So, you want to read more. Perfect - this one’s for you.
But before you embark on the (ultimately addictive) journey of becoming a habitual reader, it’s important you set the scene. Decide your why. Why do you want to read more? Does it come from an urge to cut down on screen time? Or is it simply because you stopped reading for a hot minute and now you are just about the only person who hasn’t read any Sally Rooney yet?
Once you find your why, use this to fuel your motivation to read more.
I personally found my why just over a year ago. As a teenager, I was an avid, under-the-covers-with-a-torch reader, and never imagined I would stop reading. But I did. I watched the habit slowly slip through my fingers, as I got caught up in the inevitable tangle of exams, university life, and - let’s be honest - endless Netflix binges. Then, in late 2018, when I was on the hunt for a way to tame my relentless anxiety, I found the answer in reading. The habit blossomed once more, and I’ve been a consistent reader (and much calmer human being) ever since.
With that in mind, I’ve put together everything I’ve learnt on the road back to reading. These are not rules, they’re not ‘hacks’, and they’re certainly not groundbreaking.
They’re just little nudges to get you to read.
Let’s start.
For starters, hang out in more beautiful bookshops.
Captured in London’s Libreria bookshop, 2018.
Read what you want, not what you should.
This is the single most effective tool in my ‘reading consistently’ kit.
Forcing yourself to read books that you should, but don’t want to, is a sure-fire way of tampering with your reading habit before it’s even had the chance to start.
These days, I really enjoy getting lost in a good ‘classic’, and truly appreciate the beauty of classic literature. But it wasn’t always this way. To initially ease myself back into reading, I peppered the bookshelves with all the books I wanted to read - think Crazy Rich Asians, Me Before You. While many may dismiss these reads as fluffy chick lit, I wasn’t fazed. I was reading - and that’s all that mattered. Once I had warmed up, and reading had become an integral part of life, the classics came along.
So, If you want to read Tolstoy’s War and Peace, go for it. But if you’re craving a binge-read of The Princess Diaries series, that’s great too. Just read more - in any shape or form.
Start small, start slow.
I’ve never understood those articles and videos that urge you to ‘Read a Book a Week’ or feel the need to tell you ‘How I Read 365 Books Last Year, and You Can Too’. While I can see the appeal of such content - and am all for setting goals in life - drawing up an arbitrary reading goal (50 pages a day, 1 book a week) may not always work at the beginning.
It’s kind of like aiming for 50 push-ups a minute. Sure, you can achieve it, but if your form is wrong the entire time, what’s the point? It’s the same with reading.
Instead, start small and take it easy. Focus on mindful, quality reading - reading that is enjoyable, that hopefully teaches you a thing or two. The speed will come if it wants to, but it certainly shouldn’t be the objective.
My mantra is to read as much as I want, when I want - as long as I’m reading daily. This means that, last weekend, I found myself devouring Carreyrou’s Bad Blood in two days. But it also means that I could only manage a measly 3 pages of a novel yesterday.
It all balances out.
Habit replacement, not habit formation.
‘It’s not about having time, it’s about making time.’ Yes, we get it - we all have the time, but we just choose to get sucked into a YouTube vortex with that time. The truth is, it’s not overly easy to shift or eliminate an existing habit, no matter how many inspirational quotes you throw at it.
When building your reading habit, try to gently usher it in by favouring mini replacements over 180-degree life changes. So, if your night-time routine involves a 1-hour Netflix session, don’t scrap it entirely to try read for 60 minutes. Instead, try to set aside 15 minutes of your time for reading - and then you can catch up on your favourite show for the remaining 45 minutes.
The ideal outcome? As you progress on your journey, you may find that you actually enjoy reading more than the activity you replaced it with. If this is the case, you’ll find yourself gravitating towards books, the entire hour slowly becoming a reading hour, your old habit fading away naturally.
That’s how my nighttime TV routine metamorphosed into the cosy reading sessions I enjoy today. And honestly - what’s kept me reading is just the sheer joy it brings to my life. If a habit made you feel that way, you’d keep it going too, wouldn’t you?
It’s just about getting over the initial friction of starting.
And finally, put down that book.
All this talk of reading more and now I’m telling you to put down your book?
Well, kind of. If a book isn’t making you happy, put it down. If a book is making you feel like reading is a chore, definitely put it down.
When you’re struggling through a particularly dull or dry book, it’s easy to slump your way into the depths of the demotivation zone and watch your reading habit wither away above you. If you had been reading daily - or at least, consistently - books like these can very quickly disrupt your reading streak.
Look, I know the completionist in you wants to finish the book, come hell or high water. But this is one of those rare instances in which giving up is a good decision. This is because, until you put down that book and try your luck with another, you won’t be reading - at all.
So, just tuck away that book for now. You might revisit it at a different stage in your life and find that it resonates with you on a different level, or you might just end up as disappointed as before. All outcomes are valid.
You took what you could from that book, and it’s time we moved on to all the other magical reads out there.
And if, after all of this, you find that reading isn’t for you - that’s alright. At least you tried. That’s what life is about - trying out new experiences, new ideas. Some stick, some don’t. Just follow what makes your soul sing.
Pithy one-liners aside, I do hope these nudges help you find the inspiration you need to re-ignite your reading fire.
Let’s get into that book now, shall we?
Until next time,
S
Need some inspiration to kick-start your reading journey? Let’s become friends on Goodreads.
Cover image captured at Sula Vineyards, India.
