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As most bookworms will know, reading slumps are the worst. There are all these beautiful books on your shelf and you want to read them all, yet where is the motivation to pick it up off the shelf and actually start reading it?

Here are my top 10 tips to fighting the slump:

1. Find out why you're in a slump
Finding out the proper reason you're in a reading slump can do wonders when finding a further solution. So here is task one, what was the most recent book you read? If it was A Court of Mist and Fury or Obsidio then that's probably the reason, alas, it may also be a book that was so intense and you loved it and perhaps you're still feeling all the feels and can't move on.
OR if you think it's another reason, what are say... the most five recent books you've read and how long did it take you to read them? Sometimes we've read with such momentum and speed, your brain has finally decided to do some calculations and realised it was working real hard and just wants some down time.

2. Re-read a fave
In my experience, if I read something crazy amazing, I feel like the next book cops a lot of negative feelings as I subconsciously start to compare with the previous book, even if it had nothing to do with it. If I re-read something I've already read, I seem to have less expectations because I've already read it, you get me? Though you have to be a little careful with this one, if you start re-reading a book that's part of a series you might do the circle of life and re-read the rest and be at the beginning of another book slump. But if you get a good four or five books re-read because of it, is that really a bad thing?

3. Get in the zone
Grab your fave drink, put your phone in another room, and sit in a super comfy environment.

4. Start a new series that has a solid four of five books already released
Ok, ok, this is only for the super keen but you could do this without even realising. This might also take some trial and error but sometimes I'll start one book in a series or trilogy and find I really love it and immediately want to read book two and suddenly there's a domino effect and I'm now shipping myself with the love interests and own all the bookish merch I can find.
*Warning: may cause harm to bank account.

5. Read something from a different genre
I would specifically say contemporary since I'm a lover of fantasy and dystopian but sometimes you might have to put your thing down, flip it and reverse it. Go for something that is COMPLETELY different to what you usually read and you might find yourself immersed in a book you didn't think you'd ever like. In my own experience, I like to throw in contemporaries to avoid future slumps, it has worked better than I ever thought.

6. Do something different
Believe it or not my bookworms, but there are other hobbies we can find *gasp*. Watch a movie or TV show or seven (I am not held responsible for Netflix slumps), do a puzzle, clean your house, earn brownie points from your parents if you live at home. Just do something else for a while and then we can go back to reading.

7. Participate in a read-a-thon
If you didn't know there is an entire world dedicated just to books, yes we include our pets and food sometimes but it is solely based around books. Due to that, there is almost always a read-a-thon going on and it's a really great way to read a few books in a short amount of time. If there isn't one on during your slump, host your own!

8. Read reviews
If there's a few books you want to read but don't have the right amount of motivation to do so, look for fellow bloggers reviews. Goodreads is an option but not always the best, do some googling and find a 4 or 5 star rated one (remember to look for spoiler free!) and start reading. When someone else has read it and talks about all the great things the book has, it's a nice motivator to pick up said book and find out for yourself. Just beware of the crazy obsessed reviews, you don't want to suddenly have high expectations and be disappointed.

9. Do a buddy read
There is bound to be someone feeling the same way as you, or might just want some motivation to read a particular book. Find out on Instagram or Twitter if there's anyone else wanting to read a certain book you have in mind and suggest a buddy read. There's almost this 'have to read' feeling so that you can keep up with each other and it can be an easy motivator sometimes.

10. Just keep reading
To put it simply. If I find it difficult to get into a book I realise I might be putting it down after each chapter and picking it back up later on. Try and read a good chunk of the book and suddenly you're moving and you're getting somewhere and you want to keep going. So yeah, just read.


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