LEADING British writers have created a collection of short, fast-paced works to help people who struggle with books to turn reading from a chore into a habit and a joy.

Ruth Rendell, Joanna Trollope, Minette Walters and Maeve Binchy are among 12 authors and public figures to have written books of 100 pages or so for the series, which will sell in supermarkets and bookshops for £2.99 each.

The books, fiction and non-fiction, are aimed primarily at the 12 million adults who have a reading level at or below that expected of a 13-year-old.

The works all use a simple vocabulary, with words of three syllables limited to one per paragraph, to ensure that they can be easily read by their target audience. Sentences are short. There are no complex grammatical constructions. Abstract ideas have been kept to a minimum. But the plots and subject matter have been pitched to appeal to a wider and more able audience as well.

Many adults with reading difficulties do not discover or come to terms with their problem until they try to help children with homework. Others struggle with work e-mails, written notices, form-filling and instructions. Most suffer in embarrassed silence.

It is estimated that poor basic skills cost the economy as much as £10 billion a year in lost revenue from taxes, lower productivity and increased burden on the welfare state.

But the Quick Reads programme, which is supported by Tony Blair, is not just about economics. According to Gail Rebuck, chief executive of the publisher Random House, it aims also to open up new worlds for people who have previously felt excluded from the pleasure of reading. “Our job is to take emergent readers, those who haven’t the time to read or who have never really felt comfortable with reading, and make then addicted readers, to make reading not just a skill but a habit, ” she said.

Minette Walters, who has penned a thriller called Chickenfeed for the series, said that she hoped her Quick Read book would appeal to her existing fans as well as draw in reluctant readers. “I wanted to write a book where sophisticated readers would forget within a page that it was written in a different way from how I would normally write,” she said.

“It was a challenge to write because I had constantly to think whether certain words or ideas, particularly ‘inside head’ thoughts, were really necessary. But I enjoyed it and I hope the books will be widely read by everyone so no one need feel embarrassed about being seen to be reading one.”

Rio Ferdinand, the Manchester United and England defender, features in The Team, a behind-the-scenes account of life in the Premier League written for the series by the sports writer Mick Dennis.

Ferdinand said that he hoped the titles would encourage reluctant readers to try other, more challenging books afterwards. “I don’t think it’s ever too late to get into reading,” he said. “It is great that a series of shorter books have been created to appeal to people who don’t normally have the time to read a full-length one.”

Other authors in the series are Richard Branson, Conn Iggulden, Matthew Reilly, Patrick Augustus, Tom Holt, Rowan Coleman and John Bird. A second series of Quick Reads books will be published in May, by authors including Andy McNab, Damien Lewis, Mike Philips, Tom Holland, Danny Wallace, Courttia Newland, Val McDermid, John Francome and Hunter Davies. There will also be a title from the BBC based on Doctor Who.

Supporters of the initiative include the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education, Arts Council England, the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation and National Book Tokens. Quick Reads £1-off vouchers are being distributed to adult learners through further education colleges or on their website.

Explore Books

• Book Extracts

• Book Reviews

• Books Group

• Audio Books

Times Recommends

• Superfreakonomics by Steven D Levitt and Stephen J Dubner
• The Times picks the 50 best paperbacks of 2009
• Vincent van Gogh’s letters show the soul of the artist