Present Continuous Tense. Use #2: Longer Actions than in Progress Now
“Now” means not only “this second”, but it can also mean “today”, “this week”, “this month”, “this century”, etc. We use the present continuous to express the process of doing a longer actions that is in progress. We should note, however, that the action does not need to be happening this very second.
Example: I am reading War and Peace.- Я читаю “Война и мир”.
This is a process that takes time. I am not reading it this very second, but the process of reading it is still taking place.
Example: I am working on a special project.- Я работаю над специальным проектом.