike many things about it and I disapprove of many other things about it. I like Maisie Williams. I like Peter Dinklage. I got interested in their characters in the fragments of the TV series that I saw, and so I also read their parts of the books. When I don't dislike a book, I read it.
@ChickenFreak -- I'm not trying to insult you, and honestly I'm not sure how saying writers should read is insulting. If someone wants to write, why would they not want to read? Reading helps us grow as writers, and if you're not reading a story but just parts of it, you will likely miss some things. And if someone can't get through a book as a reader, I imagine they will struggle quite a bit as a writer. There's nothing insulting about that. Reading and writing go hand and hand. I didn't make that up. It's just the way it is.
At no point did I say that I don't read, that reading isn't needed for writers, or that I "can't" finish a book. This is off topic for the thread. I am willing to accept apologies by PM.
My "you" wasn't directed at you personally. You weren't even the one who said you skipped parts when reading a book. I was talking in general. I really don't see why you are so upset with me or what you want me to apologize for. For my thought? For my opinions? For the way I see things? For trying to offer some insight? I did nothing to personally attack you or anyone else here. So, go ahead and dismiss me and what I'm saying if you want. The only thing I'm sorry about right now is that I spend too much time on this forum.
It's one of those things, I guess. You know you should read every word, but dammit, sometimes you just get glassy-eyed and start skipping. I've just found myself doing that. (Mind you, it's not a work of fiction.) I'm reading the fantastic series of travel memoirs written by Patrick Leigh Fermor about his walking through Europe from the Hook of Holland to Constantinople in 1939-40, just before WW2 began. I am fascinated by what he is talking about, but sometimes he does get carried away with digressions that are way over my head (about language, classical literature in German, etc.) His descriptions can be literal, and sometimes you just want his impressions of what he's seeing, rather than the kind of multi-page architecturally accurate descriptions you could take away with you and create a detailed drawing from them. I find that if I'm doing a lot of skipping, I tend to take a break. That works. But sometimes ...frankly ...things can get turgid. Whether it's my fault as a reader or the writer's fault is neither here nor there. I try not to skip, and I don't do it often. But sometimes it's either start skimming a bit, or lose the will to live. I'm not quite at that point yet!
I said I skipped parts of the books when reading Game of Thrones. And you addressed me, and used the word "you" when referring to skipping parts of a book. I'm now assuming that you skipped parts of the thread and never saw my post, so, OK, moving on.
