I wrote an email to an author whose book I enjoyed. They had the usual contact us form on their website. To my surprise, a week after they replied. It felt comforting because it was during a particularly difficult time in my life. As long as you're being respectful, there should be no harm in sending a letter to them.

I don't think there's a formula to reading. I used to have a rule with myself that i need to finish a book word for word. But I realized that there are too many books to read and only one lifetime. I don't want to waste my time with reading rules. Read how you want. I look at reading like eating. Whether I peel my potato, eat it with the skin, or fry it up as chips is no one's business.

I have another controversial approach to reading though: I read the last chapter first. If it's intriguing enough, I'll read the book in its entirety.