Reading Slump: What to do?

I have been in numerous reading slumps since I starting reviewing. There are numerous reasons for slumps and mine varied but bottom line is, slumps suck – big time! I hate not having the enthusiasm of reading books and that sense of accomplishment of finishing. It’s double sh*tty when you feel that what you do (reviewing and blogging) is becoming a chore rather than a fun experience. Here’s a couple of tips that I myself follow whenever I feel that I’ll be heading the slump road again.

Take a break – reading can be overwhelming especially for those blogger who has specialized reading focus like YA blogger and so on. I maybe an eclectic reader but I am not safe. When you read too much then write reviews AND work at the same time or be a full time mom/dad/student, you’ll just fry your brain with feeding too much information. Take a break, 2 – week break is preferred but I experience a bad case of reading slump that I took a 4 month hiatus last year and I hated it.

** It is also harder if you read/review/work AND maintain your own website (self hosted). That one is a hard combo believe me.

Read a different genre or pick a genre of your choice – this can be contradicting actually and it depends for each reader. When I am on a reading slump, I tend to pick up a genre that I am not familiar with to change things up but if you’re like some that is not comfortable with this, pick a genre that you know you’ll enjoy or where your comfort zone is.

Focus on other things – for the meanwhile, catch up on posts and the trend in the blogging world. You can also try out different crafts and be creative. A reading slump is a great opportunity to unlock those other hidden talent of yours.

Pick your own battles – a most common newbie mistake, which I am also guilty off, is accepting too much obligation without thought. When these request pile up it can be overwhelming and it can be disastrous to you. It is okay to say no, maybe, yes but not immediately. Don’t worry, everyone will understand.

Make time and prioritize – do not be obligated in reading and reviewing. Some people have the time while others don’t. We don’t all have the same profession and priorities. You don’t necessarily need to read x number of books per week or write 2-3 posts per day. Reading and blogging as a whole should be fun, if you feel obligated than it no different with work – without pay. If you are on a slump, start by 1-2 hours reading time per day and pick it up from there.

I myself has been in break lately, not entirely a reading slump BUT was so close, so I apologize for the lack of posts. I am currently scouring my phone and post its for book notes and in the process of writing/editing/scheduling due reviews that I should have posted weeks ago including this one!

So how about you, what do you do when you encounter a reading slump??