how i read so much

Reading is my favorite (healthy) way to mentally escape this strange, cruel world. (My favorite not-so-healthy way is drugs!) 

I’ve read 46 books so far this year. Last year, I read 63.

Since I often post book reviews to my Stories, I’ve received a few DMs from people asking how I read so much.

Instinctively, I want to respond with what I know to be true: I’m a full-time freelance consultant and can work whatever hours I want, I don’t have children, my depression and anxiety are so debilitating at times all I can do is lay down flat and look at words, reading has been my go-to way to dissociate since I was a kid, sometimes my boyfriend peeks his head into the room when I’ve been reading for hours on end and is like, “Is everything OK in there?”

If I really want to be helpful, though, I do have some tips for how to read more. And the first step is to get the fuck off your phone and to set a time limit on TikTok, you addict. (Might I suggest as an alternative: drugs?)

OK, OK. Here’s how I read so much: 

1. I use the Libby app to get free books from the library. 

Don’t sleep on this. With Libby, all you need is a library card — and if you don’t have your card yet, some libraries will allow you to sign up for one within the app — to access thousands of e-books and audiobooks. There are no subscription fees, and no late fees. The app will simply return the book when it’s due.

If you live in a larger city, you may notice newer, popular books have a waitlist of several weeks. I typically have my hold list maxed out at 15, with books being delivered to my device as soon as they become available. Similar to Kindle, the app syncs across devices, too. (Most e-books on Libby are also available on Kindle.)

2. I keep a running list of books I want to read.

On top of the maxed-out hold list on Libby, I use Goodreads to track what I’ve read and what I want to read. I add to this list constantly — after reading book reviews in The New Yorker, seeing my friends’ posts on social, or coming across something that’s piqued my interest on BookTok. (Yes, I KNOW you can learn a lot on TikTok and it’s full of super valuable and interesting information, Megan. That still doesn’t mean you shouldn’t set a time limit on it.) Goodreads also has a Recommendations tool that’s useful — just be sure to review each book you read so the algorithm learns your preferences.

3. I switch up genres — and I read a lot of YA.

I think the key to reading a lot is to read books you enjoy (no shit) so reading becomes pleasurable, your brain builds that feel-good connection over time, and then it becomes a fall-back habit. I read a lot of new fiction because again, escapism, but I also read memoirs, non-fiction, self help, true crime, contemporary, and classics. I alternate between dark and light subject themes, too.

Changing up the genre and subject matter keeps me engaged week-to-week. When I feel my pace lulling, I’ll pick up a solid, best-selling YA (or young adult) novel. They’re usually entertaining and easy to read, so you’re able to stay consistent with reading often, and continue associating it with something pleasurable.

4. I don’t finish books I’m pulling teeth to get through.

As a personal, arbitrary rule, I do try to get through the first 100 pages of a book. Some books, like Gone Girl and American Psycho, do a complete 180 mid-way through the story, so it’s often worthy to push through the beginning to see where the author is trying to take you. If I feel like I’m being tortured when I read, however, or if the pace of my reading is coming to a halt, I DNF. Again, if you want to read a lot, it should be pleasurable. There are also so many good books out there — why spend time reading something you hate?

I should note that I’ve stopped reading books before, only to finish them on audiobook later. (This is easy to do when you’re getting books for free from Libby!) This method has yielded mixed results. You don’t like what you don’t like! And that’s OK.

I was happy I finished Bravey by Alexi Pappas, though. Physically reading the book was triggering for me, as her mom struggled with depression and eventually suicide (and Pappas is very graphic about what she witnessed when her mother was alive). I found myself not wanting to read. I eventually completed the audiobook and found her story hopeful and uplifting — it also made me genuinely interested in the Olympics, and the life of Olympians, for the first time ever.

5. I count audiobooks.

I used to think counting audiobooks towards your reading goal was “cheating.” Then, I learned in one of my virtual book clubs that this thinking is ableist — it’s like saying someone with dyslexia or a visual impairment isn’t really reading if they have to listen to books because of their disability.

You’re not ableist, are you? Huh? HUH?! Yeah, audiobooks count.

Some books are also better as audiobooks! I’m currently half-way through musician Brandi Carlile’s memoir, Broken Horses. My friend suggested the audiobook, telling me Carlile plays songs between chapters. I wasn’t familiar with her music, let alone her story. But damn, this book is a joy to listen to.

And how else would one ever get to hear former “Girls Next Door” Holly Madison do a caricatured British accent in-between chapters of her tell-all, Down the Rabbit Hole, about her time living at the Playboy mansion?! What an absolute cringe-worthy delight!