Book Goals!
It's that time of year! I recently reflected on my year in books, and of course, this also made me think about my 2018 book goals.
- Read my own books. Every year, I declare that I will show more shelf-love, yet out of the 352 books I read in 2017, only 25 were from my shelf. I really do own some great books, and I am hoping to read more of them this year.
- Review books right after I read them. I used to be good at this, but lately I have been letting my must-review books pile up. My best reviews are written shortly after I finish reading, because I am really able to capture my emotions when they are fresh.
- Attend some signings. I used to go to a bunch of book releases, but with my bookish partner in crime so far away, I have attended none the last few years. I have always enjoyed them and hope to got to at least one this year.
- Attend a book convention. I got to BookCon every year, but I would love to attend some other book type convention. It all comes down to money and timing.
- Finish more series. Towards the end of last year, I actually knocked out some of those final books, but I still have so many series half read on my shelf.
- Read a book set in each of state. I love visiting places in books. So, why not see America that way. I found Goodreads groups and Penguin had a United States of Books, which have given me some possible books to read.
- Read more of my anticipated and Can't-Wait Wednesday books. These are books I get really excited about, yet I don't read them all. I feel like I could, if I made more of an effort.
- Balance the old with the new. The majority of the books I read last year were new releases, but there are tons of backlist books I would like to read. I am going to try to keep it 50/50. Maybe even do a throwback post once a month to feature older books. This will be hard, as I am often distracted by the new and shiny books.
- Buy less books. I already told you, that I don't read books I own. Therefore, I should read more of the books I own, before buying more.
- Read books that make me happy! Sometimes I get FOMO, and trick myself into reading books that are not really "me" books. Sometimes these work out for me, but more often, they are just ok. I know what I like, and should not let myself be sucked in by the hype machine.
What are some of your bookish goals this year?
Let us know in the comments!
Reading a book set in each state is a neat idea! Atending more book cons and signings is a goal I'd like to meet, too. Those are so fun!
ReplyDeleteIt's fun, but some books never name their location. Like, Long Way Down took place in a city, but what city? And The Last to Let Go took place near a river, but what river and what town? I really need my co-blogger back to go to things with me.
DeleteBuying less books would be a real challenge for me!
ReplyDeleteI don't buy that many books, but since I never seem to read the books I buy, I should definitely buy less.
DeleteWe share a lot of the same goals for this year, especially reading the books we already own. I desperately need to get control of the books that are piling up all over my room.
ReplyDeleteI think there is an agency that will come and take my books, because they are so neglected.
DeleteNice goal! I have lots of books on my shelf that I need to read as well. Here is our Top Ten Tuesday
ReplyDeleteIt seems many of us need to show some shelf-love.
DeleteSo with you on #1 and #2. My mantra this year is Read What I Want, When I Want. I'm taking all the pressure off and returning to reading for nothing but pure enjoyment. Way fewer arcs, no reading challenges (other than just the basic GR challenge), and fewer hyped books that I know aren't really my thing but I pick up because they're the latest and greatest (why do I care?!). I am reading a new release now (flying in the face of everything I just said LOL) but it's because I really do want to read it (The Cruel Prince) but then it's back to my own shelves. They very thought makes me happy. :) Hope we both have a great reading year!!
ReplyDeleteI always read what I want. I am trying to go 50/50 with ARCs and non-reviews books. I am not off to a great start (16 books so far this year, 9 were ARCs, 0 were shelf books), but that's why it's a goal.
DeleteOh, oh! Book conventions! And signings! Great goals! Good luck with those. I'm always a bit shy and then end up not going.
ReplyDeleteBefore my daughter went away to college, we used to go to things all the time. Those were the days. They were a ton of fun!
DeleteI, too, hope to read and review from own shelves this year. Good luck with your goals! :)
ReplyDeleteNot doing great with the shelf-love right now (0/16), but it's only January, right?
DeleteAh these are really great ones and a lot of them are ones I share too. I so need to start reviewing right after I read a book. I put it off way too long!!! Good luck with these!
ReplyDeleteMy reviews really suffer when I put them off. Right now I am all caught up and I am trying to keep it that way.
DeleteReviewing books right after reading them is the only way I can review books. If I start another book and go back to review the first book my review ends up being very generic. Reading a few of those back today I catch myself questioning if I even read the book in the first place LOL
ReplyDeleteIt is so much harder for me, if I am try to review after starting a new book, and I agree, I go generic, because the story and feeling is not as fresh in my head.
DeleteI agree with a lot of these - if I don't start writing my review right after I finish a book, I have a harder time writing it. I joined Beat the Backlist to help inspire me to get to more older titles. Good luck with your goals!
ReplyDeleteI was looking at Beat the Backlist. I sort of do a ton of challenges without officially doing them. Backlist may be one of those unofficial challenges for me.
DeleteGreat list! I am trying to read more of my own books this year too :)
ReplyDeleteMy TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2018/01/16/top-ten-tuesday-142/
I have yet to read one of my own books this year, but it's going to happen.
DeleteI'm actually pretty good at not getting sucked into the hype, but I'm always kind of bad at reading recent releases unless it's something I had for review. HOWEVER, I really do want to finish some series (I don't have much) and also start and read some others I've wanted to read for a long time (I have the first book for some of these...) I'm also hoping to read a lot more of the books that I already own as well! Oh, and I DEFINITELY need to review books right after I read them!
ReplyDelete-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net
Since many of the comments on my reviews are something like "I never heard of this book", I think I am ok with hype, but I do let FOMO get to me sometimes. I just need to be careful, because when I read outside of my genre, I tend to not be as impressed by these books.
DeleteGreat list! I need to write reviews right after I read a book. I have a long backlog that I need to get through ASAP!
ReplyDeleteAt the end of last week, I think I had 4 or 5 reviews to write. I was exhausted just thinking about it, but I banged them out with the 3 day weekend, and I want to keep it that way.
DeleteFabulous list of resolutions! #2 (writing reviews for the current book before moving onto the next) is something I already do and it's sooooo helpful! Ohhh and I'm doing #4 this year! It's the RT Booklovers Convention and while I want to attend more days, we'll see, I cant' wait to attend Saturday! I hope you're able to attend another one too!!
ReplyDeleteEvery year, I pour over the RT posts. I would love to go one year. It looks amazing.
DeleteI've made it a habit to review books as soon as I finish them because my memory is absolute crap!
ReplyDeleteI hope you get to go to BookCon one year! I plan on going to ALA in NOLA.
I have been to BookCon every year. Even the year it was Chicago. I really want to go to something else. ALA always looks great, and everyone seems to enjoy it a lot. Not sure NOLA is in the budget. I need something I can drive to.
DeleteThese are amazing goals, I hope you'll be able to succeed in all of these. I also want to balance new releases and backlist titles this year, and give some backlist titles more love. I feel like we often forget them, when there are so many new books coming every month :)
ReplyDeleteI'd love to go to a book convention someday, but I'm in the wrong country for that haha. Hope you'll get to go to one this year :D
I know they have cons in the England and I feel like I have read about ones in Scotland too. OR you can organize your own. Nori from Read Write Love 28 ran a small one in NJ two years in a row. I went both years and it was great. Got to meet some awesome authors.
DeleteWe definitely have the same goals this year! I really need to read more of the books I already own instead buying new ones, (this is why we always have books that just pile up lol) I so want to attend a book convention this year as well! I've been saying I'm going to BEA and every year for some reason it doesn't happen. I don't live too far from DC and book signings happen there pretty often, so I should make the drive to attend a few as well.
ReplyDeleteI have never thought about reading a book from different states. I've only read one book that was set in my home city, all the others tend to be in California, NY, Florida, etc lol.
My co-blogger has gone to BEA for years, but they priced me out last year when they doubled the price for bloggers. There usually is something in DC. I feel like ALA was there not too long ago. Maybe Apollycon? I definitely read a lot of books that take place in California and NY. For some reason, 3 of the 18 books I read this year took place in IL.
DeleteI love your goals!! This is going to be THE year that I read books that I own. I am not making it a goal, I am making it a FACT. I already started by only requesting books that are MUSTS for me. That's a good first step, right??
ReplyDeleteAlso, come to ALA in New Orleans!!! I would love to meet you :)
I always wanted to go to ALA and NOLA, but the con needs to be driving distance. Plane fares are obscene and then car rentals. -- sigh -- But I would love to meet you too!
DeleteOh nice! I sooo wish I could actually attend more signings! They so rarely happen in St. Louis though! It's been better the past few years but still not nearly enough for my little reader/author fangirl heart! Lol! I'd love to attend more conventions too but it's definitely a money issue since a lot of will involve travel and that's it's own set of fees! Good luck to you on completing these!
ReplyDeleteHere's my Tuesday Post
Have a GREAT day!
Old Follower :)
St. Louis seems like a place more tours would stop. I live 40 mins from NYC, so there are tons to go to, but I am all the way near Philly for work, so I can never make them during the week. Traveling to the cons, hotels, etc is why I don't go any more either. There will always be BookCon for me.
Delete:) I have #2 on my list too (along with a couple others).. reviewing books as soon as possible after reading really helps..
ReplyDeleteI am doing really well with that right now. I hope I can keep it up.
DeleteI would love to have a goal of attending more book conventions! Sadly it just isn't possible for me. :( But I do hope to read more of my older books sitting on my shelves this year!
ReplyDeleteLike I said, BookCon is easy for me, but I want to see what else is out there, but sadly, travel may not be in the budge for me this year.
DeleteThese are great goals! One of the things that made you list that I need to work on is writing reviews soon after reading a book. I sometimes wait months...yes, months. That is not a good idea. Last year, I actually had to read some books again in order to write a decent review.
ReplyDeleteMy co-bloggers can write reviews a loooog time after they read a book, but the longer I wait, the less likely it is to ever be written.
DeleteI also want to go to a book convention someday. Let's hope this will be the year to do so!
ReplyDeleteHere’s my TTT!
Ronyell @ Rabbit Ears Book Blog
conventions are so much fun. I just love being among my people.
DeleteI would love to go to more book conventions. All the good ones are far but I'll try to combine them with a family vacation lol. Reading a book from each state sounds fun (I'll have to keep an eye on your posts for book ideas). Good luck on your goals!
ReplyDeleteIn the past, the book conventions were my vacation with my daughter. I don't like to travel far by myself, and she may never come back to NJ. *sad face*
DeleteNumber 10 is sooo important! As are the others, but sometimes I think I forget that. Great list, Sam!
ReplyDeleteLast year, I tried to read more varied types of book, but I find I am happiest when reading my contemporaries. So, gonna read what makes me happy.
DeleteSome good goals. I am with you on number 1, I want to read more of the books I own, but one I already own not just new ones I've bought. I've also gotten a little slack about reviewing after I finish a book. I like to write my initial thoughts on Goodreads then flesh it out when I'm in front of my computer. Hopefully you can read all the books you want (and buy less books if you can). This is a list with quite a few things we all hope to achieve.
ReplyDeleteI am all about reading books on my shelf. NOT buying a book to read. I always write a short blurb on GR, but my best reviews are written right away, because they capture my emotions the best.
DeleteThat final one is big for me---sometimes I just have to face that I'm just not a fan of that certain genre/type of book/author or whatever ... and let it go.
ReplyDeleteNicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction
I was trying to mix it up more, but my favorite books are lighter and contemporary. Therefore, I will read lots of those.
DeleteThese are some excellent goals! I've gotta get myself on track with reading my own books too, and writing reviews sooner is always a good idea. Giving more attention to backlist books is definitely going to be a priority for me in 2018!
ReplyDeleteBecause I am lucky to get lots of NG and EW books, I read a ton of new releases, but there are so many older books I want to read. I am seeking balance this year.
DeleteI don't even want to think about the number of series I am able to finish, but haven't gotten to. Hoping you accomplish all your goals this year!
ReplyDeleteI have so many unfinished series. I am the worst! For someone who cries about closure all the time, I am avoiding it but not finishing my series.
DeleteLoved these goals! These are amazing, I'm trying to read more books of my TBR and buy less books.... I'm not sure about the last one anymore because I just discovered some books that I think I would definitely enjoy LOL ;)
ReplyDeleteI am pretty good about the book buying, because I am really cheap, but I need to read all the books I did buy. I have enjoyed many hyped books, but I am not going to let it make me read outside of my comfort zone.
DeleteSad, my comment was eaten by my wifi cutting out. Whyyy? Anyway. I definitely feel you with #1- I have gotten better, but still not great. And as for #2, I just don't let myself read reviews books early anymore, because I apparently cannot be trusted to not procrastinate writing the reviews unless i have to. Oops. And definitely more book events, that is a great one! The state one sounds super fun, but also probably challenging!
ReplyDeleteCurse you wifi!!! Any who, I am terrible at reading my own books. They are weighing my cloud down and lining two walls of my room, yet I don't read them. I am sick. Sick I say! That is a good strategy. Reading the book closer to your due date.
DeleteI think buying fewer books and reading more of what you already own is on a lot of people's lists for this year! It's on mine, and it helps that I have plenty on my own shelves and not much money for spending. I also really need to work on writing my review right after reading the book... in the second half of last year I didn't write any reviews which is disappointing because I want to share about those books too!
ReplyDelete