You’re Not a “Non-Reader,” You Just Haven’t Found Your Genre Yet

MJ Wynn
Mar 13
5 min read

Updated: May 25

Okay bestie, let me spill some tea real quick... 🍵 I used to think I wasn't a "reader." Like, at all.

Picture teenage me in high school, staring at those required reading assignments with all the enthusiasm of watching my nail polish dry (which, tbh, was probably more exciting). Every assigned book felt like the literary equivalent of eating plain toast—dry, boring, and absolutely nothing like the juicy content I actually wanted to devour. And girlll, if you weren't already that cute bookworm type who lived for literature class, this whole experience probably had you convinced that books just weren't your vibe. ✨

So for the longest time, I was like "yeah, that's just how it is." Some people are book people, and some people—aka me—just weren't meant to be part of that aesthetic. 📚

But then... plot twist! I found my genre. 🎭

The first time I picked up a spicy romance novel (you know the ones 👀), I literally had to pause and be like: Hold up... we're allowed to read THIS?

Like, books can actually be fun? And addicting? And have scenes that have you blushing harder than that time you accidentally liked your ex's Instagram post from 2019? Books can make your heart race like you're the main character falling for that perfectly imperfect love interest?

And just like that, honey, I wasn't a "non-reader" anymore. I just hadn't found my literary soulmate yet. 💕

The Damage of Required Reading (aka My High School Villain Origin Story)

Look, I get it. I understand why schools make us read what they do. They're ~classics~. They have ~literary significance~. They're ~important for academic analysis~. But let's be real for a hot minute—when you're 15 and being forced to read something that connects with you about as much as a broken WiFi router, it's not exactly sparking joy, you know? If anything, it turns reading into that one friend who only talks about their problems and never asks about yours. 🙄

Like, we don't look at someone who hates kale smoothies and tell them they just don't like food. But somehow that's exactly what we do with books? Make it make sense! 🤔

Finding Your Genre is Like Finding Your Favorite Song (or that perfect strain, but we'll keep it PG)

Here's the tea: Nobody likes all music. Some of us are living our best lives to Taylor Swift, others are deep in their rock era, and some of us are still emotionally attached to our 2000s emo playlists (and that's valid, bestie). Reading hits the same way. Just because you didn't vibe with Of Mice and Men or Pride and Prejudice in high school doesn't mean books aren't for you. It just means you haven't found the stories that make you feel like you just took the first sip of your favorite latte. ☕

For me? It was spicy romance—specifically the kind where the love interest is giving major red flag energy but in the most delicious way possible. A little unhinged, definitely morally gray, and obsessive in a way that should probably concern my therapist. (Don't judge me, we're all a little toxic sometimes 💅)

Right now, I'm absolutely living for Haunting Adeline, and bestie, let me tell you—this is the kind of story that would've had teenage me hiding under my covers with a booklight until 3 AM, completely destroying my sleep schedule but loving every second of it. It's dark, it's intense, and it's exactly the kind of book that makes me want to cancel all my plans and just read. 📱

And don't even get me started on Ana Huang's Twisted series! >>>

If you want romance that hits just right—like the perfect ratio of coffee to creamer—with enough spice to make you fan yourself, enough angst to have you screaming into your pillow, and the kind of morally gray men who will completely ruin your dating app expectations (sorry not sorry), Ana's books are IT.

Twisted Love, Twisted Games, Twisted Hate, Twisted Lies—each one gave me the kind of emotional damage I actually enjoyed, and I absolutely ate it up. 🥵

How to Find Your Genre (and Finally Make Reading Your New Personality Trait)

Okay bestie, if you're still sitting there thinking books aren't your thing, I'm about to give you a challenge that's easier than making instant ramen: Find a book that you actually want to read. Not one your professor assigned, not one you think makes you look sophisticated on your coffee table—one that speaks to your soul. 💫

Here's the game plan:

Think about your favorite TV shows and movies (you know, the ones you've rewatched so many times Netflix is concerned).
- Living for slow-burn romances where the tension could cut glass? Contemporary romance or women's fiction is about to be your new obsession.
- True crime girlies unite! Thriller and mystery books will have you playing detective from your cozy reading nook.
- Can't get enough of fantasy worlds that make reality look boring? Epic fantasy books are calling your name, bestie.
- Secretly love those red flag men who need therapy but are hot? Dark romance is about to be your new guilty pleasure (minus the guilt). 😈
Get yourself on BookTok, Bookstagram, or BookTube (trust the process)
- BookTok especially has been giving like your bestie who always knows exactly what you need to read next. Search your favorite tropes (like "grumpy x sunshine" or "enemies to lovers") and let the algorithm be your literary matchmaker. 🎯
Normalize the DNF (Did Not Finish, for my girlies new to the lingo)
- Life's too short and your TBR pile is too tall to force yourself through books that don't give you butterflies. If it's not hitting by page 50, thank you, next! 💅
Mix up your reading format (because we love options)
- Maybe traditional books aren't your thing, but audiobooks while doing your skincare routine? Or e-books on your phone for sneaky reading during boring meetings? Game changers! 🎧
Chase that reading high
- Into romance? Go for the ones that have you squealing into your pillow at 2 AM. Love horror? Embrace those books that have you sleeping with your LED strips on full brightness. There's no such thing as guilty pleasures here—we're all about that pure, unfiltered joy! ✨

Reading is Meant to Be Enjoyed (Period, Point Blank, End of Story)

If high school turned you into a "non-reader," I promise it wasn't you, bestie. It was giving toxic relationship vibes, and you deserved better. 🌟

But now? Now you're in your main character era. You get to choose your own adventure. You get to fall in love with stories that feel like they were written specifically for your vibe. You get to rediscover what reading actually is—the ultimate escape, the perfect thrill, a thousand different lives you can live without ever leaving your perfectly curated reading corner. 🛋️

So if you've been feeling like books weren't your thing, maybe it's time for a little literary glow-up. Find something that makes your heart do that little flutter thing, your mind wander to fictional places, or your stomach fill with butterflies.

And if that something happens to feature a dark, brooding love interest who would literally burn down the world just to see the main character smile? Well... catch me in my reading nook pretending I didn't just fall in love with another fictional character. No thoughts, just vibes. 😌✨

🌷 Signed, MJ