Narrowing our experience.

A Most Wanted Man by John le Carre

l recently finished reading 'A Most Wanted Man' by John le Carré. He’s one of my favourite authors and this story (no spoilers) was no exception. It had an unexpected ending, not so much a twist as a shock ending that left me pondering the different ways this story could have ended. It sparked so many different thoughts, ranging from storytelling to the state of the world, and everything in between.

This book is set in the war-on-terror years post NY world trade towers, yet so much of the plot is still relevant today.

As a reader, I enjoy encountering the unexpected. I love to be surprised or made to think more deeply about an issue. I enjoy having my perceptions challenged and le Carré is the perfect author for that.

As a writer, I hope to achieve that with my books. Reader comments suggest that I have (eg below – end of the blog)

What’s Next?

When I finish a good book, the search for what to read next can be fun but hard. Especially when, like me, you are spoilt for choice, with a huge pile (an overfilled bookcase) of books I’ve bought over the years but have not yet read.

I’m a collector. I say this because my to-be-read-pile will no doubt outlive me. I’m never going to read them all, yet I continue to accumulate more books.

Every time I visit a bookshop, a second-hand book stall, or scroll online, I promise myself that I will not buy more books until I’ve read more of my current stash. But it’s an empty promise. I can’t do it. I think I’m addicted.

But I’ve come to realise there is a surprising source of help for this addiction and that’s online algorithms.

Navigating the algorithms

You might assume that algorithms would feed my need to acquire, but somehow, they regularly miss the mark.

When I’m browsing in a bookshop or scrolling through Amazon, I’m looking for something new. Maybe a new author, or a new storyline, but not necessarily new to the world, just new to me.

But algorithms use my reading, listening, or post reaction history to predict what I'd like to read, listen to, or see next. It’s simplistic, in that it assumes I just want to replicate the same experience.

It might work if I only wanted to see what I’ve seen before, or want to wrap myself exclusively in the familiar. Sometimes, I do. I come back to an author I know and love, but that’s not always the case.

Humans are complex. Sometimes – in fact, for me, it’s a lot of times - I want to find a new author to me, a new story or style of writing. Something that offers me a new perspective and helps me to grow. I will sometimes read a book in a genre I don’t usually read or try something that’s very different.

I'm not so worried about not liking a book since I can often find something worthwhile even in a book I don’t love. It’s worth a try and helps me to challenge my ideas about what makes a good story.

I recently read an article that described some relationships as BBH, and I wonder if tech companies aim for this. It stands for Boring But Happy. I’d change it to BBC Boring But Content, but you might mistake it for a TV channel.

I worry that technology limits my choices and experiences and funnels me towards what I already know, rather than encouraging me to explore new territory and learn. That’s very BBH. It’s like a sheep dog corralling the herd towards the holding pens. We become a herd, devoid of individualism or alternative ideas, being driven towards someone else’s goal.

For tech companies, predictability helps the bottom line. Channelling me towards what I’ve liked before, enhances the likelihood I’ll buy the suggested item. But this channelling separates us and divides us into tribes. It removes our ability to access a wider network of experiences and to learn from alternative perspectives.

I don't see that as positive.

Tech companies are not about encouraging and promoting art and creativity; they’re about making money.

It’s not just finding books on Amazon; social media, like Facebook and Instagram, is even harder to manage. I’m flooded with sponsored posts, inundated with posts similar to those l've previously liked, and rarely see posts from my friends.

Just because I like or engage with political posts on Facebook doesn’t mean I only want to see those kinds of posts. I crave posts from a good (non-political) comedian, or an inspiring philosophical quote, or a new scientific discovery. I’d even like to see posts from my actual family and friends a little more.

I hear lots of people lamenting this too. I guess greed may starve the platform to death.

I’ve been contemplating moving to another platform that better meets my needs but it’s not simple. Do I leave the connections I’ve made behind? Although, I rarely see their content so maybe I’m already losing that connection anyway. How do I know the new platform won’t end up the same?

Greed doesn't lead to better products because in the longterm, it ignores the client's needs. Once you’re hooked, they can change the platform to suit meet monetary goals and there’s not a lot we can do about it.

Reviews and opinions

Tech companies and social media platforms push reviews. It’s their measure of engagement and a form of social proof.

But rating creative products suggests that we can define a book, or music as good or bad. So many reviews are presented as a universal truth rather than the personal opinion they are.

I like to read both good and bad reviews for a book. A novel that one person loves can be hated by someone else, because we all bring our own experience and expectations to these stories. We are all different and have lived different lives.

It isn’t a matter of judging who is ‘right’; that assumes there is a right and wrong. But with stories, the response is personal.

Opinions tell me more about the reader than they do about the book. What someone else liked or didn’t like doesn’t always match my preferences but it can show me a book someone rated as 2-stars might just be the book I was looking for.

It’s true, if the book is poorly edited or is poorly written, we might give it a one-star rating, but does that necessarily mean the story is not worthy of consumption? I’m not sure I have an answer to that.

I leave reviews on Goodreads and other platforms, although if the authors are well-known and have hundreds or thousands of reviews, it feels a little pointless. But for less well-known authors, I know it’s important for those algorithms.

I try to be fair and frame my opinions as exactly that. A personal opinion and not a generic endorsement. I explain what I enjoyed about the book, and maybe what I didn’t enjoy. But I don’t like to say a book is good or bad, it’s either to my liking or not. That’s why I hate the star rating system.

The search continues

I will continue to visit local bookshops and scrounge through shelves and sale items, reading the blurbs to find stories that appeal to me, and accumulate. I’ll select one of the books from my shelves according to the mood I’m in.

I’ll still scroll through Amazon and other reading lists, but I’ll ignore the recommendations most of the time. It’s me rebelling against the artificial narrowing of my experience.

I’ll resist settling for the predictable or comfortable or familiar and try to revel in diversity, creativity, and the values that add to my life rather than subtract.

There are alternatives to Goodreads like Shephard.com with its book DNA, which recommends books based on what you are looking for rather than what you previously read. They also don’t post reviews, using recommendations instead. It’s a subtle difference, but one I like. If you want to broaden your to-be-read list, give it a try. Shepherd website

As a writer, I'll go on writing the kinds of stories I like to read. Complex contemporary stories with average people being challenged by secrets, lies, and corruption.

If you’re interested, my books Lethal Legacy and Deadly Secrets are Australian mystery suspense thrillers with political intrigue and a mature woman amateur sleuth.

Find out more here.

Lethal Legacy - Link

Reader review:

“Part of the appeal of this well-crafted thriller lies in the way one reveal after a other (sic) allows for a whole new perspective on familiar figures. The writer also seems to possess a keen awareness of current political realities - another plus.” Review of Lethal Legacy by Linda Stevens on Goodreads

Deadly Secrets - Link

Reader review:

"It’s refreshing to find a complex, character- and plot-focused novel set in an Australian city, featuring characters not usually encountered in a typical thriller or crime novel." Book blogger Denise Newton’s review of Deadly Secrets.