People always say they want to read more, and they love buying books to photograph or display. But actually opening the book and actually reading it tends to get put off.
One way to bypass the lack of motivation to read is to listen to an audiobook. Put aside the argument that audiobooks aren’t books or that it doesn’t count. If you want to listen to a story, either real or imagined, and you find yourself short on time, don’t have the time to sit and concentrate on a focused task, such as reading, or with no immediate access to a book, then audiobooks are the way to go.
You don’t have to count it as reading if you don’t want to. But if you’ve heard some good things about a story or if you’re looking for a way to multitask during those times of day when you could use something to keep you entertained, then, why not listen to an audiobook? Below are my tips for listening to audiobooks.
How to listen
There are multiple audiobook subscription services out there, and there are a lot of podcasters, YouTubers, and other content creators who offer discounts on these services to new subscribers. But if you don’t mind waiting for new releases and have plenty of older books in your TBR list that you want to get to, consider checking out the Libby app.
Libby is a free audiobook service that is affiliated with your local library. You just have to add your (valid) library card, choose your county, and you’re in.
Libby has thousands of titles to listen to, or you can put yourself on a hold list for new titles. Admittedly, the wait for new titles can be long. I’ve waited up to three months for an audiobook to come in. But the app gives you an approximate wait time, and, depending on how long other readers keep it, the wait could be much shorter. You also get three weeks to read the title, and you can renew if you need to.
There are also free audiobooks on YouTube. These are mostly older titles that are in the public domain. But if there’s a classic book that you’ve been wanting to read, that may be your best bet. I once found a recommended self-help book on YouTube. It was a short read, and my place was saved each time I paused it.
How to choose what to listen to
Sometimes choosing what to read can be the hard part. Even narrowing down a genre can be tough. It helps to skim your TBR list first, but you can’t guarantee that the title you choose will be available, or even exist as an audiobook.
I usually gravitate towards nonfiction, particularly memoirs. It’s on par with listening to a podcast since it’s often narrated by the author and is about them personally.
Celebrity memoirs are particularly fun to listen to because you’re being read to by a natural performer in their own voice. Even if it was ghostwritten, they know how to bring words to life. This can make them extra funny, sad, or just entertaining in general.
A narrator can make or break an audiobook. So, if you’re unfamiliar with the narrator, listen to a sample to hear their speaking voice and the way they read. Some narrators could sound like nails on a chalkboard to certain readers, or they might just bore you.
Other books use multiple narrators, particularly when a story is being told from multiple character points of view. I can sometimes find this jarring, or I end up preferring one narrator over another, and then I tune out when the other narrator begins to speak.
Try listening to a book that you’ve already read but have been wanting to reread. Since you’re already familiar with the story, you don’t have as many details to put together, and it will flow more easily for you.
Sometimes it helps to listen to an audiobook while following along with a physical copy. I’ve had multiple Shakespeare plays in my TBR pile, but those are not a light read, and they tend to get pushed aside for something that goes down easier. It wasn’t until I started following along with an audiobook that I was able to get through these plays.
Where to listen
Back in the day, I used to listen to books on CD. That made the car the primary place to listen to them. Now, not only are audiobooks no longer recorded on cassette tapes or CDs, but newer cars don’t have any kind of music player in them.
I still listen to audiobooks in the car by linking my phone through the car and playing it through the speakers, like you would a podcast. But my concentration level is pretty low in the car in a way that it’s not when I listen to a podcast. It has to be a five-star read in order for me to pay complete attention, and even then, I tend to miss a lot. So, I don’t recommend listening in the car, or if you do, listen when you aren’t driving.
My favorite time to listen to audiobooks is when I’m doing chores, either indoor or outdoor. It’s a time when my mind is clear, and I can focus on what I’m listening to. If the task is particularly long and tedious, I can really make some progress with an audiobook.
Tips on length
Audiobooks are measured in hours rather than pages. I’ve listened to audiobooks as short as three hours and as long as 20 hours. Some of those short books have taken me multiple days to get through while the longer books take no time at all, similar to a page turner of an actual physical copy.
Make sure you’re motivated to listen to it to begin with and that you have the time. Don’t buy or borrow the book until you’re ready to listen to it. Or if you’ve been waiting for it, and it’s finally ready at an inconvenient time, borrow it, but don’t start listening until you have time to really pay attention to it for at least a half hour or so.
If you find yourself bypassing the app while looking for something entertaining to listen to on your phone, and you instead keep browsing social media or YouTube instead, maybe the book just isn’t doing it for you.
It’s okay to DNF an audiobook, just as it is with a physical copy. And if that’s the case, it’s better to stop, particularly if you’re just borrowing the book and there are other people in line for a copy. Sometimes you’re just not in the mood for a particular story, or it’s just not interesting you. You can still get into a reading slump with audiobooks, or you might just want to read something in print.
But overall, audiobooks have helped me increase the number of books that I read in a year. They allow me to read more than one book at a time and to read at times when I couldn’t read a physical copy. So, not only do I count them as reading, but they have made for some of the best reading experiences I’ve had.
How do you listen to audiobooks? What platform do you use to listen to them? Leave your answers in the comments below!
Also check out my post, 8 Audiobook Recommendations for Fall.
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