How to get out of a reading slump?

[Holly]

I've hit one of these nightmarish slumps. I've been reading more than ever recently, and yesterday I just hit a brick wall. I started Catch-22 and I just couldn't get into it. Started Wuthering Heights, couldn't get into it.

I did some googling, and I found some really good tips from Unputdownables, a book blog I've been following recently.

Here are their tips:
Favorite Genre: Try choosing something from your favorite genre to beat the reading doldrums. This is not the time to pick up your copy of War and Peace (unless War and Peace is your bag). Which genre has you stuck like glue to most of the books you read in it (which is your guilty pleasure)? That’s the genre you want to go to right now. Note: this does not mean you have to pick something “light” or “easy”. Some people’s “guilty pleasure” is Mystery while others is US History. You know yourself — go for what you loooooooove.
Make it short: The point is to get reading again, so don’t set yourself up for failure. Try to pick a book that is at least 300 pages or less (if not shorter). Honestly, sometimes it just takes one or two finished books to get you back into the groove.
Check recommendations: Have you some books that have been recommended to you by people who have similar reading tastes? This is the time to pick them up. No recommendations? Go to your favorite book blog and search the categories or tags for your favorite genre and start looking into the book descriptions on your favorite book reference site (i.e. B&N, GoodReads, etc.).
Don’t read reviews: Wait, did I just contradict myself? Nope. I said look at recommendations and descriptions (the ones offered by the publisher). Do not read reviews… whether you believe it or not, they bias your view of a book. It is impossible to have a review not effect you in one way or the other (both good and bad) once you have read it. I won’t philosophize over this except to say — if the description of a book appeals to you, and meets the criteria above, go for it. Don’t let a review get your hopes up or discourage you from a title. Just get reading. (Please note that I am not discouraging you from reading reviews ever, just not when you are trying to pick a book to get you out of a nasty reading slump).
Make time: It’s true – sometimes you’d rather just plop in front of the Internet or TV than try to get into a book… especially when there’s not a title you’re looking forward to. And we all know that there is plenty on TV and the Internet to keep us hooked for hours at a time. So, after you’ve completed steps 1-4, mark some time on your calendar to grab your favorite beverage, cuddle up in your favorite place, and see if you aren’t swept up in the book you’ve chosen. I’d say give yourself a good hour of reading time to see if you can’t make a dent and get the reading bug back, but if you’re crunched for time — 30 minutes should do. Anything less and it will be hard to really give your mind a chance to engage with the story.

I think these are pretty good tips. I might just try one or two of them. Do you have any ways of getting out of a reading slump?

[Michael]

I'm in a bit of a reading slump at the moment. I'm struggling but light reading has been helpful. I'm still not out of a slump but I was able to finish Moon Over Soho

[Holly]

I was thinking of reading something I've been really wanting to read? Either that or doing a collection of short stories...

[Chatterjak]

I was having a real reading slump back in August. I hardly ever give up on a book even if I don't like it, I struggled through 188 pages of Money by Martin Amis & just couldn't bear anymore - it was making me really grumpy because I hated it so much! Then I followed that with catch 22 which I also struggled with - I didn't hate it, but I wasn't really enjoying it, and it's just not enjoyable read in big chunks, not for me anyway! So I treated myself to my guilty pleasure of a couple of lighter mystery/crime thrillers, thoroughly enjoyed them, & am now happily back in the literary saddle! My next choice was something I'd been meaning to read for ages - Wolf Hall, which seems to divide opinions greatly, but I really enjoyed it. Then I picked something which is a complete change for me - Wool by Hugh Howey, I hardly ever read anything futuristic or dystopian, but it kept popping up all over GR so I gave it a whirl & thoroughly enjoyed it - so much that I devoured it & the other two in the series in a week! Nice to have a change. Currently reading Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan, as I've been meaning to read something by him for ages, and really enjoying that too. Hope that helps!

[Liân]

I think the guilty-pleasure-genre tip is a great one - and something I totally do! (I've never thought of those times when I go off reading anything as being a slump as such, so never actively thought about it as a problem to solve - but that tip is exactly what I do to get reading again).

My particular guilty pleasure is children's literature - the books I purportedly buy for my niece and nephew that mysteriously end up staying on my shelves, and those few childhood favourites that I still have.

[Amber]

I do the guilty pleasure tip-for me it's horror and my favorite authors and anything that is a good read like the many book series I am reading right now and I try to read an hour before bed like 1-2 chapters a night. If the book is really good, I'll read up to 10 chapters.

[Holly]

I've actually done the opposite of what they've suggested. They said read a light-hearted book. Instead, I've started reading Paradise Lost, which is definitely not a light read, but I really want to read it.

[Amber]

Oh okay. Cool Holly! I wish you the best of luck with it. ^_^

[Bionic Jean]

Holly - in a way I think that counts - it's not light-hearted but it is simply something you badly want to read. Didn't you also say you were reading "War and Peace" but that you felt in a reading slump? I thought at the time that perhaps it was the wrong book for your mood.

I have special unread books I don't read straightaway but "save up" for when I'm in a slump, or have the 'flu or something. Then they're a real treat to read. For me it might be a Simon Brett (he usually writes very light amusing crime novels) or a Gervase Phinn (autobiographical novels about his time as a school inspector in North Yorkshire) Neither are great classic authors, but they sure make me feel better and usually ignite my reading again!

[Faye]

When I hit a wall with whatever I'm reading, I start setting myself little goals, like reading a certain amount of pages before a certain time on the clock. I often distract myself by seeing how quickly I can get through the next two pages, too, watching the clock to see if I can beat my time with the next two. I actually find that tricks like that get me through books I hate A LOT faster than I get through books I love, LOL.

I don't often lose the will to read completely, but I do occasionally get discouraged if I've read a few books in a row that were disappointing or that I openly hated... or conversely, sometimes I lose the will to read for a few days after I've read something that I absolutely loved, because I'm sure that anything I read next would only be disappointing, heh. To get me back in the mood I tend to look back over my old reviews (I've kept track of my thoughts on just about every book I've read for the past 15 years, even if it's just one line saying whether I liked it or not), which always gets me excited about reading without fail, and then I look at my mile-long to-read list and pick out whatever catches my eye the most for my next read. Sometimes just ordering a stack of books from the library gets me excited enough about reading that I'll suddenly be in the mood for it again, no matter what the books are.