what I read in a week
a log that answers my most-asked question
By far the question I am asked the most is: “How do you read so much?”
I suppose choosing the cross-platform username “emmareadstoomuch” was asking for this outcome, but generally the answer is disappointing.
I work from home. I prioritize it. I constantly read in a wide variety of genres and of media. It’s my only hobby.
Still, the question persists. So maybe this will help:
All this week, I tracked when I read and of what and how much. Kind of like a Refinery29 Money Diary, or a Grub Street Diet, or a New York Mag Sex Diary.
I am obsessed with reading all of the above, so whether or not it’s helpful, I had a good time.
That has to count for something.
Day 1: Saturday, July 25
8 am. Generally I have my phone in a series of Brick schedules so intricate that it’s a lucky break if I have Google capabilities. But they’re less strict on weekends, so I read a few Substack articles in bed.
8:30 am. Get up, get ready, check Goodreads. I see I forgot to do my project long classics yesterday, so I read a chapter of The Spy Who Came in from the Cold right away. +7 pages
9 am. I am reading and hating The Paper Palace. Both because of and despite that, I’d like to knock it out for the day, so I read a chapter before heading out. +16 pages
12 pm. Return from a Saturday morning combo — bakery + adorably curated store selling stuff I don’t need but badly want + groceries — and get back to the Palace :( I start alternating reading with working on a Substack post since I’m disliking it too much to bear uninterrupted focus. In this way I manage to finish. +68 pages
2 pm. Before I start some packing for my upcoming move, I pick up an Abby Jimenez book. Both this and the dreaded Palace are for a Substack post. This will probably go as well. +15 pages
4 pm. During a break from packing, I read some more Jimenez. Sometimes in reading you accidentally notice an author’s too-frequent crutch word and it can ruin everything. In this case it’s “beamed.” +77 pages
10:30 pm. Back home from time with friends, I read a little more before sleep. +18 pages
Daily Total: 201 pages
