How to Get Out of a Book Slump

Readers are the type of people who sometimes lack the concept of time. They find themselves losing track because they are trapped on a flight that journeys them to a different world and can’t get off until they find out what happens next.

Reading allows us to escape reality, find peace through a good story, and silently communicate with authors who validate our feelings and inner thoughts. Whether you are a seasoned veteran or a new addition to the “Reading for Entertainment Book Club” we all know the feeling of reading a great page-turner.

However, unlike the endings of most romance books, it’s not always sunshine and rainbows. Thanks, Emily Henry.

Sometimes, reading can be difficult…

What is a Book Slump?

Do you find yourself skimming the words on the pages? Reading only a few pages here and there, when in the past, you’ve had sleepless nights because you stayed up too late to finish the book. You might even dread reading because, for the first time, it’s “boring.”

Dear bookmate, that is what we call a bad case of “book slumps.”

According to a fellow book blogger, Cait Jacobs, a reading slump is defined as “A period in which you have no motivation to read.” This is ironic because you’ve spent hundreds of dollars on both physical and electronic books and built a beautiful bookshelf collection. How can your hobby be boring?

Not to worry I might have a few tips and tricks that can pull you out of the slump and rediscover your love for reading!

Here are a few of my home remedies to get out of a book slump based on my experiences:

Re-read Your Comfort Reads
Switch up Genres
Watch Bookish Vlogs or Reviews
Set the Scene
Accept Defeat and Take a Break: You’re not Rory Gilmore

Re-read Your Comfort Reads

Booktok, booksta, booktube, or whatever bookish media platform you get your recommendations from can influence us into a deep book slump. Some reviewers use persuasive language, writing, and marketing skills that convince us to read certain books. You might even get convinced to read books because everyone is reading it and you want in on the rave. But little do you know; the books that are being recommended are boring and just not for you. And recently, you’ve noticed that everything on your TBR (to be read) list is a snooze fest! Boom. Book slump.

My advice: Go back to your roots!

Find the book on your shelf that made you fall in love with reading! If you’re anything like me and refuse to re-read books because you think to yourself, “I have so many other unread books I need to get to!”

Rewire your thinking and treat your favorite book as a palate cleanser. Since you already know what is going to happen in your favorite book, you might even see it through a different perspective during the re-read. This can be your opportunity to analyze the book and rediscover your passion for reading.

You can even go way way back to the books you used to read during your childhood. As we grow up, our tastes and experiences change. It can be experimental and exciting to re-read a book that impacted you as a kid and how that story developed you into who you are today. You may find yourself relating the story to you in your current life and reflect on how children’s/middle school reads are relevant at all stages of life.

My roots are:

Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren (romance)
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (contemporary fiction w/ magical elements)
The Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros (romantasy)
The Naturals by Lynn Barnes Asher (YA/mystery/thriller)
The Diary of the Whimpy Kid Books Jeff Kinney (middle school)
Nancy Drew Books by Carolyn Keene (middle school)
Harry Potter Series by J.K Rowling
Percy Jackson Series by Rick Riordan

Switch Up Genres

More than often, after finishing a 5-star read, whether it may be a jam-packed action-filled fantasy, like ACOTAR, a heart-wrenching love story like “Love and Other Words,” or a gripping page-turner like “The Naturals.” It seems like every book read after, can’t compare or give you the motivation to pick up anything else. This is a classic case of the “book slumps.” My not-so-easy but highly effective cure is: Genre Flips!

Like most readers, you gravitate towards a certain genre: romance, fantasy, mystery, etc. Your book slump might be developing because you are reading “too many” books of the same genre. To elaborate on this, our brains like to pick up on patterns. Books of the same genre tend to have similar themes, story plots, and tropes. This can cause stories to be predictable and boring because you are already anticipating what is going to happen next. That dopamine shock you usually get from reading your favorite genre occurs less. By switching to different genres, you can train your brain to see different patterns and learn new themes and messages.

For example, my go-to genre is romance, but if I read too many romance novels, the plot, cute banter, and loveable characters can be repetitive and dull.

Thus, when I want to fall in love with romance again, I read mystery and thriller novels. This genre is suspenseful and fast-paced, with little to no romance. After reading a mind-twisting thriller, which is out of my comfort zone. My instincts are to immediately pick up a cute romance book: my comfort genre!

With that being said, trying different genres can bring you out of the slump and ignite your passion for reading!

Popular Genres (pick one that is out of your comfort zone):

Romance
Fantasy
Mystery/Thriller
Horror
Historical Fiction
Sci-Fi
Classics
Non-fiction
Poetry

Watch Bookish Vlogs or Reviews

Whenever I struggle to stay consistent in my reading routine, I get inspired by watching bookish YouTube videos. These videos showcase aesthetic clips of inviting nooks, verbal book reviews, and cozy reading drinks. Many influencers get very creative when constructing content. A few popular book trends are:

Cozy reading vlogs

These videos are like your perfect Pinterest boards. They display Youtubers flipping through pages of their current reads while, in a comfy chair, drinking a mug of hot cocoa, and playing soothing background music. How cozy! These types of videos are so relaxing, that I sometimes play them in the background while I read or work because the format of these videos calms my anxiety. Sara Caroli, Karla Espinosa, Heather McLarry are my favorite YouTubers who create cozy vlogs.

24-Hour Reading Challenge

These videos are incredibly entertaining and inspiring. In short, a 24-hour reading challenge is when readers, try to read as many books as they can in 24 hours. Influencers will either have a running clock and pull all-nighters to knock some books off their TBR. Or they will pause the clock when they are not reading and try to read as many books as they can in a summative of 24 hours. As you can imagine, this challenge is very difficult and can lead to a messed-up sleep schedule, or even put you into a bigger book slump. So instead of attempting the challenge yourself, watch someone else try to complete it! You might find some raw reviews and new reads. My favorite 24-hour reading challenge videos are made by LarryReads, Haley Pham, and Destiny Sidwell.

Book Haul Videos

What can I say, “I am just a girl.” And most girls love a good shopping trip. In these videos, Youtubers go on Barnes and Noble runs and book thrifts and come back with stacks of new reads. The influencers will give you a short synopsis of each book and what made them choose to pick it up. My advice is to find a booktuber or booktoker that has a similar reading taste as you. To find a booktuber who has a similar taste in books as you, check out their Goodreads or Instagram account and filter their top reads. If 5 of their top reads are in your favorite reads category, check out their book hauls. In doing this, you might get inspired to go on your own book shopping trip! My all-time favorite influencer who has informative, inspiring, and honest book hauls/reviews is Alexandra Roslyn.

Set the Scene

A quick and easy way to get in the mood for reading is to set up the scene. Similarly to dating, treat your current read as a hot date! Maybe take your book out to the park, or a cute coffee shop, or put the audio version on a late-night drive. If you would like to take it to the bedroom, ouu la la, grab a comfy blanket, turn off the room lights and resort to candles or lamps, turn on “café jazz ambiance on YouTube,” and brew your favorite warm drink. This is my version of “chicken noodle soup” but book slump edition. Check out my reading-inspired Pinterest board to get even more fun ideas on setting up the scene for reading!

Accept Defeat and Take a Break: You’re not Rory Gilmore

Let’s reevaluate…Re-reading your comfort reads, choosing a new genre, watching YouTube videos, and treating your book like a date didn’t work. Maybe you self-diagnosed yourself incorrectly. You don’t have a bad case of book slumps. You are just not enticed or enjoying your current read! And that’s okay because we can’t all be Rory Gilmore, who makes reading the Great American classics look so easy. Sometimes, we have to face the music and be okay with saying “DNF” (Did not finish). So, my advice is to put the book down and step back from reading for a bit. You can come back to it when you feel ready to continue reading or pick up a new read. The beauty of reading is that it is not a race, it doesn’t matter if you complete or crush your reading goal. There is no need to compare your book count to someone else’s online. The point of reading is to learn new perspectives, develop your critical thinking, and discover an outlet to escape reality.