{"id":4964,"date":"2023-10-02T16:33:41","date_gmt":"2023-10-02T16:33:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novels.zerosilver.com\/wordpress\/?p=4964"},"modified":"2023-10-02T16:33:41","modified_gmt":"2023-10-02T16:33:41","slug":"tips-for-finding-clean-fiction-part-3-sort-through-the-catch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novels.zerosilver.com\/wordpress\/tips-for-finding-clean-fiction-part-3-sort-through-the-catch\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips for Finding Clean Fiction Part 3: Sort through the Catch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In this series of blog posts, I give strategies for finding \u201cclean reads\u201d that go beyond relying on curated book lists. Please see \u201cPart 1: The Toxic Sea<\/a>\u201d for a list of resources to help you find books that others think are clean and \u201cPart 2: Know Where to Fish<\/a>\u201d to learn what types of books will be least likely to contain profanity, graphic sex and violence, and immoral themes.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Book<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Now that you\u2019ve dropped your net into the water and pulled out an abundance of book titles, it\u2019s important to sort through the catch and evaluate each book for specific content. This step takes time, but in the end, it\u2019s time well spent. How often have you begun reading a book and been frustrated three-quarters of the way through it when something pops up that doesn\u2019t meet your standards? That still happens to me sometimes, but it happens less<\/em> often when I make an effort to do a preliminary evaluation of every book I read. In the long run, I save time and<\/em> money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are several components to this evaluation, and I do them in whatever order seems natural, depending on whether I\u2019m looking into downloading an ebook or standing in a bookstore or library with a book in my hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Pay Attention to the Details<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the book and author are completely unfamiliar to me, the first thing I typically want to know is what year the book was originally published. As I explained in \u201cPart 2: Know Where to Fish<\/a>,\u201d standards of wholesomeness have changed through the years. Knowing the original year of publication tells me more about the potential content than almost any other single fact about the book. A quick search for the book online will usually give me this information.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Look at the copyright information in the actual book if you can. Until recently, this page was always at the front of the book, right after the title page. These days, the copyright page is showing up more and more at the end of ebooks. If that’s the case for an ebook you’ve already purchased, I don’t suggest jumping ahead to look at the copyright year if you want to keep the option of returning the ebook. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While I\u2019m on the copyright page, I look to see what company published the book and under what imprint. Even if I\u2019m standing in the library, it\u2019s easy to pull out my phone to do a quick online search. Within minutes, I can learn something about the publisher and imprint. I may even look up the author\u2019s website or do a brief search on the book title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Try Before You Buy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the book looks promising, I\u2019ll sample it. I can\u2019t stress how important this step is! The sampling process is easier if I can hold the book in my hands, because I can spot-read it in several places, looking for foul content. If I find it, the book goes right back on the shelf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When buying books online, however, often only a small digital sample is available. I\u2019ve found that these samples are always worth reading. It\u2019s amazing how often they\u2019ve alerted me to content issues in a book. Not only that, but I learn right away what sort of writing style the author has. If the online bookseller you\u2019re using doesn\u2019t provide a free sample, look for one at another seller or on the author\u2019s website.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Once I\u2019ve read a sample from an unfamiliar author and would like to read more, I try to find a free version of the book from the library. I may not find that particular book for free, but I might find another from the same author that looks interesting. I may borrow the book I do find from the library, or I may continue my search online and find a free or low-priced promotional ebook to download. Just because an author wrote one clean book doesn\u2019t mean he or she will write another, but giving an unfamiliar author an in-depth trial run has prevented me from spending a lot of money on books I don\u2019t finish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t Let Down Your Guard<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once I find an author who writes wholesomely, I rejoice! I wish I could say the review process ends there, but it doesn\u2019t. It\u2019s always a good idea to give each book that comes out a preliminary review. The current publishing climate makes it easier than ever for authors to write in various genres and target different audiences. When an author switches to a different genre or publisher, his or her new book may reflect a different standard of wholesomeness. This often happens when a children\u2019s author publishes an adult book or when an author known for writing Christian fiction switches to secular fiction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read the Reviews<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Along with sampling, another part of that preliminary review is reading<\/em> reviews. I already discussed websites that rate and review books in \u201cPart 1: The Toxic Sea<\/a>.\u201d I also find it helpful to scan through reader reviews on Goodreads, as well as on booksellers\u2019 sites. Many of these reviews contain information on wholesomeness issues, particularly if the content is unexpected in some way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve seen comments on books that are cleaner than other books in the same genre and, at the other extreme, books that contain more foul elements than others of the same type. Parents will often comment on the content in juvenile and young adult books, particularly if they don\u2019t think the book is \u201cage appropriate.\u201d If an author known for writing clean books changes genres and writes something with foul elements, a few of his or her fans will often respond with negative reviews.<\/p>\n\n\n

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What if the book doesn\u2019t have customer reviews? Or too few to give you a well-rounded idea of what to expect? This is most likely to be the case with a book that\u2019s written by an independent or \u201cindie\u201d author. When encountering this situation, take the other steps I mentioned above, and if the book looks promising, give it a try. The good news is that you can usually get an indie ebook for a very low price. Many indie authors offer the first ebook of a series for free. If you finish the book, consider writing your own review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many out-of-print books don\u2019t have customer reviews either, although they may have received editorial reviews when they were published. Do an online search on the title and see what comes up. You may find a copy of something the author has written in the library. Start with that and go from there. If the book looks compelling enough, buy a used copy. Online booksellers have made that easier than ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defend Yourself against the Offensive<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The preliminary review shouldn\u2019t take longer than it would take to actually read the book. At some point, it\u2019s time to take a chance, but that doesn\u2019t mean the evaluation should stop. Once you get a digital copy of the entire book, it\u2019s easy enough to do a search on particular words or phrases, although having the foul content listed on a search page could easily make your reading experience more<\/em> unwholesome than simply starting at the beginning and reading the story without knowing what you\u2019ll find. You can always stop reading if you encounter content that doesn\u2019t meet your standards. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Identifying profanity and graphic sex and violence is pretty simple. Identifying unwholesome themes isn\u2019t as easy. For help on how to do so, please see the essay I wrote entitled \u201cWholesome Literature\u2014a Realistic Choice.<\/a>\u201d For help in discerning religious themes, see \u201cWhat About Doctrinal Differences?<\/a>\u201d In my own reading, if a plot looks as if it\u2019s going in an unwholesome direction, I look ahead in the book to learn where it does<\/em> go. Sometimes I even read the ending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, that\u2019s right. I read the ending before I get there. What about spoilers, you ask? I\u2019ll concede that I dislike spoilers and prefer to read a story in order. I want the ending to be a realistic and satisfying resolution to the issues raised in the plot. The types of books I generally read, however, are just as satisfying whether I know how they end or not. Not only that, but I consider immoral themes to be the biggest spoiler of all!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are You in a Reading Rut?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over time, it can be easy to fall into a rut and read a lot of books that are clean enough but don\u2019t really enrich you. Perhaps your reading material seems downright stale. When that happens, it may be that you need to try a new genre. Or it may be that you should make an effort to read books that are of higher literary quality. Or maybe your standards of wholesomeness are slipping\u2014or that it\u2019s time to tighten them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This has happened to me several times over the years. I was halfway through a classic horror novel once, when I realized that, while cleanly written and entertaining in its way, the book was giving me no enlightenment at all. I asked myself, \u201cWhy am I reading this? Do I really want this darkness in my life?\u201d I decided that the book was, at best, a waste of time and set it aside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Always be willing to take a good, hard look at the books you read and make changes if what you\u2019re consuming isn\u2019t edifying you.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Record What You Read<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you read a lot, there\u2019s no way you\u2019re going to remember all of the information you observe about the books you read and sample unless you record those insights. Keeping a reading journal will keep you from wasting time pursing titles you\u2019ve already evaluated. Many readers like using book sharing websites such as Goodreads for this purpose. Book reviews on Goodreads are public, however, and you may prefer to keep your list of books and notes in a private computer file, on index cards, or in a bound journal. Do what feels simple and comfortable to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the next post of this series, I\u2019ll tell you how to read widely and well without going broke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Note:<\/strong> This series of blog posts features covers for many of my favorite books in multiple categories and from various time periods. Some are well-known, and others aren\u2019t, but I believe that all of them will be accessible and enjoyable to many teens and adults looking for outstanding clean fiction. Click on the cover to learn more about the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The featured image \u201cBlue Crabs Ready for the Pot\u201d is Copyright \u00a9 2023 by Katherine Padilla<\/strong>. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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