Discussion Post: Do you feel a pressure to read quickly?

Posted on by Ashleigh

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The bookworm community.

It’s a great place isn’t it?

We all get to share our love of books together, and update everyone on what we’re reading.

But with this, you get to see what everyone else is reading too.

And you start to notice that some people read really, really fast.

So does this build up a pressure to read quickly?

My reading pace

So on average, I read about 100 pages a day. But on the days I go to college, I sometimes don’t read at all, or I’ll read a lot less than usual. So to put it simply, I read about 1 book a week. Of course, this can change if a book is huge (like Outlander took me just under 2 weeks to read) or quite short. But like I said, we’re talking averages here so all this is pointless rambling on my behalf (oops).

Do I feel pressure to read quickly?

Yes, I do.

I know I shouldn’t, because reading is a hobby and I should enjoy it as I wish. But I do.

It’s usually when I see people with huge Goodreads Challenges, or at the end of a month when everybody uploads monthly wrap ups.

I’ve got to admit lately that I’ve been on a roll with reading. But the pressure is still there sometimes. And it’s not even when I compare my own reading rate to other people most of the time. I put pressure on myself. I always upload book reviews every Friday, so if I think I won’t finish the book in time, I put pressure on.

I don’t even know why. It’s not like anyone will be angry if I upload the review a day later or something *shrugs*

Where does the pressure come from?

Well, everywhere really.

Goodreads – seeing people’s reading updates can make you want to read quicker. Especially the reading challenge. That thing tells you how far ahead/behind you are too so that can put pressure on.

YouTube – seeing booktubers with huge Wrap Ups usually adds at least a bit of pressure. I know I always see their bookshelves and think “if I could just get through more books each month, my collection would be as grand”.

Twitter & Instagram – People talk. People finish books. This one is pretty much the same as the previous.

Friends – Maybe a friend is reading a book at the same time and they get through it quicker than you? You then want to read it faster.

Yourself – Like me, plenty of people put pressure on themselves, whether it be to upload a review on a certain day, or to add more books to the monthly wrap up, or to catch up with all the hype.

Is it necessary? 

Of course not!

No one’s going to judge you for reading a book in your own time. Everyone reads at different paces.

Plus if it takes you longer to read, you get to enjoy the book for longer, right?

You enjoy the book as you want to. It’s your hobby. Your book. Your time. There’s no point worrying about not catching up with another person. For all you know they might have more time, or just naturally read quicker.

So now it’s your turn.

What’s your average reading pace?

Do you feel a pressure to read books quickly? What causes this pressure?

Do you think there’s a way to avoid this pressure?

Join the discussion in the comments!

Until next time…

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34 thoughts on “Discussion Post: Do you feel a pressure to read quickly?”

  1. i actually did a discussion post similar to this one a while back. i’m a majorly sluggish reader, partly due to my health. i’m talking, like, 5 pages per hour (which is why i mostly listen to audiobooks, but that’s a different discussion). i definitely feel pressure t read faster especially when it comes to ARCs and blog tours (both of which I have many). i already have anxiety so the pressure causes more anxiety, causing me to just not read or avoid reading physical or e-books. but that’s no good, after all, with blog tours and ARCs, i have deadlines to meet. i don’t know how to avoid the pressure, but i really wish i could. i try to just take a deep breath, relax, and remember that everyone reads at the pace that is good and healthy for them and it’s not a competition.

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    1. It’s a shame you find this such an issue! It must be especially difficult to handle the pressure when there’s actual deadlines involved. I suppose if you listen to audiobooks that can take the pressure off you a bit. But like you said, it’s not a competition, and it’s definitely not an issue how long it takes. As long as you enjoy reading, that’s all that matters!

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  3. I really like these kind of posts. I only read one book a week, sometimes one and a half if the first one isn’t that long. I don’t know where everyone is finding the time to read more. And yes I do feel a lot of pressure. I get a lot of review requests, this started not so long ago, and I have a problem saying no so my calendar fills up pretty quickly. I also review for two other people on top of that, that started earlier. And then when I see a book on several blogs getting a great rating, I want to read that one too real soon. What I have to do? Say no probably more often 😉

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    1. Agreed. I like these posts as well. I don’t know where people find the time to read either! I never felt this pressure to read more or lots until I started blogging. I work full time as a teacher and when I leave work I still have to grade and prepare lessons, which means I only really have time to read later at night.

      I think the pressure, well for me at least, comes from myself and maybe Goodreads a tiny bit? I keep on requesting ARCs from NetGalley and need to read them before they are released. I push myself to do that and like Inge said above, I see the book on other blogs and also want to get my review up quicker. Goodreads is an issue sometimes because I see people have insane challenge goals, but I have to stop myself. Honestly, I’m never going to read 200 books in a year. Also, why do I read? For enjoyment and rushing through books isn’t fun at all.

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      1. I’m glad you enjoy them too! 😀
        I think with blogging you’re more likely to see the amount of hype surrounding books, and you’re also expected to upload reviews at least every once in a while, so it can all build up. Especially when work gets in the way.
        As long as we remember reading is for enjoyment, hopefully this pressure will break away 🙂

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    2. I’m glad you enjoy them!
      Review requests do add pressure for sure. Either they deadlines, or you feel the need to read them quicker since they were nice enough to send you the book. I’ve heard of people closing review requests for a while to catch up with reviews, so maybe you could do that for a bit if it gets too much?
      It must be especially hard having to review for other people too!

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  4. Like you, I usually read about one book a week and I absolutely feel pressure to read more quickly! Like you said, when I see people who have like 200 books on their Goodreads challenge (I have 50) or people who read 10-15 books every month, I feel like I need to read more quickly. Another reason why I feel I should read faster is that I have so many books I want to read I feel as though I’ll never have the time to read them all (which is probably true but let’s be honest my TBR is so long and continues to grow so much that even if I read a book a day for the rest of my life I still probably wouldn’t get through them all haha). So yes, I definitely understand where you’re coming from! I just need to remind myself that everyone reads at their own pace and that sometimes you just have other things that need to come first (like schoolwork).

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    1. My reading challenge is 50 too, so at least we have that in common! 😀
      And an ever growing TBR is pressure in itself! I don’t think any bookworm will ever manage to complete their TBR (and even if they did it’d be horrifying to have nothing to read)!

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  5. This is such a great discussion topic! I know I shouldn’t, but I do feel extremely pressured to read quicker. I see people who get through like 4-5 books a week and the get reviews up for all of them and I’m just like “…what sort of witchcraft is this?!” haha. I have trouble focusing and have no attention span so I constantly get distracted whilst reading and even more so if the book is large because that makes me really intimidated. The only kinds of books I can read quickly are comics and graphic novels, but when it comes to full length novels then my brain just decides to stop cooperating, haha. I’m not sure what my average reading pace is, but I normally only get through 1 full length book a week or 2 if I’m lucky.

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    1. Thank you!
      It definitely must be witchcraft. Even if I had absolutely nothing to do with my days other reading and reviewing, I still wouldn’t be able to do that many!
      I have a short attention span too. Most of the time I can’t sat in the same place for too long so I read a bit then stop, then go back to it again. Graphic novels are great for catching up if any take especially long!

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  6. This is a great discussion question! I definitely feel pressure to read quickly, but it doesn’t really come from other bloggers/reviewers or outside forces, it’s usually just me. I want to read all the books! There are so many that seem so interesting and grab my attention, so I constantly have a HUGE to-read pile, which makes me feel like I need to get through what I’m reading and on to the next. I also can’t say no to books, so when an author or publisher pitch me a book to review, I always take it, which again makes that pile bigger. And I feel guilty when I haven’t picked up a book in a little while. – ashley

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    1. Yeah usually I’m the one that gives myself the most pressure too. It’s very easy to become overwhelmed by the sheer amount of books that sound so good you just want to consume them all at once!

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    1. Thank you!
      It’s great to have that mind set 😀 As long as books are being read it’s great, no matter how long it takes to read. There’s no time limit on books!

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  8. I love this because it’s something I have been thinking about for a long time, but I think that’s the beauty of reading. That we’re all different with different tastes and different reading paces. I put SO much pressure on myself, or at least used to. Now all I think about is that me reading at all is good and it’s progress. Some people never read and the fact that I’m busy and still giving some time to my hobby is the best thing that I can do. It’s not a competition and it doesnt matter at the end of the day really. Reading should be fun and you should do it because you want to, not because other people are expecting you to. Right?! It’s quite more enjoyable like that :)♥ so that’s what I do!

    Great post!
    Jumana @ Books by Jay

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    1. Thank you!
      You’re completely right about books being something to enjoy, and any reading at all is better than nothing! Sometimes we all need to remember that, when we think people are judging us for not reading quick enough 😀

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  10. Great discussion post!
    I definitely relate to the pressure of reading books fast. It’s kind of like when I’m in a reading slump I think (stupidly) that I’m not a reader or a worthy one anyway and when I feel like I’m reading really slow, I feel like I shouldn’t give myself the title of a reader if I don’t read everyday. It’s totally stupid but it’s just the pressure getting to me.
    I’ve started to careless about how many books I read per month, I mean, at least I am reading! That’s why when people in their wrap-ups say they feel sad about only reading one book, I try to make them see the positive side of them just reading in the first place. Reading is reading whether it’s two books a month or twenty-five 🙂

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    1. I’m the same when people are sad about not having more books in their wrap ups. I always think along the lines of “it’s more books than some people read, so it’s better than nothing” 🙂

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  11. I never used to feel like I was a slow reader until I found the online book community. I’m struggling with feeling fine with my reading pace when everyone else seems to read so much quicker. Nobody should feel bad for however fast they read, but its hard not to compare yourself to others sometimes.

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  12. Yes, I always feel like I’m reading too slow. There’re all these books I want to get into right away, but there’s simply not enough time. And my reading speed is not that good and when I’m reading faster it’s not very accurate and I might miss some minor things. When I really care about a book, when it’s really interesting I’m slowing down, reading carefully. In other cases, I’m good with just following the plot and getting to the end faster.

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  13. Love this post!

    I read about four books a week – but I am *always* reading. I’ll read on my breaks at work, I’ll read instead of watching TV, I’ll read while eating, I’ll read while washing… I make lots of time because I’m pretty slow when it comes to reading, actually. And I always feel under a bit of pressure. I read a lot, I review every book I read, and I know people read those reviews. I don’t want to disappoint anyone just because I CBA to read one night.

    And then there’s Goodreads. And the Best Reviewer and Top Reviewer lists. I’m consistently in the top 30 and there’s this internal pressure to keep myself up there because it makes me feel special. I have that little bit extra on my profile.

    Plus, I so rarely get books from publishers that when I do I race through them, I drop everything, just to make sure it’s reviewed in a timely manner.

    I never feel like I’m fast enough 😦 You’ve really made me think.

    Cora @ Tea Party Princess

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    1. Well that to me seems like an incredible pace! If I read that many books in a week I’d be telling everyone about it 😀 I get what you mean about feeling pressure when it comes to reviews though, especially the one about not being bothered to read one night. There’s quite often where I’ll be too tired or busy to read that day and feel like I should have. But then I’d be forcing it, and probably wouldn’t enjoy the book as much.
      That Top Reviewers thing on Goodreads – I forgot about that! I remember when I noticed it, I wanted my number to be higher, so I guess that added pressure too! But I’m number 53 I think, so I’m not doing too bad.
      Just remember that you should only read if you really feel like it! People aren’t going to be angry with you for not uploading another review – you already read more than most of us haha! ❤

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