Over the past 5 years I’ve read an average of 50 books per year, which considering I work full time and own horses I would consider to be quite a lot of books. My history with reading is that I used to read a lot when I was younger, but then I started university and read a lot of textbooks and reading for fun was not a priority anymore. Until I found audiobooks. When I started listening to audiobooks it wasn’t very common and I’m not sure even audible existed. The first books I listened to on audio were books that I had already read and I found these on youtube (technically not legal I know, I justified it by already owning the books). Then the first audiobook service launched in Sweden, Storytel, and I was all about it! Not sure when this was but I have emails from 2016 in my inbox from storytel so probably around that time I started subscribing. So from a long time, avid audiobook reader, here are my 5 top tips to get into audiobooks:
1. Start with a book you are already familiar with
As already mentioned, when I first got into audiobooks I started with my favorite books from my teens; Twilight, The Host, Eragon, Dead until dark. This way if you lose focus for a little bit or something distracts you, you already know the story and can follow along.
2. Use the rewind button
I know this tip might seem really inconvenient but use the rewind button. Whenever I feel a bit lost I fish up my phone from my pocket and rewind until I’m at a place in the story where I feel up to speed. In some cases this might be the previous chapter, in other cases it is 15 s, I’ve even started over with books efter getting 8 h into the story. It is normal to lose focus or get distracted and it’s super easy to just push the rewind button a few times and get into the story again.
3. Find a time that works best for you
I will literally listen to audiobooks doing almost anything. Driving, cooking, cleaning, doing my makeup, often I will put an audiobook on at 5 pm when I quit work and go out to the stable. Then I listen while doing the stable chores, getting the horses ready for riding and often even when I’m riding. This way I get 3-4 hours of listening time in one chunk and at that point I’m already very invested in the story. If you have other hobbies like knitting, hiking, running or going to the gym I recommend giving audiobooks a try instead of music!
4. Increase listening speed
If you find that audiobooks don’t keep your interest or maybe you find them a bit boring, try increasing the listening speed. I find that a book can go from a snooze to an interesting book when I increase the speed. In Swedish I have to increase the speed, sometimes as much as 2x. When I listen to books in English I don’t increase it as much, either Swedish people talk slower or it’s because Swedish is my first language. In English 1.2x or 1.25x is usually the perfect amount. This is of course highly dependent on the narrator so try different speeds and see what works best for you.
5. Replace Netflix with audiobooks
This one might be a little bit controversial but Audiobooks > Netflix any day. Instead of putting on a tv series, try downloading a cozy game on your phone. I like games like mahjong or jigsaw puzzles or something where your brain relaxes. Then lay on the couch, put on an audiobook and play your game of choice. If this is not top tier relaxation time then I don’t know what is!
Bonus tip!
Try different genres. I will usually listen to anything. The first 5 books I read in 2023 were: one sci-fi thriller, one mystery, a children’s book (narrated by Kate Winslet, amazing), a nonfiction nutrition book and a historical romance. There are some types of books where I prefer reading a physical or ebook copy. These include all books incorporating a lot of violence, not like wars in fantasy but abuse in some contemporary books or like in horror books. I need to be able to skim or skip these parts which is easier in a physical copy. Intense sci-fi is also a genre that is a little bit hit or miss with audiobooks. If I start listening and it’s not working out but I’m still interested in the book, I buy it in a physical format and mix between the two media forms.