How I read so much (or how to read more if you want to!)

Piggybacking off of Jenny's recent post on how to become a better reader (which you should totally read! she has some great advice!) and because a few people have asked me recently how I read so much, I thought I'd do a quick rundown post about how/why/when I get so much reading done in between working full time and having two toddlers and growing a baby and all the other things we do to live regular life in 2019.

1. I sacrifice sleep to read.

I really, really love reading, so I make significant sacrifices in the sleep department to read. When people ask me how I get so much reading done, this is really the main reason why! I'm just willing to sacrifice it to read a lot because I love it. I was an English and French double major in college, after all -- I chose it pretty specifically. ;)

We have two great sleeping kids, so that helps a TON (I can't imagine wanting to sacrifice sleep more if they didn't sleep through the night every night without fail). David and I are usually in bed around 9:30 or 10 p.m., and then I usually read for an hour or so every night until I actually go towards sleep around 11:00. The girls sleep til 7:30 and so do I (last year before school starts for K next year that I can sleep til they do!) so I still get a good solid chunk of sleep...or at least mostly solid except when pregnancy insomnia hits inexplicably every morning at 4:15 a.m. Whenever we've been in new baby territory or changes in sleep schedule, my reading naturally wanes for a little bit. And that's okay!

I have never regretted sacrificing sleep for reading, except for one or two books that I stayed up extra late to read and then ended up hating the ending, but that is a rare occurrence.

2. I read really fast (naturally) but reading more makes you faster with practice.

I've always been a fast reader. In grade school and high school, I'd finish the book on the second day of assigned reading and have to wait around for everyone else to catch up. (Luckily I had mostly patient teachers who were okay with me reading other things while we had assigned reading time in class. Emphasis on mostly...haha.) Five years into marriage and David is still amazed at how fast I can finish a book. So I come by the reading-a-lot-quickly naturally. But! I notice that if I take a few weeks or a month off without reading, I am definitely slower when I get back into something. So just like any skill, doing it consistently is the best way to improve.

If you haven't read a lot since college, or just never have been one to read for fun, start with a reread of something you loved as a kid (Harry Potter, Anne of Green Gables, Little Women...any classic or well-known book you remember loving would work.) Get back into the flow of reading for fun before you try to expand onto something else -- help your brain remember how to love to read for fun and it'll be easier to keep going! (Especially in the digital age of tweets and Facebook posts which are all short form, your brain needs a little help remembering how to hold onto long plots when it's been out of practice. This applies to me too!)

3. I read standing at the counter while feeding children, with kids running around me, when I remember before doctor appointments, basically anywhere I have free time.

If I were bigger on ebooks, this would be easier than I make it for myself, but nonetheless -- I always try to have a book around. I take books with me in the car, to doctor appointments, or anywhere I might be without kids or have a free hand to hold a book in. I also have trained my brain (with a lot of practice) to be able to read while the girls are running around me or watching TV or eating. This took a lot of practice, and they both had to be old enough not to need constant supervision for this to work, but it's worth developing as a skill. I love sitting outside on the back patio with a book and a glass of something cold while the girls run around and play in the fresh air. (If only the temperature today weren't 4° and only declining...but I digress.)

4. I use the hold list at the library, the Library Chrome Extension, buy books used at Half Price Books/Thriftbooks, and occasionally rent audiobooks or ebooks from the library.

I like to use every modern convenience I can think of to help my reading addiction. I'll admit, most of the time I still prefer print books, and honestly if we could afford it were millionaires I'd purchase every book I've ever read, because I love owning books and we have the room for it on our bookshelves. (I come by that desire genetically, because I think my dad has at least 10 full bookcases on the first floor at their house.)

The library hold system: I'm pretty sure every library has this in 2019, but I hardly ever wander through the stacks at the library anymore unless I'm in a genre/inspiration slump or we're at the library to get kids books (which we do frequently! about once every other week or so). The Omaha system is so easy to use -- I search the book I want in the database, add it to my hold list to be picked up at my closest branch, wait for them to email me saying it's on the shelf waiting, and then I go in to check it out. I think when I was younger I used to think the hold system was just for old people or people who wanted really rare books, but it's so not the case! I appreciate the convenience SO much.

The Library Chrome Extension: if you've been around these parts for more than a few weeks, you've seen me tout this before. It's a Chrome add-on that links to your local library system so that when you click on a book on Amazon, it will automatically tell you whether your library has a copy and if it's available to check out. Since so many people link to books on Amazon, this is a super helpful system!

I shop on Amazon used, Half Priced Books in person, Thriftbooks online when I really want to own a book or the library doesn't carry it and it's on my list. They're all good for different things!

Occasionally I will listen to audiobooks but I honestly just haven't gotten into a good schedule of finding a time to listen to them (I do a lot of podcasts) so this is rare. But all free rentals from my library, of course!

5. I quit books if I don't like them, and I use Goodreads to track my reading and books I want to read.

Using Goodreads consistently to track my reading and, more importantly, the books I want to read next, has been super instrumental in helping me stay motivated and not slump into a low reading phase. I'm also never ashamed to quit a book if I don't like it. Some books aren't just for me, and that's okay -- there are so many to move on to!

Well, long story, uhh, long, that's how I do it. I'd be curious to see if you have any other strategies to up my reading game! Please tell me if you've got them.

Happy reading!