I was talking with my brother the other day about Game of Thrones, and he said something that kind of surprised me, that he preferred to watch the series first, and then read the book because that helped him imagine the characters, landscapes, voices, etc… and for me it’s completely the other way around, I like reading first because that way I create my own “world” of what I’m reading, I actually see what is being described and hear what is being said, and watching it first kind of prevents me from imagining it.
So what about you?, what do you prefer to do first and why?.
But your imagination ruins the efforts of the television and movie directors who slave so hard to show you their visions of the story. You will always have that indellible image that the author created in your head, and they have no way to compete with that.
I feel it’s like the difference between the Cliff’s Notes and the actual book: the former gives you the overall plot points, the latter gives you the full details.
If there is the option I would rather watch the movie/series first, lest I spend the whole time anticipating then disappointed that they left out [detail(s) I felt was crucial].