I think we can all agree that reading is a joyous time for us all and we’ve all got enough experience under our belts to basically be considered professionals.
However, that doesn’t mean that bad habits don’t form over time. Bad reading habits, we all have them!
Some are a bit more… eclectic than others, but here are 5 common reading habits that any reader has most likely done before and some tips on how to break them.
1. Reading ahead
Ok, I for one am very guilty of this. As much as we hate spoilers, sometimes we just can’t help ourselves!!! Even if it’s something as simple as reading the last line on the last page of the book, I need to know. I GOTS TO KNOW. The best way to break this reading habit? Willpower. *sigh* I know, it’s anticlimactic, but then so is the ending of any book when you already know how it ends!!! So just try to think of how much more awesome the book will be if we just read in page number order.
2. Only reading dialogue
So, this bad reading habit is a variation of the first one. Just because you might not be jumping chapters and skipping to the last page of the book still doesn’t mean you should only be reading dialogue. I know how tempting it is especially in dialogue exchanges with your OTP (trust me— I feel your pain), but you gotta read the prose too!! Think about it this way. It’s more background information, more details. It’s more juicy info about the setting or the characters. Skipping all that extra good stuff also means you might be missing out on key details!! Key foreshadowing moments!!! Don’t you wanna be prepared for that plot twist in the end??
3. Reading multiple books at the same time
Once again, something I am personally guilty of. Especially when I was younger, but alas, this is one habit I’ve managed to break. It’s so tempting to keep three, four, or even five books going at once. There’s so much out there to read and so little time! Curse you sleep and school and work and all other time consuming activities that keeps us from reading 24/7. But when you start getting characters confused and plot points start to blur— maybe it’s better to just take it one book at a time.
4. Re-reading old favorites instead of new books
Speaking of too many books with too little time… Put down Harry Potter. Put down The Hunger Games, or The Perks of Being a Wallflower, or whichever safety net book that you will always gravitate towards no matter what. We both know you’ve read them more times than you can count. And we both know that there are plenty of books on your TBR list that you should probably be getting through before the next batch of new releases comes out. That book will be there waiting for you once you get through the rest of your book pile.
5. Abandoning books
Sometimes it’s just too easy. Sometimes we’re just not feeling it. Sometimes the book hangover we have is so intense that any book after is just meh. But I urge you. The author probably urges you. The characters would urge you. Give it your best shot before abandoning ship. That’s not to say that you should just read every single book start to finish. You probably do have a very good reason to stop reading a book if it’s what you wish. But if you find yourself being a serial book-ditcher, try regrouping and making sure you give every book a fair shot. They deserve that much, don’t they?
Well, I hope that was somewhat helpful for some of you. If not, well, as long as you’re reading then it’s okay, right? After all, there’s no wrong way to read!
