Anthony Rodriguez//Blog Writer
Reading slumps are possibly the worst thing that can happen to someone, at least in my opinion. Sadly, this happens to the best of us, and life gets in the way of our precious reading time. I, for one, have experienced many reading slumps, and they have happened in one of two ways. One, I read a book and absolutely hated it, which made me not want to read; or two, life is just getting in the way of me and reading. Usually it’s the latter that people experience when entering reading slumps. One reading slump that I remember very distinctly caused me to not read for an entire year.
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
The year was 2017. This was a big year for me; I was graduating high school, got a new baby sister, and went off to college. As you can see I had a lot on my plate and because of that I was not really reading for enjoyment at all. In that same year, I only read two books. Let me repeat that: two books. I think back, and I somewhat feel ashamed because as someone who is studying publishing, you’d think I’d read a lot more than I did. Flash forward to winter break from my first semester at Emerson. I sat with a pile of books that I have been wanting to read for a while. I had no motivation at all, however, I did something that I usually never do. I picked up the first book I saw and read it. The book was Between Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys. Before I knew it, I was flying through the pages and I was back on a reading track. Now at the time of writing this, I have read fourteen books since January and I am loving every page. If you are someone who is in a reading slump, here are some of my personal ways that I have found that helps people getting back into reading:
- Do not feel obligated to read a book that you aren’t enjoying. Because odds are you will fall into a reading slump. Do not be afraid to stop reading a book if you absolutely hate reading it. Just put it down and pick something else up.
- Read your favorite book. It is a simple process and reading your favorite book can put you back into a reading mood. I haven’t used this method, but many of my friends have and they all were back on a reading track in no time.
- Read a book with significantly short chapters. I love this method, because when I read a book with short chapters I was flying through it. Reading shorter chapters tricks the mind into thinking it can take on one more chapter, but then you just end up finishing the book. I did this with Between Shades of Grey, since it had short chapters. I felt like I could keep going and all of a sudden I was done.
- Join a book club! Hear me out, joining a book club may feel like a commitment but I just joined a book club on Emerson’s campus called “Emerson Reads YA” and it was the BEST thing I’ve ever done. Just listening to all of the amazing people in this group talk about their love of books really rejuvenated my love for reading and really was a big push into getting me out of my reading slump.
- Read that book that you’ve been meaning to read for a long time. Yes, this may be a bit of a stretch because you may not like it but you never know when you’ll find your next favorite book.
- Finally, go participate in a reading marathon. There exists a section of the internet that is all about books and reading. In this section many accounts on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube host different reading marathons. Some last a week, a weekend, or even twenty-four hours. There’s a reading marathon for everyone to participate in. I think this a great way to get out of a slump because it’s a fun laid back challenge that you can give yourself. I know in the past I’ve had fun participating in these reading marathons and I can’t wait to get back into it again this year.
I really hope that one of these methods works for you if you are experiencing a reading slump. It is never a fun experience but I do hope that even if these methods don’t work for you, that you find a completely new and different method to help you get out of that dreaded reading slump. Happy Reading!