If it was an anime based off of an manga or light novel that @Ai chan created, I know to skip all versions.
Novel >>>>Manga>>>>Anime (only if I'm addicted or fanning on the novel) Been a bookworm for years and watching novels I've read in TV feels like slow mo
It'd be anime for me. I like the visual/sound. Manga - depending on the artwork and translations. Novel - last. This is for Japanese stuff. If you're talking about Chinese webnovels and Dramas it'd be Webnovel, Drama, manhua. Dramas are so slow and I don't really like the editing... Manhua has the most awkward translations (I think it's because they can't really have a lot of translator notes/ and links unlike the webnovel translators) This might change. I'm starting to get into cdrmaas.
Novel- anime- manga in that order haha! Like you, I always prefer using my imagination instead and secondly, novels are most likely complete so I won't spend more time waiting for updates like I do in mangas and anime. I chose anime second just to check whether I really imagined it right and mostly for the background music and effects xD
Novel - Manga - Anime Because basically there are more chapters in the novel compared to the other two... I like to read more and use my imagination a lot as well. But most of the time I read both (novel and manga) simultaneously!
A faithful anime to the novel, over 500 episodes if it is necessary, with soundtrack made by yuki kajiura and animated by makoto shinkai is better than novel, I think. Otherwise, novel.
if the manga or novel are currently on-going, i check which one's more far ahead and i usually read that first (*´▽`*) i've gotten too lazy to watch anime nowadays unfortunately,,,
anime first... i'm not into manga these past years... novel definitely the last, since it is mostly untranslated yet. like No Game No Life or Overlord for example i watched the anime first, then looked for the manga i didn't even read the LN orz if it is not BL, i'm a bit disheartened to read the manga if it is not CN BL, i don't even read the LN i'm so picky orz