I’m an author who has written a dark psychological fantasy trilogy, Reflections of Shadow.
Before writing a word, however, I was a reader… and I still am. The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander, The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien caught my attention at an early age. But I was also drawn to the dark side of literature. The Great and Secret Show series by Clive Barker and the Necroscope series by Brian Lumley shaped (or delightfully warped, maybe) my young brain.
Books have been my constant companions over the years and I want to shout out all the young men out there and invite them to rekindle (or just kindle) a love of books and reading that may just enrich your lives in ways you might not even realize.
Like many, I’ve been watching the trends in reader demographics — specifically the decline of male readers — with worry. My own books, despite being about the struggles of young male protagonists have sold primarily to women, ostensibly because they make up the majority of the modern book-buying population.
But where have the young male readers gone?
In the war for our attention there are many winners these days. Video games? Sure. Social media scrolling? Absolutely. Porn and Gambling? Unfortunately there also.
I’m sure that the books themselves may be partially to blame. I understand that the content of the most popular books lately feels like it has drifted away from your lived experience, with the rise in romance and romantasy targeted towards female readers. In some instances it may even feel like the modern publishing industry is actively trying to exclude you, but I promise you that even with the recent trends, there is so much brilliant content out there just waiting for you to discover it.
I have a bit of a confession… I used to embody all the characteristics that Gen Z has been called out for by their haters. I was an awkward teenager, plagued by introversion and deep-seated anxiety, not fitting into a world of celebrated traditional masculine roles. So I get it.
Men face challenges that I don’t think women can ever fully appreciate. There is a living darkness woven into the male nature that we have borne for generations; a darkness that the modern trappings of civilization have deemed unacceptable (even deplorable). We have been able to channel that darkness in many ways over the years (some in healthy ways and others not so much). But even the healthy channels now feel like they are being targeted. What isn’t fully appreciated in doing so is that it really is a baby and bathwater situation. Trying to amputate that part of us is akin to hacking off a limb. The only effective way to manage it is to acknowledge it and harness it.
It would have been so easy for me to embody many of the traits that society vilifies today — In fact, I’m sure there’s an alternate universe out there somewhere where I’ve actually grown into some kind of manosphere cult leader, guiding a generation of young men in a Neo-Viking cleanse across the continent…
But I haven’t walked that path. I haven’t allowed the darkest aspects of my nature to rule me. I followed a different route and I was led to and along that route by the positive relationships that have bolstered the better parts of my nature… relationships that would not have been possible if I hadn’t read as much as I did.
You see, reading is a cheat code for life. It allows you to build empathy at scale, letting you experience the world through many different pairs of eyes without going anywhere.
Even before video games, movies, tv shows, and graphic novels, books and the stories therein provided men with a pressure valve release, an escape to explore our darkest natures in the safety of a sandbox world, and a place to build strategies for how we might live in our own reality. It is so satisfying to fall into another world, let it open your heart and mind, and then return to our world with a new perspective, and the beauty of books is that there are stories beyond count. You are almost guaranteed to find something you’ll like and you will very often be surprised by where they can take you.
I’ll also let you in on another secret. Books and reading are not only beneficial for the specific content they offer you. The very act of reading is good for your brain and it has even become an immediate social lubricant. Apparently reading is now even something to highlight on dating profiles these days. You get to join an elite club when you read, joining the legions of other readers in comparing your reading journeys.
Where do you start?
Well, anywhere really. Pick up a book that you have heard is good. Start following a BookTok influencer or Bookstagrammer that you like. See what they are into and pick up one of their recommended reads. That first step is one that I guarantee you will never regret and you might find that it changes your life for the better!
