Virginia Woolf: The Art of Writing and the Un/Common Reader
Authors: Sirković Nina 
Published: February 2023

In a busy way of life today it seems that people do not have spare time to devote to reading classic novels and the modern consumerist spirit of society can be reflected in all aspects of life and creation, and inevitably also in the fine art as well as in writing fiction. Culture, which has always been a social initiator, sublimating scientific knowledge and personal artistic expression, now has the difficult task of fighting for its place in society, surrounded by countless social networks and platforms and other modern technologies. In terms of books and literature, there are electronic books to compete with them, which on the one hand contribute to easier accessibility, but at the same time destroy that nice feeling of holding a book in your hands, flipping through the pages and underlining the lines that leave a special impression on us. Our lifestyle that moves in bursts demands as much information and pleasure in as little time as possible, so the essay, as a shorter literary form, could be of interest to contemporary readers. In an essay, in a relatively short form, the writer presents their thoughts, ideas and views on a topic they considers interesting, so perhaps the time has come to reconsider the essay, not as an inferior literary form compared to the novel, but rather as one that creates a particular relationship between the reader and the writer. This relationship has always been interactive and fluid, and there are even opinions that, in order to understand how to read a book, one should try to write. This idea is considered by Virginia Woolf in her essay “How Should One Read a Book”(2005, 167)
In the essay “Hours in a Library”, Woolf writes about the pleasure of reading, as well as the difference between reading classical and contemporary writers. She also talks about the profile of the reader, a person who likes to read and who, unlike a learned person who likes to learn, does not search for some truth in the text, but strives for pure and disinterested reading. The best age for reading is between the ages of eighteen and twenty-four, meaning, the best reader is young. Older readers tend to write down notes on the text they read, a list of books which they have read or those that should be read, which they flip through from time to time, trying to recall the mood at the time of reading. The young reader is free from such memories, full of self-confidence and a passion for knowledge, and when they go back in time, consult only first-rate writers. The reader is generally less critical and more interested in contemporary writers than in the classics, because, as Woolf says, living voices are still the ones we understand best. Thus, the reader develops a taste even for bad books, and Woolf claims that the contemporary literary period was never less influenced by the authorities, nor more unstable in experiments. Therefore, knowledge of the classics is important, so that we can more easily evaluate contemporary literature, but Woolf appeals for generosity, because writers shape their ideas as best they can. The basic prerequisite for successful literary creation, and to the same extent for proper reading, is to abandon all prejudices, throw away your ego and then, free from all burden, enter into an adventure which might lead anywhere. With their work, the writer should reach the reader’s mind and emotions, encourage them to actively participate in the entire creative process, provide satisfaction, and stimulate both the reader’s body and mind.