How Does Reading Fiction Make You Smarter?

“Reading fiction is boring and useless,” is a phrase I have heard one too many times. It is easy to associate useful reading with schoolwork; however, did you know that beyond a source of entertainment, reading fiction has many proven benefits for making you smarter? In this blog post, I will discuss some of these benefits and hope to uncover the true power of fiction.

Power of Your Imagination 

One of the most beautiful things about reading fiction is igniting your imagination. Unlike watching a movie that leaves little room for personal creativity, reading allows you to imagine everything exactly how you desire. The mental images you create of the characters, the setting and more will prompt you to enhance your creativity skills and allow you to think outside the box, making it easier for you to find solutions to complex problems. Did you know that Bill Gates was a creative thinker who also happened to be a book lover?

Enhanced Empathy and Emotional Intelligence 

Empathy and emotional intelligence are other significant factors you can evolve by reading fiction. Since storytelling allows you to live inside the heads of many diverse characters, you are opening the doors to various perspectives. These perspectives enable you to live through the character’s emotions and thoughts, making you more empathetic to their unique situations and experiences. Additionally, as you grow closer to your favourite character, you may begin experiencing heavy emotions surrounding their story, ultimately allowing you to increase your empathy further. Most importantly, reading about the characters' feelings, from laughter to heartbreak, makes it easier to identify and understand them daily, contributing to your emotional intelligence.

Vocabulary Expansion and Language Proficiency 

Imagine the last time you started reading a new storybook and ran into an unfamiliar word. What did you do? I’m guessing you searched for the word's meaning and then possibly added that to your vocabulary bank.  Or maybe you could have guessed the word's meaning simply by understanding its context. You are more likely to have a better vocabulary and overall language understanding when reading. With time, your word bank will begin to flourish, and you will be more and more likely to use your new words for your assignments, day-to-day conversations and even in professional job settings (like an interview!). Plus, if you are looking to learn a new language or improve your English, reading fiction is one of the best ways to expand your vocabulary and enhance your grammar, writing skills and comprehension whilst also having fun!

Critical Thinking and Analytical Skills

Stories make us think. As I mentioned earlier, reading lets you roam around in the character’s head, making you more emotionally intelligent. But imagine a story with multiple character perspectives, unreliable narrators, and major plot twists. These complex situations will lead you to analyse the characters and plots on a deeper level, encouraging you to use your critical thinking skills.  Furthermore, let’s consider a specific fiction genre: mystery. Imagine reading about a detective trying to find a missing person, and clues are slowly revealed to you as the story progresses. Naturally, you are likely to piece together all the clues and try to figure out the solution to the mystery along with the detective. By doing so, you are upgrading your analytical skills. Analytical skills and critical thinking skills are crucial for developing your academic smartness and are key to success in most career paths. For example, engineers, school principals, doctors, and CEOs often use critical skills. While analytical skills are commonly used by software developers, business analysts, economists, accountants, and criminologists.

Reduced Stress Levels 

Being a university student can be stressful! Balancing university work, relationships with friends and family, internships and more can make you crave some time to unwind on your own. Reading fiction is the perfect opportunity to do just that. Your imagination can allow you to dive into a fictional world, where real life can be put on hold. When reading, you can be anyone, and you can be anywhere. Did you know that reading can reduce your stress levels by 68%? This means reading can improve your mental well-being, helping you become a happier version of yourself and more motivated to take on any challenges ahead.

Fiction Books at the MDX Library

Books can be expensive, and many students on a budget are hesitant to spend too much for non-essentials. Thankfully, the MDX Library (Block 15, Third Floor) has a section dedicated to fiction books.

Honourable mentions of fiction books at the MDX Library:

- ‘War and Peace’ by Leo Tolstoy
- ‘The Lord of the Rings’ by J.R.R. Tolkien
- ‘Harry Potter’ by J.K. Rowling
- ‘1984’ by George Orwell
- ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee
- ‘The Talisman’ by Stephen King and Peter Straub
- ‘The Circle’ by Dave Eggers

If you are having any trouble locating the fiction section, please do not hesitate to ask for help.

Hopefully, this blog post unlocked the door to a new opportunity for you to expand your knowledge in a more entertaining way. Remember, there is a book for everyone, so don’t give up searching!