How to Survive a Read-a-Thon

Read-a-thons are a lot of fun but can be kind of overwhelming if you’ve never done one before and don’t know what you’re getting yourself in for. In my time since discovering the magical world of booktube, book blogs and bookstagram I have done several read-a-thons and consider myself not the worst at them (seriously though one of my biggest achievements in life is finishing seven books in seven days during Booktube-a-Thon last year. So proud). So here are some of my personal tips and tricks to get surviving a read-a-thon. May the odds be ever in your favour.

1. Book choice.

If your goal is to read as many books as possible now is probably not the time to pick up anything by George R R Martin, Charles Dickens, Stephen King or Patrick Rothfuss. Seriously those dudes write some hefty books. Some of their books blur the line between book and self-defence weapon. However, if your goal is to read long books or to at least make some headway with a long book then go right ahead.

2. Book choice cont.

I like to pick books that I know are going to be fast-paced and keep my attention. As someone who gets easily distracted, I don’t want to get halfway through a book and then suddenly start another one and then all of a sudden I’m in the middle of 5 books, 3 new series and sobbing uncontrollably in front of my bookshelves wondering where I went wrong.

3. Book choice cont. part 2

Seriously book choice is important. So setting a TBR ahead of time can help narrow down books you think you want to get to (and are also a good way to work out which books meet any specific reading challenges you might be trying to meet). HOWEVER don’t feel bad if you stray from your TBR. There’s nothing worse than trying to push through with a book you’re just not enjoying. Put it aside, and try something else. I will refer again to the wonderful time I finished all of the books for Booktube-a-Thon. I switched out a book after getting about 50ish pages in and realising I just wasn’t in the mood for it. I picked up another book that still met the challenge I was going for, and BAM. Finished it. And 6 others (probably not ever going to shut up about this. Just saying.)

4. Tell people

Tell your significant other/parents/housemates/house plants that you will be read-a-thon-ing and don’t want to be disturbed. Aka. Don’t talk to me, I’m reading. This way they know why you’re being potentially more anti-social than usual and locking yourself in a room to read as many books as humanly possible. Also, if your house plants consistently interrupt your reading time then you have much bigger issues to worry about and this post is probably zero help.

5. Stay hydrated.

And by hydrated, I mean caffeinated. Obviously.

6. Have fun.

Read-a-thons are supposed to be fun. Don’t stress yourself out because you change your mind about a book you’re reading. Or if you actually end up not reading as much as you’d planned. Or if you accidentally rewatch all 10 seasons of Friends in 5 days (which, if my estimations are correct, you could totally do if you skipped the intro and credits). All of these things, while not the exact purpose of a read-a-thon, are TOTALLY FINE. (Is it just me or does a Friends rewatch-a-thon actually sound amazing? Like 5 solid days of watching Friends… that’s the dream.) Don’t feel guilty about how much you do/don’t read. I’m (apparently) an extremely competitive person (my friends won’t play Monopoly with me anymore. I’m pretty sad about it). And even I don’t care how much/little I read compared to other people. So neither should you!

If you’re looking forward to any upcoming read-a-thons please tell me about them! I want to try and make an effort to participate in more this year and knowing which ones exist will help me to actually do that. Thanks!