There are some things that irritate me a little when I read. And there are some things that bug me a bit. And there are other things that drive me crazy and might mean I rant to someone about them even if I liked the rest of the book. So this year I’m going to rant a bit, perhaps even sarcastically, to you on the 5th Tuesdays. If you don’t want to read ranting or sarcasm, skip this post. You have been warned.
I am not a coffee drinker. Never have been, never plan to be one. I’ve tried some coffee flavored things and didn’t like them. I have also gotten sick to my stomach by the smell of some coffee, so that’s another reason I don’t want to drink it. Besides, why should I spend money on fancy coffee drinks when I could be buying books?
Characters in books drink coffee. Not all the characters and not all the time. Sometimes it’s just a part of the time and place (westerns?), or maybe the character is working late and having to get up early and is in need of caffeine to keep them awake (doctors? lawyers? deadlines?) and none of that bothers me. I don’t even care if the main character likes to stop in a get a cup of coffee now and then or work at their favorite coffee shop. That’s all fine and good.
However, there comes a time when it’s gone beyond the casual cup of coffee to an obsession. If the only drink mentioned in the book is coffee, I’m going to be rolling my eyes and probably muttering, “Don’t you know you can’t live on coffee? Is the only thing the author drinks coffee?”
And if they are obsessed by having their coffee, it’s a must have and they drink it morning, noon, and night (sometimes literally), or if they are always having to stop for coffee or asking for coffee or getting coffee or making coffee . . . Yeah, it gets old! Why don’t characters drink tea, or juice, or water? I complained once to some writing friends about the fact that all the guys in books bring the girl coffee and she’s always so happy and loves it. I wanted a real life girl who didn’t like coffee because, news flash, there are such people! One of the writers took my complaint and wrote a book where the guy brings the girl coffee and she tells him she doesn’t like coffee. I was delighted! 😀
And yes, the constant coffee in books is the reason that there is NO coffee in one of my books. They drink a lot of hot chocolate, but no coffee. But I really should write a story where someone suggests going out for coffee and the MC replies that she doesn’t like coffee.
So come on, if you are a writer, must your characters always drink coffee? Can’t there be some characters who don’t enjoy that drink? Or maybe have an MC who would rather spend her money on things like . . . books? 😉
Are you a coffee obsessed reader? Do you enjoy coffee but can live without it? Have you ever gotten tired of something (coffee or something else) in book after book after book and wish the authors would change things up a little? If so, please share!
Hehe! I love this coffee rant! XD Especially as one who actually does like coffee. 😉 And I admit that my characters do drink a good bit of coffee. Haha! But I think sometimes they drink tea, lemonade, or hot chocolate too depending on the time of year. The thing about coffeeshops in books is that coffeeshops in real life bring people together. It’s a cozy comfortable atmosphere (sometimes at least), and so in books it offers some of the same togetherness and coziness as in real life. Anyway, that’s how I feel about it. But you are right, it does tend to be a very frequent thing in books these days. I wonder if that is partly too simply the culture we live in. As one who works in a coffee shop, there are a lot of people who come in to get their fancy drinks quite frequently. 😉 It’s kind of become a normal thing for a lot of people.
Oh, I know it’s normal for a lot of people, I just get tired of coffee all the time. 😀
I do not like coffee. There was a point in time when I wished I could love coffee, because all my sisters do, I felt like the odd one out for not liking it, so I forced myself to drink it, hoping I would learn to like it. That did not work at all. So I gave that up and decided that I could just drink hot chocolate instead. I never really thought about how often people drink coffee in books, though I never read a book where the mc did not like coffee. So I find that a little funny.
Oh, wow! So you tried to make yourself like coffee!! I’ve never gone that far. But then my sister and dad also don’t like coffee so I’m not the only one.
It’s so funny reading this today, because I just went on a good-natured rant to my sisters last night about coffee obsessions! Especially people who make up some complicated concoction containing lots of milk, syrups, chocolate, whipped cream, ‘froth’, and spices with only a little dab of coffee – and then rave about how much they love coffee and can’t live without it. Um…if you accidentally forgot the coffee, you probably wouldn’t have noticed!
I’m not a huge fan of coffee; I’ll drink it if there is nothing else, but simply – just cream, or cream and a little sugar. It’s like eating candy corn: you’re not sure if you’re really enjoying it, but its something different. 🙂 I go months, maybe years without a sip of coffee and don’t miss it at all! Now my tea…that’s another matter!
(You probably noticed that Dane Westover in the Harmony Street Series chooses tea over coffee most of the time. That gave me great delight to write!)
That’s funny! It’s nice to know I’m not the only one who gets tired of all the coffee. 😉
Yes, I did notice Dane liked tea over coffee many times. That was fun!