Read a book day.

Did you know?

That today,Wednesday 6th September, is Read a Book Day?

I didn't - so many thanks to fellow Choc-lit author Victoria Cornwall for mentioning it.

So, what are you waiting for? Go and find one, buy one, borrow one. I won't say steal one because I'm very law abiding - I leave the nefarious stuff to the characters in the books. Choc-lit has a great selection to chose from. We write in a wide variety of genres so you're bound to find something you fancy and quite a few are £1.99 or even only 99p, if you read on Kindle. Or you can support your local library. Authors get a small payment for the books borrowed, so it's all good. The only place the author gets nothing from that particular sale is the second hand book shop, but if you must ...

Actually the expression 'Read a book day' begs a few questions. Do you have to read the whole book today? Do you start the book today and it's OK if you finish it later? Should you read just part of a book? Is that OK as long as you are reading something? An old favourite or something new? An author or a genre you haven't read before? I naturally think of fiction, because that's what I like to read and write, but does any book count - cookery, motorcycle maintenance, Gray's Anatomy? And what about poetry. You could certainly read bit of a poetry book today and get a complete experience, unless it's something like Paradise Lost, which might take a bit longer.

You can tell I'm an academic crossed with a novelist, can't you - always asking questions.

Having done some in depth research on your behalf - alright, yes, I googled it - apparently anything goes, as long as it's reading - and reading aloud and involving children is also a good idea. Reading apparently reduces stress. It certainly does mine, and I get quite twitchy when I don't have a book on the go, and my mum was the same. Is that learned or inherited, I wonder? At the moment I'm trying to avoid starting the latest Karen Rose - Monster in the Closet, because I know that if I pick it up there's a good chance that none of the things on the to-do list will get done, but I know I'll give in eventually. Anything to stop that twitch.

So - have a happy day reading a book. There's even a hash tag so you can tell us all about it.  #ReadABookDay 

Enjoy your choice - whatever it is.