How many books should you read at the same time?

One sure sign that I’m in a reading slump is that I’ve got about a dozen books in my “currently reading” list—which of course means that I haven’t picked up most of them in several weeks, perhaps even months. But is this the cause of the problem, or merely a symptom of it? It could go either way.

It’s very difficult to read multiple books at the same time and still devote equal attention and brainspace to all of them. Thus, starting multiple books without finishing them could lead directly to a reading slump, since it’s very difficult to get immersed in any story when you’re spreading yourself so thin.

But… if you already find it difficult to get immersed in any of the books that you’re currently reading, then you’re going to find your mind wandering to other things. In this view, the reason you’re starting so many books without finishing them is because you’re already trapped in a reading slump, not the other way around.

I suspect that it’s something of a vicious cycle. Falling into a slump leads to starting more books than you finish, and starting too many books spreads yourself too thin. The only ways I’ve found to break out of this cycle are either to DNF most of the books on my current list, or to find a really awesome book that rejuvenates my love of reading. Which is why I’m a firm believer in DNFing books early and often.

Everyone’s number is going to be different, but if I’ve got more than four or five books on my “currently reading” list at a time, that’s a very good sign that I’m in a writing slump. Currently, I have eight:

• The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson: It’s been taking me a long time to get through this book, and not just because of how enormous it is. There are things I really love about the story, and other things that make it so that I can only take it in short spurts. Mostly, it’s Kaladin—I really love him as a character, but wow does he hit rock bottom, again and again and again.
• The Fourth Turning by William Strauss and Neil Howe: This book is amazing, but it’s also really dense, and I’m taking my time to work through it, underlining all of the passages that really stand out because I know I will be coming back to this book again, and again, and again. Because of all that effort to truly study this book, and not just read it, it’s taking me a long time to get through it. But I will.
• Maps of Meaning by Jordan Peterson: Another incredibly dense book that is a monster of a read. This one, I’m trying to get through in audio, and it’s actually working out decently well, but my phone only has so much space, so for the last several weeks I’ve been working through another audiobook in order to free up storage for this one. Also, I literally subscribe to 100 podcasts. I may be insane.
• Endowed with Power by Robert C. Line: This is my Sunday reading book, but the last several Sundays have just been filled with too many other things for me to really get to it. But it’s a short one, so I’ll probably finish it soon.
• Fortress Beta City by JR Handley: I’m actually just a few more pages from finishing this one. Of all the fiction books on my current reading list, this is the one I’m enjoying the most. I just haven’t finished it yet because my ereader is always on the nightstand, near the crib. But I’ll finish it very soon.
• Blackout by Connie Willis: Just started this one. The library books have been accumulating, and I decided that this was the one that I would renew instead of returning unread. But it looks a little dense, so I don’t know.
• Bloodstone by David Gemmell: Just started this one, to see if reading my favorite author would help to get out of this reading slump. I’ve been holding onto this book for a very long time, since there are only so many Gemmell books left that I haven’t read.
• Black Magic Academy by Emily Martha Sorensen: Just started this one, to see if reading a short book would help to get out of this slump. Also, Emily is a friend of mine, and it occurs to me that I haven’t yet read any of her books.

Looking at the list, I think part of the problem is that I’ve gotten bogged down in too many super dense books at the moment, and really need something lighter and more enjoyable to balance them out. Maybe some Gemmell? Although I wouldn’t exactly call David Gemmell “light.” Still, I fly through all of his books, they are so fantastically good. I’ll see if I can power through Maps of Meaning simply by listening to the audiobook, but I don’t know. If I DNF anything right now, it will probably be that one—although I do intend to come back to it later.

In short, I think I do best when my currently reading list is limited to the following:

• One super dense non-fiction book, with maybe a second one if it’s light.
• One super dense fiction book, which will probably take at least a month to digest.
• An audiobook of some kind, just to change thins up.
• No more than two shorter fiction books, that I can reasonably finish in a week.