Behind the Scenes Sunday
Let’s take a peek at the cogs inside the machine and talk about why I write and how I write on Behind the Scenes Sunday! Today I’d like to talk about my personal struggles with reading slumps and what I’m doing to try and climb out of my slump now that I’m in one.
The truth is, reading is more than a hobby for me – it’s literally part of my job. If I don’t read, my writing suffers. I need to read in order for me to continue to improve as an author, both on the craft side of things and on the business side of things (knowing what other books are out there and what their prose is like is enormously important when marketing your books!). So when I get into a reading slump, it’s more than annoying. It’s potentially catastrophic.
Unfortunately, I have found reading slumps to be much like other mental blocks or problems – the more I stress and think about it, the worse it becomes. The more I try to force the issue, force myself to read, or berate myself for not reading, the worse the slump gets. You can’t think your way out of a reading slump.
You have to feel your way out of it.
Sometimes getting out of a reading slump is about giving yourself permission to be in a slump. Don’t feel like reading? Can’t bring yourself to read? Don’t read for a little bit. Do something else. Find another outlet for your time and your mind. Try coming back to a book later.
Sometimes getting out of a reading slump is about reexamining what you’re reading and why. Are you reading books that don’t actually interest you that much? Would you rather be reading a graphic novel right now? Or a memoir? Or listening to an audiobook? What actually sounds intriguing? Listen to yourself and if absolutely nothing sounds even remotely interesting, go back to step one.
More often than not, though, I have found that getting out of a reading slump is as simple as setting more achievable reading goals for myself. So I can’t power through a book in a few days. That’s fine. Let’s read a chapter a day. Or three pages a day. Whatever sounds achievable. That will often work me out of my slump.
What about you all? Do any of you have trips and tricks for defeating the dreaded slump? Let’s chat about it in the comments!
As always, if you’re interested in supporting me and my work, thank you: Hungry is the Night, my urban fantasy, is available on all major platforms, as are my classic murder mysteries with scifi twists, The Cadence Turing Mystery series!
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