playbook
One week of analog reading only
Seven days, no screens for reading. Kindle, e-reader, Twitter, all closed. A paper book or a magazine. By the end you'll know how slow your eye really works.
1u
duration
€ 15–50
budget
Ground
pace
Most people think they still read, but what they read is mostly articles on a phone, emails, Slack, and the occasional e-book. A paper book is something that sits on the bookshelf as a trophy, not as a tool. One week of analog reading only is not a literary experiment, it's an attention experiment.
What stands out on day 1: how slow your eye is on paper compared to scrolling. You can't skip half a line, you actually have to remember words, and there's no search button. By day 3 you start reading sentences differently, not for the information but for the sentence itself. By day 7 you've finished a book, and you know more about its content than you were used to getting from a week of articles. That's not romanticism, that's a different use of your brain.
Checklist
0 of 6
Papieren boek gekocht
Voor de week begint
Tijdschrift bij de hand
Voor afwisseling
Kindle of e-reader weggelegd
In een lade
Telefoon op keukentafel 's nachts
Niet bij het bed
Eén zin per dag opschrijven
Notitieboek
Boek uit op dag 7
Of bijna
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by PlayTryBe team
The Sunday before the week: buy a paper book at an independent bookshop or via Bookshop.org. No Amazon, that's just reflex.
22Pick a corner of the house for reading. Not in bed, not on the sofa opposite a TV. A chair with a lamp, or a kitchen table.
0Put the e-reader and the Kindle in a drawer. Remove the Kindle app from your phone. Barriers instead of good intentions.
Day 1: you read for 20 minutes and your head is tired. That's because you're not trained for sustained attention without interruptions. Don't push through, just pick it up again later.
Write down one sentence from the book each evening that stands out. Not a summary, just a sentence. Half an A4 page over a week is a lot.
Somewhere around day 3 or 4: a half-hour of reading feels like a normal experience, not an achievement. That's the moment it's working.
Your eye reads more slowly on paper than on screen, but you retain more. That's not an opinion, it's measurable. People who read analog can more often recall what they read.
Day 7: the book is finished or nearly finished. Start a second one, or let the week end with a few magazine articles. No Kindle back on, the week is too short for that.
0For anyone copying this
Do as we did
Suggestions
- Koop voor de week begint een papieren boek dat je echt wil lezen. Geen "moest ik nog eens lezen", iets actueels.
- Een tijdschrift naast het boek (De Groene, NRC weekend, Trouw zaterdag) als afwisseling.
- Telefoon op de keukentafel laden, niet bij het bed. Anders pak je hem voor het slapen.
- Een aantekening-boekje voor wat je leest. Niet recensie, gewoon een zin per dag.
Variations
- - Twee weken in plaats van een: makkelijker want je vindt een ritme.
- - Alleen romans: een week één lang boek werkt anders dan twee korte.
- - Met partner: samen analoog leesweek geeft gesprekken zonder telefoon.
- - Op vakantie: makkelijker omdat je toch al uit het scherm-ritme bent.