7 Small But Sure Signs You are Descending into Book Addiction (It Takes One to Know One!)
For most of the last three years, I’ve worked seven days a week, which didn’t leave much room for hobbies or leisure time. Needless to say, it took a toll on my mental health. So last fall, I decided to start reading for fun to save my sanity.
As with any vice, it started innocently. One book here, another there. But the more I read, the more I wanted to read. Six months later, I find myself experiencing an array of odd symptoms that all point to one sad truth — I have become dependent on novels.
Wondering if you’re similarly afflicted? Here are a few signs to watch out for:
1. Your Hands Always Have This Weird Cramp from Holding Books/Kindles
If you read for 20–30 minutes a day, this is not a symptom you will ever experience. No, this perpetual cramping of the digits only sets in after spending an unspeakable number of hours tearing through tomes.
When I go to bed at night, my hands feel achy and cramped, a testament to how I stubbornly refused to put the reading tablet down until I finished the next chapter… and the next… and the next. Because despite how lightweight my Kindle is, it turns into a brick after a few hours.
2. Your TikTok FYP is Nothing But Book Recommendations
I have a love/hate relationship with TikTok. Actually, it’s more of a love/shame relationship — shame that I have wasted so much time scrolling through 60-second videos of singing cats, dancing ostriches, and ambitious recipes I’ll never make.
But at some point in the past four months, I succumbed to the “BookTok” side of the platform, and now 90% of my For You Page has been book recommendations.
3. Your TBR List is Growing at an Exponential Rate
Thanks to BookTok, I have a list of books I want to read that’s longer than my arm. Longer than the Statue of Liberty’s Arm. Including the torch.
It doesn’t help that — as a fantasy reader — most books I want to read are part of a 3–8 book series.
Of course, the sensible thing to do would be to stop adding books to the list until I’ve read caught up. But book addicts aren’t sensible.
At least reading slumps are a thing of the past.
4. You Often Look Up from Your Book and Realize You’re Sitting in the Dark
Or otherwise occupying a much different time of day than when you first sat down to read. Time moves in funny ways when you’re engrossed in a book.
I used to go to bed at a reasonable time before I picked up reading as my hobby. Now, I read late into the night until I’m so tired I drop the Kindle on my face.
5. A Substantial Portion of Your Credit Card Bill is Books
It used to be my superfluous purchases were limited to Sephora and Starbucks, but for the past few months, I’ve been spending more on books than on my other two vices.
Speaking of which, when did books get so expensive? Even the Kindle versions —which make up 90% of my collection — are often $10-$20 per book. And don’t get me started on the hardcovers. Those beautiful, irresistible hardcovers.
I invested in Kindle Unlimited last month, which helped a little. But most of my TBR is not part of that subscription, so I’ve had to set an official monthly “book budget” for myself.
6. You Spend Hours Scouring Goodreads
I’ve been on Goodreads since 2009, but I haven’t used the site in over a decade. Since I’ve rediscovered reading, I’ve really enjoyed being on the platform again, rating books, setting goals, and digging up new titles to add to my TBR list.
I set a Goodreads reading goal at the start of the year, and I confess, I feel immense satisfaction from ticking off another book as read on my Kindle.
7. You Desperately Want to Write Your Own Book (if You Haven’t Already)
This may not be true of every voracious reader, but it’s certainly true for me. I’ve wanted to write a novel since I was five, but I never got around to it. Actually, that isn’t true. I did get around to it on two or three occasions during my twenties but wrote myself into a corner each time and gave up with no small amount of frustration.
I had given up on the idea altogether, but when I revived my reading habit, I fell in love with the magic of storytelling all over again. For that reason, I am determined to write my first novel this year. (Camp NaNoWriMo, here I come!)
Final Thoughts
If you’re an avid reader who experienced any of these startling symptoms, know that you are not alone!
All joking aside, few things bring me as much joy as a well-written story, so I’ve decided to give in to my book dependency. After all, it’s pretty harmless as far as vices go (certainly more so than my previous Sephora addiction).
So, I have to ask… Read any good books lately?
