Books I bought at the Literature Flea Market

This is Nagi.

Since the Literature Flea Market, I feel that my interactions with other "writers" and my one-sided awareness of them have been progressing.

Someone who bought my book has already written their thoughts on the books I bought at the market, and since this person writes honest reviews, I took them to heart and was happy that they resonated with my work.

I think a writer writing a review of another writer's book is the best kind of behavior, so I, too, started reading the books I bought one after another, albeit a bit late.

Two books by one author.
One book by another author.
I finished reading a total of three books in one day.

What I value when reading a book is whether I can read it in one sitting and whether I want to read it in one sitting.
If it's a short story, I can read it in one sitting time-wise. That is proof that it "doesn't let you get bored" and "doesn't make you want to stop reading," and I value this "feeling" when looking for books at bookstores.

In other words, if I read the first page or two while browsing and think, "Oh, I want to keep reading this," I buy it.
However, in the shortest cases, I might think "Oh, I can't do this" halfway through the first page, and in those cases, I put the book back immediately.

The book I bought at the Literature Flea Market was by an author I had bought from before, so I expected it to be interesting, and it was as expected, or even better.
The previous novel, which was close to non-fiction, was very interesting, and its unique personality stood out firmly, which made me think, "This is what a writer is."

This time, I was able to catch a glimpse of that author's life, and while I don't know how much is real and how much is fiction, I feel like I somehow understand this author a little better.
I also thought I should have a strategy meeting with myself about the order in which I release books (though I send them to print myself), or rather, what I should focus on when writing. (A one-person strategy meeting).

This author is this person.
It seems they have three books on sale online, so please take a look if you'd like.

The other person was someone who reserved my book, "62 Years Old, First Class All Alone." I met them for the first time at the booth, and I went to buy their book just before the event ended.
They were a very lovely person, and I got the impression that they were a very proper individual. I can tell from the fact that they even included a message with the sweets they gave me. (I thought, "I haven't given anything in return..." but I did give those who reserved my book a valuable pen I received from an airline. Good job, me, I praised myself).
I thought it was wonderful that someone could be so thoughtful, and I started reading their novel.

The book's binding is also wonderful, and you can see the attention to detail. But it's light, so it's convenient to carry around. And as I read on...
I was crying halfway through. Yes, I read it in one sitting. I couldn't stop halfway through.
They described ordinary people, who could be anywhere, very well, the background and location were easy to imagine, and the "kindness" that the author possesses was embedded in every corner of the novel.
That was the impression I had.

When your heart is tired,
When you feel like you aren't being valued,
this is a book I would definitely like you to read.

This author is this person.

In conclusion

Ever since I was in elementary school, I have loved books and have read every kind imaginable.
However, I do have preferences.
It is probably a matter of content, writing style, word choice, and rhythm, but my sense of it comes down to whether or not I can read it smoothly.
Whether or not I can read a book in one sitting is my way of choosing books that won't disappoint, and I am grateful to have cultivated this sense and cherish it.

I still have other books I purchased, so I will continue reading them. Also, I bought one more book by a professional author, so I will read that as well.
And I will write my own novel.
I would like to aim for 5,000 characters a day. (I've declared it now!)