It’s a sad feeling when you turn the last page on a book you’ve really enjoyed. Knowing that the story has ended, and you can’t find out any more about the characters you’ve grown to love. It’s even worse when it’s the end of a sequel, and you know no more books from that series will be being released by the author. However, there are ways you can keep the book alive and continue enjoying the world in which the story was set, and let the characters live on in your mind, Here are a few ways to go about it.
Watch the movie
Anyone that has watched a movie rendition of a book will tell you it’s never as good. Admittedly, there will always be parts missed out due to time constraints, and changes made which get you thinking ‘why on earth have they done that?!’ If you were blessed with a vivid imagination, you’ll probably find that no movie can improve on the images you can conjure up in your head. However, one way you can enjoy the book again and experience it in a new way is to watch the movie. Instead of directly comparing it to the novel, see it as a version or interpretation of it. Enjoy it in its own right, instead of finding ways that it didn’t live up to your expectations from the book. See what the producer has come up with, and enjoy the story through their eyes.
Play a game
Lots of novels are turned into games, which can be another fun way to revisit the characters that you love. Take Final Fantasy for example, these series of games were based on a graphic novel. Now there’s a new Final Fantasy game for Android and iOS devices, along with the traditional console versions of the game. The Witcher, Stalker and Assassins Creed are also examples of games which have strong roots in literature. As well as video games, lots of books have also made it into other types of game formats. You can play a Harry Potter board game or a Hunger Games card game for example. If you’ve read a book you really enjoyed, do some research online and see if any games have been created based on it.
Read or write some fan fiction
Fan fiction can be a brilliant way to get your fix of a world and characters you love. Of course, these short stories and series are written by fans rather than the author, but there are some talented people out there. It can be an interesting way to see what kind of direction people go in (based on the rules of the world in which the story was set, and the traits of the characters). If you’re feeling creative, you could even have a go at writing some yourself! It’s a fantastic way to get into creative writing since you have something you can work from, rather than have to think of everything from scratch.
What do you do to keep books alive in your mind once you’ve turned that last page? Do you explore these kinds of options?
This is a submitted post.