Tonight, Don't Scroll. Read One Chapter.
I do this far more often than I'd like to admit.
I finally get into bed.
Toddler sorted.
Work done.
Everything that desperately needed my attention has either been dealt with or officially become tomorrow's problem.
This is my time.
I've been looking forward to reading.
My book is right there.
So naturally...
I pick up my phone.
Just for five minutes.
Obviously.
We all know how this ends
I'll check something quickly.
Maybe scroll for a minute.
Watch one video.
Then another.
Someone is reorganising their pantry.
Why am I watching this?
No idea.
Keep scrolling.
Someone I've never met is having relationship problems.
I'm invested now.
Scroll.
Book recommendation.
Interesting.
I'll save that.
Because apparently what my pile of 150 unread books desperately needs is another book recommendation.
Scroll.
And then I look at the time.
Thirty minutes.
Gone.
There goes my reading time.
And the ridiculous thing is...
I wanted to read.
I'm not going to tell you to delete your apps
This isn't one of those posts.
I'm not throwing my phone into a drawer every evening.
I'm not deleting everything.
I'm not buying a Nokia from 2003 and telling everyone to contact me by carrier pigeon.
I like my phone.
You probably like yours too.
It does useful things.
It does fun things.
It also has an absolutely terrifying ability to make half an hour disappear without me noticing.
And when you're already busy, half an hour is a lot.
For me, that's basically my entire reading window.
So let's try something ridiculously small
Not a new habit.
Not a 30-day challenge.
Not a reading streak.
Not:
READ 50 PAGES EVERY SINGLE NIGHT AND TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE.
No thanks.
You've probably got enough things you're supposed to be doing.
So do I.
This is just for tonight.
When you get into bed...
read one chapter before you scroll.
That's it.
One.
Your phone isn't going anywhere. Instagram will survive without you for fifteen minutes. Whatever drama is happening on TikTok will almost certainly still be dramatic when you get back.
Just open the book first.
Because one chapter has a habit of causing problems
This is my favourite part.
You tell yourself:
"I'll just read one chapter."
Very responsible.
Very sensible.
Then you get to the end.
Oh.
Well...
I can't stop there.
I'll read one more.
Then somebody discovers something they absolutely should not have discovered.
Great.
Another chapter.
Someone has disappeared.
Another chapter.
There's a betrayal.
For God's sake.
Another chapter.
And suddenly you've gone from:
"I'm too tired to read tonight."
to:
"If this character dies, I am calling in sick tomorrow."
That's the feeling I miss when I'm not reading.
Not the number of pages.
Not adding another finished book to a list.
That feeling.
Needing to know what happens next.
Reading is one of the few ways I completely leave my day behind
I'm a fantasy and sci-fi reader.
So when a book really gets me, I'm gone.
I'm not thinking about work.
I'm not thinking about the business.
I'm not wondering what we're having for dinner tomorrow.
I'm not mentally going through the washing.
I'm not thinking about whatever bizarre thing my toddler did today.
For a little while, I'm somewhere else entirely.
Different world.
Different problems.
Different people.
Possibly dragons.
Hopefully dragons.
And after spending most of my day being needed by someone or doing something that needs to be done, I really value that escape.
Which is why it annoys me when I accidentally swap it for 30 minutes of scrolling that I barely remember afterwards.
And if you only read one chapter?
Brilliant.
Challenge complete.
Close the book.
Go to sleep.
You don't have to keep reading.
The point isn't secretly to trick yourself into reading 100 pages.
The point is that you got a little bit of that thing you've been missing.
Maybe your chapter takes ten minutes.
Maybe you manage five pages before your eyes start closing.
Fine.
You're not training for the Reading Olympics.
You read because you wanted to read.
That's enough.
And if tonight doesn't happen?
Also fine.
Maybe you're working late.
Maybe the kids won't settle.
Maybe you're exhausted.
Maybe life has decided tonight is going to be one of those nights.
Your book isn't going anywhere.
Try again another night.
No guilt.
No catching up.
No broken streak.
This is exactly why I don't want to turn this into some massive reading challenge.
Life happens.
Reading should fit around it.
So... are you in?
That's it.
That's today's entire challenge.
Tonight, before you scroll, read one chapter.
Then I want to know what everyone is reading.
Tell me the book.
Tell me what genre.
Tell me if you're loving it.
Tell me if you're 47 pages in and already suspicious of everyone.
And if your "one chapter" accidentally turns into six...
I accept absolutely no responsibility for how tired you're going to be tomorrow.
What are you reading tonight?