[ SECRET POST #6550 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #6550 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


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[Xenoblade 2]



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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 06 secrets from Secret Submission Post #936.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[fscom]

03. https://i.imgur.com/442XNuX.png

[(Anonymous)]

I've been there, friend. And if you don't feel the actual need or want to go back to books, hey, solidarity.

But I'm going to ask -- is it the content, the tagging, the format, the routine, the budget, or some combination? Because I realized that maybe 90% of my not reading physical books was because I'd moved a couple times and didn't have a good place to read a codex format story anymore. Not to mention the library was out of my way and I hadn't built a routine around it. But I wanted to read published books! There were Many that I'd gone "oh yes I do want to read this" and just -- hadn't. I do have a better physical book reading place now, but I still consume a lot of fanfiction and a lot of ebooks.

Most libraries these days have ebooks, with or without a dedicated app for your phone (if you prefer reading on your phone to the computer). The recommendation process, unfortunately, has been Crapified by Libby. But the whole system has brought my ebook budget back down to mostly free credits I get from choosing the no-rush Amazon delivery option. You may have to visit the library in person to get a card and set up your PIN (they often use something derived from your phone number by default) but after that you can operate from either the phone or the computer (Libby app, and your library's subdomain of the Overdrive website, or both). When the library ebooks expire, they just generate a notification and go back to the library without penalty.

And some libraries have phased out fines -- library science has looked into it, and it turns out that fines are not a major source of funding, and result in lower circulation due to people who have started to get fines just Not Engaging anymore. Rather than it being a motivation to get the books back on time. They still generally charge replacement cost if a book is lost or damaged. But if you do have fines that are keeping you from the library, see if the library has a forgiveness program.

For tagging, I've been using The Storygraph -- my usual routine is to find a book that looks interesting in the library app, then look for tags; if I see the little warning symbol that means it's got tags that I would prefer to be prepared for, I make sure to get it in ebook rather than audiobook so it's easier to skim, and so I won't get caught unawares while driving.

[philstar22]

For me (not OP), it is energy. I just have to read/write so much for work. When I do read fun stuff, it is either online lists, fanfic for a few specific fandoms, or sometimes books I love but have already read (or at least have read prior ones in the series). I've struggled to work up the energy for new things.

[(Anonymous)]

I go through phases where I read more fanfic than books and vice versa, but I did go a few years where I didn't read anything because I was just so burned out from reading stuff for school. I think sometimes it's just easier to read fanfic because there's already a familiarity to it, but with a book, you don't have that and it's a little more work to get invested.

[(Anonymous)]

You are not inadequate!

Don't feel bad, and don't try to force it either. We all go through slumps. My last reading slump was over 10 years long. And even if you don't get back into books all that's valid too.

[(Anonymous)]

I feel you, friend!

I had a years-long bookreading slump after grad school with no kids involved, so I totally get you.

Libby IS great for ease of instant ebooks on your phone. I use it all the time. If audiobooks are your thing, and if you're interested in classics at all, Libravox does free audiobooks of public domain stuff.

But tbh my #1 tip for reading more is to start with going back to an old favorite. You feel like it's wasting time or doesn't "count" because it's not a new book, but it gives you that same comforting feeling as fanfic - you know what you're getting into, and that you'll like it, you get the pleasure of anticipating the beats and the best bits and then encountering them. But it also gets your brain the little workout of reading a whole book again. And then you can look into whether this beloved author has published anything else once you're feeling more Hyped about them, and go from there.

Burnt out is burnt out, and you don't have to get back into books if you're not ready. But if you want to, try to resist the urge to compare yourself to your wife. You don't have to read at her pace! You just have to find one book that you're going to really *enjoy* reading - not just like once you've read it, but love being in the middle of.

[(Anonymous)]

Why is the secret cut off at the bottom?

[(Anonymous)]

I don't have the serotonin to learn to care about new characters when 5000 novel length fanfics with characters I already care about are right there.

[(Anonymous)]

This, pretty much.

[starfleetbrat]

Not sure what the bottom says, but anyhoo, I go through periods like that where I struggle to read anything other than fanfic. One book slump lasted years, and what helped me get back into books was to start by reading novellas.

There's some really good short books out there that are under 150 pages (some are even under 100 pages). They're pretty quick to finish, so its easier to get that feeling of accomplishment when you finish one and that confidence will push you to read another. Then when you're comfortable you can start upping the page count. Go from under 150 pages to under 200 pages and then to under 250 pages and so on. It may take a couple of years (it took me that long) to feel comfortable reading long books but you can always read shorter books in between when you feel like a longer one is too much.

But also, you shouldn't feel intellectually impotent for reading fanfic. There are some really great fanfic authors out there and reading fanfic is still reading. So nothing wrong with that imo.

[(Anonymous)]

I switch between fanfics and romance books. I feel no desire to read anything more anymore. I want to shut my brain off when I read and not think about what I'm reading. I make no apologies for it.

[(Anonymous)]

If time is an issue, my partner really got into audiobooks in 2020 and has been listening to dozens of books a year ever since. I also tried but apparently my brain doesn't work well with the format. I wish it did! So I'm usually a book every now and then but mostly fic.

[(Anonymous)]

I feel you! However, I also feel like fanfic has spoiled me with characters, issues and styles that aren't often written about in mainstream media. I mean where would I read wuxia epistolary stories about two guys pining for each other while trying to bring more social justice to their society?

[(Anonymous)]

Sounds like a classic case of ADHD burnout, tbh.