The influence of Books on People, Fiction and Non-Fiction

The influence of the media is something well known in the society. Print media, Social media, we all know how effective they are in manipulating the views of people on a subject. The effect of their counterparts, books and short stories, is less widely known.

Books have a subtle means of influence. It's simply, you wouldn't know you're being influenced by them but certain portions of what you've read sticks to your brain.

In a non-fiction for example, a short story about a person who got bitten by a snake while sitting on a strange toilet. It sticks in your head that you shouldn't sit on strange toilets, you consciously do it for a while before it becomes a habit to thoroughly check strange toilets before you use them for snakes. 

Fiction is even crazier. It opens a door that leads straight to your fantasies and it sticks there. Say you read a historical fiction on greek gods affecting the lives of the ancient Greeks. Every element employed in the book sticks and your mind creates endless possibilities for how situations should've gone.

You probably don't realise when you do it, it's a natural action. That's the suble nature of the influence of books on the mind. 

Every book written comes from the imagination of the writer, fiction or non-fiction. Reading it creates a bridge that connects their imagination with yours. Simply put, they're taking you on a trip into their mind. Sometimes it's beautiful or it's indescribable or it's downright terrifying. 

That being said, allowing books to continually influence your thoughts without control can prove to be catastrophic. You'd have a burden of various opnions and facets to choose from that a simple decision becomes hard. It makes your thoughts muddled and unnecessarily deep.

Control the contents that enter your head so you wouldn't often fall to a manipulation of the imagination. 

Reading is a beautiful terrifying action. Enjoy the beautiful, avoid the terrifying.