I Have Genre Burnout!

I read a lot of fantasy books. I have since I was first introduced to the genre about ten years ago. That's most of the books I own and most of the books I buy. But…well, I've been noticing something the past month or two.

I've been having some problems getting truly involved with the books I'm reading. I'll pick up a book then put it back down. I'm just not interested in reading it. However, most of these books are fantasy. I pick up something different - say, sci-fi or contemporary - and I get immediately involved.

I have been known to go through phases in what I want to read - but never before have I been unable to get involved with a fantasy read for so long. I even have some fantasy books that I know I'll love, but I still have no interest in picking them up.

I'll find myself reading a fantasy book and putting it down in favor of something else, or even totally loosing interest in it.

And, honestly, I don't know what to do about it.

Fantasy has been my 'go-to' genre for so many years, and now I just find myself wanting a palate cleanser. I can't help but wonder if this is because of certain genre tropes that I always find and that I don't like - or if this is a deeper sign of discontent with the genre.

I think this has been building for a few months, anyway. It started all the way back in September with a craving for sci-fi and then it just grew from there.

Basically, the only way I'm finding to cope with this is by not forcing the issue. If I'm not feeling the fantasy book, I'll put it down. I won't try to force my way through it. (This might be a total DNF, or I might try to come back to it later, depends if the problems are something that I think is just me.) I also find myself choosing a lot more contemporary or sci-fi books to read, ignoring my fantasy books.

Have you ever had genre burnout? If so, how did you get over it? Do you read a lot of books in one genre, or is your reading really mixed?