How To Read More
One of my most asked questions is “how do you read so much???”
I have a few answers in my pocket depending on how I think the question is being asked. But I have a few mainstays that I always answer with, and then will go deeper depending on what that person responds with.
Overall though? I try to help people 1. figure out how to fit reading into their current lives (not force their lives around reading) and 2. get back on the path to reading for fun. And just for fun.
There’s a few different ways to do that! So let’s get into it.
P.S. I’ve gone over some of the more technical aspects to a few of the below strategies in previous posts, so if you want a more in depth look at how I optimize my audiobook playback, and how I utilize my library to get free ebooks and audiobooks, check out this and this post.
Find your genre
A common theme you’ll see throughout this post is one of gatekeeping. And not in the sense of overcoming someone else gatekeeping from you, but YOU gatekeeping from you.
I don’t know WHAT it is about reading, but with every other type of media, people let themselves enjoy what they enjoy. Whether it be reality TV or fun lighthearted movies or boy bands, people let themselves enjoy the full breadth of what’s available.
Except with reading. For some reason, people think reading needs to elevate their mind or whatever. But try treating reading like anything else you consume. What kinds of movies do you like? What kinds of tv? Look at what you like watching, and that can help lead to what kinds of stories most excite you.
Then allow yourself to explore books within that genre. I promise you they exist! Let yourself read for FUN, without any ulterior motives. When you start reading what excites you, you’ll end up being stuck to your book, looking for time to sneak away to get in a few more pages.
2. Find your format
There’s a weird sense of superiority when it comes to different formats of books. People will say “I just need to hold a physical book” and think that somehow that equates to better or more legitimate reading.
Go ahead and throw that mindset in the trash.
If it turns out you DO enjoy reading better with a physical book, awesome! Stick with it. But if you find yourself having trouble even picking a book up, mix up your formats!
I read every kind of format I can because I just love taking in stories. That’s the end goal for me.
I love audiobooks because I get immersed in the world, the narrator knows how to pronounce everything (especially great for fantasy books), and I can listen anywhere and everywhere. I can go for a walk, do chores, sit in traffic, do art, cook, all while taking in a story. If you have young kids who need to be driven and cooked for, it could be the only way you really can take in a book! If you have vision impairment, or dyslexia and have trouble seeing or tracking words on a page, audiobooks can open up a world of accessible reading! They’re really just so wonderful.
I love ebooks because I can carry an entire library with me everywhere I go. I can read at night without a light on. I can change the font size in a single tap! I can read an 800 page tome without hurting my wrists and supporting a 3 pound floppy monstrosity. I can read one handed, and they even have devices that can hold your ereader, and devises that can attach to your ereader and turn the pages for you!
I love physical books because I love huffing that book scent. I love marking up my books and writing and highlighting and tabbing favorite passages and chapters. I like that I can share them with friends, and I like that I can support my library and local book stores.
There are so many ways to take in a book. It’s about what fits best into your life. Try out a few different formats (you can use Libby to try them for free using your local library system) and see what sticks!
3. LEARN TO DNF
Hoo boy buckle up. This is something I get passionate about.
I am an avid proponent of DNFing (aka “did not finish” aka quitting) a book. I know so many people who refuse to DNF, somehow seeing finishing a book they’re hating as a pious mindset but I think that mindset is trash.
I read so much BECAUSE I DNF. If I’m not vibing with a book and it feels like a slog, I’ll try to get around 20-30% in, get a real feel for the book, and if I’m still not enjoying it, I’ll just set it down and move on.
If you’re slogging through books because you feel like you owe a book something, you’re gonna hate books and you’re gonna program your brain to dread reading. Instead, program your brain to 1. value your reading time and 2. enjoy reading. If you’re hating reading, you’re going to end up in a slump.
You deserve to like reading. You deserve to spend your time well. And you deserve a mindset that allows you to move on from what’s not serving you. And holding yourself to a standard of finishing a book even if you don’t like it is doing yourself a disservice. It’s not impressive to read an entire book you didn’t like but you think finishing a book is some weird standard people should hold themselves to.
DNF that book you don’t like and move the eff on.
4. Find time and then make it a good time.
Stuck in traffic 5 days a week? Always showing up to events and appointments early and end up staring at your phone? Feel an energy slump in the afternoon? It’s not about rearranging your life to fit in reading. It’s about fitting reading into your life.
A lot of people have the mindset that they need to read because of some higher moral reasoning, but reading isn’t necessarily there to uplift you as a human being (although it certainly can). Reading is just nice, y’all. And once you begin to figure out how to fit it into your life instead of bending your life as it is, then it’ll become something that’s not only second nature to you, but something that’s ingrained into your life that you want to make time for.
So now that we have that out of the way- once you figure out where in your life could add a dose of reading, when you have the time, boost the experience to make it even better.
One of my FAVORITE things to do when I’m feeling an afternoon slump or when I have a chunk of time is to do reading sprints. You can find reading sprints on YouTube, and they’re essentially group reading time? Most of them are done as a livestream and then saved to that creator’s channel, so I end up watching them after they’re done streaming, but a group of friends will get together and host a livestream and chat for about 20 minutes and then set a reading timer for about 30-45 minutes, everyone reads, and then they come back and chat for another 20 minutes. Everyone is reading different things, you get to just watch along, and it’s a great way to break up a reading session without feeling like you’re reading indefinitely (which for me, leads to picking up my phone).
I’ll get some snacks and drinks, bring a book, maybe bring my iPad to draw on while I listen to a book, and put on an ASMR room while the reading timer is counting down, and end up just having a really lovely cozy block of time. It makes me want to set aside more and more time for reading, and I’ve gotten through so many books during reading sprints. The key is finding a group whose dynamic you like, so you might have to try out a few different reading sprints before you find one you vibe with.
Those are a FEW ways to read more, but the key takeaways are: don’t gatekeep yourself, figure out how to fit reading into your life (not the other way around), and prioritize your enjoyment. OKAY LOVE U BYE
