Writers sometimes ask a lot of their readers. No more so when we write action, fantasy, science fiction and horror. It is within those realms that we ask our readers to suspend disbelief. That is to ignore their critical faculties, to sacrifice reason, to set aside logic and to believe the surreal and the absurd for the sake of entertainment. Poet/philosopher Samuel Taylor Coleridge is credited with coining the term in 1817.
I’m always a fan of writing that makes sense, but sometimes the ‘makes sense’ part is subject to the fictional world in which it exists. In the far future, in another dimension, when the surreal world encroaches upon our own, the reader must let go of his preconceived notions and the things he knows to be true in order to enjoy the story he’s reading. Really, how much more fun is it to believe the impossible for the length of a novel than to constantly remind one’s self what is true?
Of course, there are are many shades of this particular grey and some ‘disbeliefs’ will more easily suspended than others. You might be able to get ‘aboard’ an alien starship because the existence of aliens has neither been proven nor disproven. Perhaps you don’t buy into the concept of alien life in our universe but you may be able to enjoy a story set in the distant future because we can only imagine the kinds of amazing technology humans will develop given enough time. Maybe you like a modern day conspiracy theory story with a shadowy government organization operating behind the scenes. In all of these examples there is that leap of imagination requiring the suspension of disbelief.
So if you find that suspending disbelief is not something you easily do, then realistic fiction will be your only cup of tea. I do hope you like tea in all its many flavors!
Meg Sorick, Author/Artist 
“Everything you can imagine is real”
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s the spirit!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes indeed, and I drink a lot of fruity tea. I wonder what that says about my reading?
LikeLiked by 1 person
That is funny, Peter! I love tea, too. All sorts of varieties, fruity and fanciful!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Reblogged this on Cynthia Hilston – Author & Blogger and commented:
It’s interesting how my interests in fiction have evolved over the years. I used to read a lot of fantasy a decade ago, and now I’m much more into realistic fiction, especially WW2-era fiction.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Cyndi. My reading goes through phases too. I’m mostly reading history and historical fiction myself. But I do love a good science fiction story as well. 😃
LikeLike
I like that term. I think it’s applicable to politics as well. 😏
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ack… right? I think that’s half the problem, willingness to accept the absurd. Or at least become immune to it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think it’s the latter. Business as usual, nothing to see here. 😃
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hear you… the scariest thing is the tapping into feelings and beliefs that seem to have been simmering beneath the surface so far.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Rallying the troops. I saw a political ad just a bit ago and it was for a republican candidate, stating the democratic opponent was pro-resistance. Resistance??? What the fuck? So as a Democrat, I’m now considered part of the “resistance”? What is this, a Star Wars episode? Jesus. They really are full of themselves right now.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That kind of language does rally the base, though… And gives them permission to ‘fight’ back. Thank goodness for Netflix so I can turn off regular TV and avoid the political ads!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s horrible. Things have gone even further down an already slippery slope. 😒
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes they have…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love suspending my disbelief while reading a good story that may stretch the truth a bit. For Sci Fyi, I call this Science Fun. For the more serious stuff that requires research, I call that Science Fact. A mix of the two makes a great story.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Darnell! Science Fun- I like that. And you’re spot on… there has to be an explainable aspect to even the most outlandish of stories. 😃
LikeLike
While we have to live in this real world with real problems, it is sometimes necessary to go beyond the reality and imagine things which are not real now but which could become in future. This, I think, helps us in some way to keep our mental balance by distracting our focus somewhere else at least for some duration of time. May be it is a rejuvenating period. However, in Hinduism, even the real world we live in is ‘maya’, that which is only an illusion. So I guess the belief is already suspended!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think you’re so right: it is helpful and restorative to escape into a good story. I also think a flight of the imagination is what sparks our own creativity! Ah, so then everything is illusion, interesting… this concept is found within the realms of science and science fiction as well – think The Matrix movies. And Neil deGrasse Tyson has pondered on the idea that our universe is a vast computer simulation of another higher alien species! Wouldn’t that be something!
LikeLike
I think this is required to some extent when reading what I write since the romance I write is unrealistic… it’s all too neat and perfect. But that’s my fantasy life… 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ah but that’s what we want from a love story – a rocky path maybe, but in the end, happily ever after!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s true. I just hope I’m not as cheesy as a hallmark movie. Although at times, maybe I am… lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
No way! 😃
LikeLiked by 1 person