Getting Back Into Reading? 6 Tips To Help You Find Your Groove

Let’s get started.

Don’t Be Afraid to Quit

There can be a lot of negative feelings attached to quitting books, but it can also be incredibly liberating to set a book aside and say, “not for me” or “not right now.” If you’re getting back into reading, you don’t need to give a book 100 pages or even 50 pages. You can see if the first chapter hooks you. Heck, you can see if the first page grabs you.

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Quitting a book today does not mean quitting a book forever. When I finally got into Daughter of Smoke and Bone, it transfixed me like almost no other book ever has. But I bounced off it a couple of times before it stuck. You don’t have to develop that persistence yet. If the goal is to finish a book, make it as easy for yourself as possible by choosing one that really pulls you in from the start.

Seek Out Quality Recommendations

I really can’t stress this enough: recommending books is a skill people learn and develop. Having a friend who reads doesn’t mean they’ll recommend good books for you. All my friends eat food. It doesn’t mean they know what I want to eat! I’ll never forget when I asked someone for a recommendation for a lighthearted but immersive fantasy series and they suggested Game of Thrones to me with a straight face. Don’t make my mistake. Leave it to the pros.

There are plenty of people who specialize in recommending books. Librarians, booksellers at your local bookstore, the bibliologists at TBR, the podcasters at Get Booked, to name a few. These folks know the questions that will start productive conversations about what you’re looking for. Seeking out expert opinions is a good practice in general, and it definitely applies to getting back into reading.