Our reading choices aren’t anyone’s to take away

Conversations online revolving around reading as a hobby have included the misogynistic view that if women aren’t reading nonfiction, then they are reading smut.

First, this is obviously false, and second, what does it matter?

While it’s not our genre of choice, and we do have our critiques of the smut genre, we’re not interested in critiquing people’s interests that aren’t actively harming anyone.

We certainly don’t want to tell people what they can and can’t do in their lives—if we did, would we be any better than the people who are banning books?

There is a difference between preference and opinion of genre compared to actively belittling someone for what they enjoy.

Yes, there’s a conversation to be had about how the publishing industry often priorities profit over quality, limiting literature to its tropes to be fed to a paying audience.

Art shouldn’t always be a commodity. But this isn’t the conversation that has been given the most attention.

Instead, we’ve seen women in particular being put down instead of people critiquing the industry itself.

In the online space, we have seen previous times where groups have taken down certain material due to the idea of it not being appropriate or not digestible for all.

The fact of the matter is not all writing is meant to be universally digestible.

However, due to this mindset, restrictions are sometimes made to content that should remain accessible or be allowed under a filtering system.

Good literature for enjoyment is needed to maintain a healthy relationship with reading.

Good craft, too, should be equally celebrated, since it is not always mainstream due to its lack of tropes and serious themes that are not as easily commercialized.

We may not agree on our favorite reading experiences, but we will defend everyone’s right and choice to read what they want to.

Reading is freedom and reading is political, and some people need to hear that.

We’d encourage everyone to be aware of what their reading is reflecting in them.

Whether it’s more fluffy, fun writing, or more of a literary style, all reading choices are valid.

Maybe, though, think about diversifying what’s on your bookshelf.