Reading slumps. They aren’t any fun. Especially if you usually enjoy reading. So how do you get out of a reading slump? I’m sure there are many ways, but here are some ideas that might help you.

First things first.

Reading slumps can come from a number of different reasons. The first thing to do is to see if you can figure out why you are in this reading slump. Here are a few ideas of what might be causing your slump.

• You’ve been very busy and/or stressed and you just can’t get into reading.
• You’re spending a lot of time on Social Media.
• You’ve read a lot of “fast food” books and just feel blah about reading.
• You’ve read a massive number of books and are burnt out.
• You’ve read a number of books you just didn’t like and now reading just doesn’t sound fun.
• You just have too many books and don’t feel like reading any of them.

Once you’ve figured out what the problem is, it is time to fix it. But how?

• Busy or stressed? Pick up a book you know you like. A comfort book. Just read a little here and there, or take a break from everything else and just read. Enjoy it. Don’t think about the things that you haven’t done (chances are they won’t go away while you read), and don’t think about the stress or problems you are facing.
  
  
• Too Much Social Media? This is kind of obvious to deal with. Cut back on the time you spend and read instead. If you usually spend three 45 minute times on social media a day, take one or two of those times and read instead. Grab a book that you are interested in, or a favorite author.
  
  
• Too Much “Fast Food” books? Too much junk food will make you not interested in real food. It can also make you not interested in much food of any kind. Take it slowly. Find a book you know or are pretty sure you’ll like, and start reading. Don’t expect to read a lot at once. Or pick up a book you’ve loved before and reread it. Be prepared for it to take a little while to get back into loving it. After all, feeding your brain nothing but excitement, adventure, or fast paced stories can make it hard to enjoy what is really good at first. But don’t give up.
  
  
• Read Too Many books? Take a break! Reading is supposed to be about the journey not the destinations. Cut back on how many books you expect to read in a week. Savor your reading time. Enjoy the books! Read something that makes you think.
  
  
• Read Books You Didn’t Like. If you’ve been reading new to you authors and just keep getting book after book that you didn’t like, stop! Forget those new books. Go back to what you know you like. Reread a favorite book. Pick up a book from an author you know you’re going to like.
  
  
• Too many books? Get rid of some. I know, I know, this sounds terrible, but believe me, it’s helpful. Clean out your kindle. Clean off that stack of physical books that you haven’t read. Yes, it may take a few days to do this, but it’s amazing how free you’ll feel about your books and reading.

Here are a few tips that might help if you are starting to feel like a reading slump is coming on.

• Read books you know you’ll love.
• Reread favorite books.
• Read favorite authors.
• Read physical books instead of on a screen.
• Read because you love to read not because you have to.

Have you ever had a reading slump? What did you do to get out of it? Have you tried any of these tips? Which ones have you not done?