And then it hit me.
I’m not sure that’s how I want to challenge myself this year when it comes to my reading life.
There’s nothing WRONG with the Goodreads challenge. I’ve participated and enjoyed it for the past few years and was fully intending to participate in it again. Even when I barely make my challenge and read way less than everyone else. I’ve been okay with it. (This year I was an overachiever and read 1 past my goal…my goal was low so I set myself up for SUCCESS. 91 books YAY).
Even though my Goodreads reading challenge is not the end-all-be-all of my life by any means, it still is this presence breathing down my neck. It’s everywhere. I mean, most years I’m 30 books behind and not caring so it’s not like it really IMPACTS me or that I take it SO seriously. But it’s always there (especially when I think about picking up a chunky book or a book I know will be a slower read aka non-fiction or super literary adult fiction). Even though any pressure with it is mostly self-imposed even for someone who approaches it very low key, there is still a degree of pressure just by even logging into Goodreads and KNOWING that damn widget is going to let me know where I stand. (Mostly, it’s always YOU ARE BEHIND!)
And I’m not just not sure I want to focus on a NUMBER this year. Maybe I will but at this current moment I’m leaning towards no.
I keep thinking about all the other ways I COULD challenge myself this year in my reading life. Reading more diversely, tackling some classics, getting back into adult fiction, reading genres I’m not well read in, reading more non-fiction, etc. etc. (basically the resolutions I set for myself).
And sure…all these things could be done in conjunction WITH a “number of books read” challenge. But I know my focus will be on that reading count number because I like shiny little widgets and straightforward goals. I read therefore I contribute to my total count per year. I’m feeling a little burnt out from keeping keeping such a close eye on my number count every year.
What I need to wrestle with:
– Do I WANT a number based challenge this year? Would it be so freeing not to think of a numbers based challenge? Do I want to challenge myself for the year AT ALL in terms of my reading life (haha funny because I already came up with reading resolutions before I wrote this post)? Or do I just want to read? Not focus on fulfilling any sort of quota. Surely, I want to be aware of what I’m reading and be intentional, but not have to check off and keep track of things outside of WHAT I read. JUST READ. Maybe in the simplicity of that kind of reading year I’ll have my best reading year yet. Who knows! Maybe the next year I’ll realize it’s more fun to try to shoot for a goal or challenge myself– whatever that may be.
But I really think 2015 may be the year of no number based challenges for me. I’m not even going to keep TRACK of how MANY I’m reading this year until I tally it up at the end of 2015. I’m just going to read. Just as an experiment.
LET’S TALK
Are you doing any challenges? Which ones? Are you aiming to read a certain amount of books or pages? Do you feel pressure when you do set those kind of goals or is it a GOOD sort of pressure for you? Is anyone else feeling like they don’t want to keep track of how MANY books they read until the end of the year?
Trina says
Yeah girl, you do what’s best for you! I do like the GR challenge and set mine ridik high this year, but that’s because I enjoy goals and deadlines to keep me motivated (mostly). I also really love how the reading goal automatically keeps up with what books I read in a year and I don’t have to go manually enter a shelf. I love to categorize and organize like that. I never realized how OCD or goal driven I was until I joined GR, lol. But I can completely see how bloggers who read full time and have to crank out reviews and keep up with all aspects online would get burned out after a few years of sameness with that widget. Your resolutions were great and I think they are a good way to focus on your real intentions with reading instead of the number.
Juhina says
I think i’ll set it at 100.. because i generally read 30+ over it.. however like you said.. you generally think twice about picking up chunky books or adult/non fiction because they take longer to read.. i need to stop doing that and stop hurrying ALL THE TIME to finish book after book after book. I have made resolutions in terms of reading more non review books, more backlisted books, as well as more adult fiction 🙂 those are my three main reading resolutions of 2015
Brandyn says
I wish GR would give different challenge options. I’d like a pg # challenge because I think a total book challenge can lead me to read only shorter fast books. From that last sentence alone I’d be better off following your lead and not setting a goal:)
Rebecca says
I will be doing the GR challenge again, but you make fantasti points! Before blogging, I just read, plan and simple. I don’t read as much as I have in years past and for the past to years have failed it. And I was OK with it. I think I’ll be setting it to 52, a book a week and see how I go from there. If it’s annoying me, it’ll go.
With challenges, I know they’re supposed to “challenge you”, but for me, they work in making me examine my shelves and what I’m actually reading. I don’t let them stress me out. Stress iz bad. I did not do any challenges last year except the GR one, but I think I’m going to participate in a few, plus I’ll be co-hosting Dive Into Diversity! So far I’m looking at LGBT (crossover appeal with #DiversityDive so yay), Aussie, DAC, Discussion and Organization challenge! Bit of a jump going from none – challenge city, huh?
Luna says
I had that problem about two years ago. I made a number goal for myself and I drove in and completely burned myself out by March. Once I got over it, I realized that it’s really not the number but the idea that I could read so much. For many years, I never did any challenges and I feel, now, looking back that I missed out on that. I missed out on proving to myself how productive I was. Especially when others thought my reading was waste of time.
Now when I do a challenge, like Goodreads, I pace myself. So, even through I plan on reading 150 books in 2015, I might start out with a challenge of 50 and once I get close to that I will move it up. By November, I have a good idea of what my final count will (which is hopefully the 150) but I won’t have that “you’re ___ books behind” blaring at me. It leaves me open to improve myself without the pressure of “OMG!! I need to read this many!!”
Alyssa says
Yeah, I’ve heard a lot of people say GR challenges limits their reading scope to easy-to-read books. I’m trying it for the first time this year, but going to take a more relaxed mode.
Runwright says
I haven’t decided on a number yet either. I’m thinking about 50 to give me an average of about one book per week. I think that gives me freedom to do other things and not worry about keeping up or catching up.
Melissa @ Writer Grrl Reads says
YES!!!! OMIGOSH YES!!!! This was my EXACT feelings at this time last year. In fact, I didn’t set a goal at all! I wanted to just focus on reading for the sake of reading, and not worry about the number of books that I completed. I wanted to take the time and savour what I read, rather than rushing through a book in an attempt to attain a number. I also wanted to brave some chunky reads, which I would sometimes shy away from, especially if Goodreads was telling me that I was behind =( But, by March, I got tired of looking at Goodreads asking me to set a challenge, so I ended up just putting in 20 books, which I knew was more than attainable. I think I’d already read 5 books by that point. I “completed” my challenge back in May, and then didn’t worry about it at all. So, I’d say that it’s fine to not set the challenge, or pick something super low and utterly attainable, and then just forget about it. Read for fun, which is really what reading should be about!
Becca Lostinbooks says
If I may make a suggestion, why not set a goal for number of pages read? That way if you feel like a chunky book you won’t feel like you are choosing not to make your goal because every page will count, not just books in the whole. I also like your idea of considering other factors than just quantity. I am doing that for 2015 as well. I am working on a spreadsheet actually to keep up with diversity.
Kyra says
I actually quite like that idea, of reading whatever you want and not worrying about how many books you’re reading. I set my goal half of what I normally set it to (I set it to 50) because I know next year I won’t be able to read much with all the exams and although I hope to beat it, 50 is still an okayish number so we’ll see! 🙂
Cee says
I think it’ll be interesting to see how many books I read without a reading challenge. I’ve entertained the thought of not setting up the Goodreads one from time to time, but I’m a sucker for tradition. I always do it the first day of the new year, and to not do it? Eeek, I feel a bit lost. Lol.
The Goodreads challenge does make you feel a bit pressured to read over your set amount. I always feel guilty if I’m not on schedule. It’s not really good for my mind to always be worrying about being behind or not finishing a challenge. But I’m stubborn. Gotta do it. 😛
Renae @ Respiring Thoughts says
2014 was the first year since I joined Goodreads that I didn’t set a challenge goal. And it was really hard not to at first, because it a fun little self-motivated competition, but in the end I liked it SO MUCH. I didn’t look at the numbers, I just read. I didn’t feel guilty for spending a lot of time with one book or having a re-readathon or not reading anything at all. It was really, really great. And in 2015 I’m about 99% sure I’m not setting a goal either.
So, I mean…I’m a fan of the no goal thing, but I’m also totally in understanding of why it’s fun to set one, you know? 😉
lulufrances says
oh yeah EXACTLY!! I forgot to say in my comment: NO MORE RE-READING GUILT! wuheeey
Chrissi Reads says
I’m going to do the Goodreads challenge, but I’m not going to get too caught up with it. I’m going to have a busy year so reading will be limited. I’ll see how I do… I think it’s a good idea not to put too much pressure on yourself. Reading should be fun! 🙂
The Resurgent Bookworm says
I was thinking the exact same thing ! This was my 1st time and even with a low goal of 25 I couldn’t make it due to a crazy family stuff. So I’m really wondering whether I need to set a number or just see how things pan out – I haven’t decided yet though 🙁
Devan @ Book Strings says
I did much better this year than in the past with my Goodreads challenge. It helped also adding these books to my door in my classroom. It added another accountability, but mostly I just read what I felt like reading at the time. If I wasn’t getting into a book, I’d abandon it. This also helped my reading pace.
Besides the Goodreads challenge, I think I’d like to try this one to try and change up my reading picks a bit: http://media3.popsugar-assets.com/files/docs/Love%26Sex-Love%26Sex-2015ReadingChallenge-print.pdf
Emma @ Miss Print says
I always set a challenge because I like the badges, but I will move it up or down depending on how the year is going. It was interesting this year because I beat my challenge (thanks largely to picture books, granted) but I also read more pages overall than I have since I’ve been tracking such things on goodreads–including a lot more thick books than I have recently read. Good luck whatever you decide to do!
prettybooks says
I try not to take it too seriously, I mainly just like making a list and having that little widget!
Anne @ booksbakingandblogging says
Do what feels best! It’s still a hobby after all. 🙂 I didn’t feel like pressuring myself into reading a certain amount of books this year, so I didn’t set any challenge for myself, and I read 31 books. Now, I feel like I *should* challenge myself to read 50 books in 2015. I’ve got a completely different mindset now than I did last year. Last year I felt I would only get myself worked up over it, and now I think I could use the extra push. Like I said, do what feels good! You could always pass on the challenge for a year, no big deal. Perhaps you feel like doing it again next year. 🙂
Jade @ Bedtime Bookworm says
I’ve had the same thoughts! Especially since this is my first year blogging and seriously getting back into reading, I wasn’t planning on setting any goals or doing any challenges because I wanted to see where my reading tendencies would take me. But of course I’ve already found myself finding challenges I want to do! I’ll probably do some, but with low goals, just as a way of getting my feet wet.
Kristen@My Friends Are Fiction says
I’m with you lady! I’ve decided to not set myself up with number challenges. I want to take it easier this year and focus on what I love and that goes back to creating original content for my blog. I felt so overwhelmed with review books last year I got burned out and my blog suffered some. This year will be different. I will read as many or as few books as I desire. I will have time for other pursuits. YES TO 2015 🙂
Emily says
I have never really felt the pressure to read a certain number of books in a year. I do the goodreads challenge and I typically set my goal fairly low because I like to see that I do accomplish something (in the past I’ve read very few books in a year and more than anything I try to use this as a reminder to read). If I beat my goal then it’s awesome, if I come close then I tried. If I don’t beat it then I definitely look at the types of books I read more than the quantity and try to evaluate if I enjoyed my reading more this year than last or something along those lines. Have I decided on what my “goal” is for this year? No. I’m definitely trying to decide if I still want to set a number goal (I mean I set my goal pretty low but beat it by 10 this year), but we shall see. I think this challenge works differently for everyone but I think it’s all what you prefer to make as your goal. In the end the numbers don’t matter, in my opinion anyway.
Allie says
Most of the time I don’t set number goals, per se, but this year I for sure want to read 20 of the books on my to-read list that have been there for years and years and years. I’m sure I’ll end up reading way more than 20, but it’s a good starting point!
The books I’m going to read are here: http://allieseverydayadventures.blogspot.com/2014/12/lets-read-all-things.html
Lakin says
I completely understand how you might feel that way. I was really happy that I exceeded my goal of reading 100 books by reading 104 but for 2015 I cut my challenge way down to 60 (and I’m thinking of going with 50 just so I don’t have to worry about feeling pressured). This is only because I graduate high school this year, and I’ll probably get a job and I don’t know what College will do to my reading life. Maybe I should just set my goal at 10 and just let it count how many books I read, because really I just like knowing the number of books I’ve read! I’m entering a lot of challenges this year, but I tried to set really, really low and realistic goals!
Bear Allen says
While I see the benefit of the Goodreads challenge, it’s a little stifling to me. Reading turns into a bit of a homework assignment if you set arbitrary number goals. And I wouldn’t be surprised if I ended up picking up shorter books, just to fulfill/exceed my goal. Quality vs quantity… quality always wins.
Then again, I also refuse to count how many books I read each year… so I’m probably not the target audience for the Goodreads challenge.
Best of luck in the new year, Jamie!
lulufrances says
OH MY GOSH JAMIE I COULDN’T EVEN WAIT TO READ THE WHOLE POST BEFORE I STARTED COMMENTING – BUT ALONE THE FIRST TO PARAGRAPHS ALL I COULD DO WAS LITERALLY SCREEECH YES! YES! YES!!!! ABOUT E V E R Y T H I N G!!!!!!
You and me basically have the same goodreads reading goal challenge “problems” (I ‘m always behind but not too bothered because I don’t really care that much but then it’s still alway “THERE” and in December I try to read as much as I can. which is not fun.)
SO one night a few weeks ago I was thining about my reading habits and attitude and after a while I came to the conclusion: NO MORE GR READING CHALLENGE: The moment I settled that I felt such a relief and such a surge of freeedooom haha so yay !! excited about that and Jamie your blog is the best – it mirrors so many of my thoughts when it comes to reading 🙂 Happy and blessed new year! xx
Katherine says
While I have my goal for 60 books, I’m thinking about changing it to a page number goal. For me, it doesn’t seem fair that a Game of Thrones or larger sized book counts for the same amount as a small 100 page novel. Plus, it always makes me want to read the smaller ones for the purposes of hitting 60 books. Maybe I’ll switch to the pages for 2015. Good luck with not counting your books though! I’m sure it will give you a great reading experience.
Katie says
You kind of have to dig for it, but if you go to your bookshelf and click on “stats’ you’ll see a line for each year and you can select either books or pages. My goal last year, and for the coming year is to read “more pages” than last year.
Madiha @ Symphony of Words says
This makes so much sense! I put up my reading goal for 70 books, thinking I would surpass that, but I was only able to read 41 books this year! I might tone it down a bit now…Good luck for 2015, Jamie 🙂
Emmah says
I’m challenging myself to read 52 books this year (so a book a week). And then I’m doing this challenge here: http://www.popsugar.com/love/Reading-Challenge-2015-36071458 (they have a PDF you can print out)
I do feel pressure when I set those kind of goals! It’d really bug me if I didn’t achieve it haha. Though even if I don’t achieve it on GoodReads, I probably will in real life, because they don’t count rereads -__-
Mandy R says
I am doing this challenge too!
There is also a Goodreads group about this challenge here:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/152458
Megan C. Stroup says
Haha I love that 90 is “low” for you. That’s impressive!! And I’m setting a goal for myself to read more nonfiction in 2015; I would like to start exploring new genres. 🙂
Mallory @ The Leaning Tower of Tomes says
I’ve done the Goodreads reading challenge for 2013 and 2014, and surpassed both my goals those years. I’m going to do it again for 2015, but I think the main reason I do it is just to keep track of how many books I read over the year, not to necessarily read a certain amount of books. I’m also doing one challenge: the 105 Challenge (http://leaningtoweroftomes.wordpress.com/2014/12/29/the-105-challenge-for-2015/), in an effort to read a wider variety of books this coming year. But I’m not going to be super hardcore about my two reading challenges–if I complete them, then great, if not, that’s just life!
Ashley says
I think this makes total sense! I’m probably still going to do the reading challenge, but I’m not necessarily going to stick to it. I personally don’t really care if I meet the number or not, I just like to get a quick and easy glance at how many books I’ve read, just out of curiosity.
For instance, I didn’t hit my goal this year (it was 100 books and I read 83), but I didn’t mind at all. I didn’t get stressed over it, I didn’t feel bad about it, I just didn’t care. I only really set a challenge so I can quickly see how many I’ve read, because that kind of interests me. But I never push myself to actually fulfill the goal.
Katie says
I had a similar “epiphany” last year, so I still did the GR reading challenge, but I did a pages challenge instead. You don’t get a badge and you kind of have to dig for it, but if you go to your bookshelf and click on “stats’ you’ll see a line for each year and you can select either books or pages. My goal last year, and for the coming year is to read “more pages” than last year. I don’t even look at how many pages are in a book now!
Cait @ Paper Fury says
This’ll be my 3rd year of doing Goodreads challenges, and I think I still will! It seems to be the only challenge I actually do/care about. Erk. I usually forget if I sign up to any other challenge. >.> I do get what you mean with the pressure though. It gets tiring. I used to just read for like the sheer joy and sometimes I wonder now if I’m reading JUST to fulfil a quota, you know?!! STILL. I do like a challenge and I like numbers and lists of books so…I think I’ll still be doing it. 😉
Lea says
I always do the GR book challenge because I can’t resist. This year I set something really high – I always try to read more books this year than last year – but then made the resolution/goal to read more books longer in length, more “tough” books and less romance/chicklist. Those types of books do not, for me, equal to a high volume. So not to stress about the # I ended up lowering my GR challenge #. Because I couldn’t stand not to meet my goal. Which is kind of silly, who cares?!
Michelle says
2014 was my first year of participating in the GR book challenge. I have to admit that it made me feel more stressed than it should have. I don’t like that feeling. I am all about not feeling pressure when it comes to reading and blogging. Let’s agree to do away with the GR book challenge this year and enjoy 2015!
Rachael @ Rachael Turns Pages says
I always set the goal low so it is easy to pass. I’m going to set it at 60 again this year. I average about 5 books a month, but sometimes I’m a slow reader so I like to give myself some leeway.
Rayna says
I hear you on the GoodReads challenge, but for me it helps me to try and keep a goal for myself. Yes, I want to read at my leisure and everything, but I also rediscovered my love for reading in 2014 and want to read as many books as I can in the upcoming year. I set my goal low to 30, but I made it to 20 in 2014, so I’m hoping I can reach at least ten more books this time around. I don’t really feel pressure so much as a drive and desire to reach that goal and exceed it, if possible. Since also starting my blog, I’ve been enjoying giving reviews and talking about what I liked or didn’t like in a book, etc. It’s fun and exciting! I hope your challenge goes well this year.
Nadia says
I totally get how you feel, I felt that way a few years ago too. What worked for me was setting the challenge to a default of 50 books each year, because that’s pretty much my average, if I surpass it good if not then okay. I just use the widget to keep track of what I read in the year and like a little motivational boost.
But this year I’m trying something different. I’m joining a TBR challenge for the second year in a row, and my goal is reading 24 books from my tbr, so that’s the number I set for my GR challenge too. Hopefully it will help me out diminishing my unread books.
It’s good that you noticed what doesn’t work for you. Reading is fun and you shouldn’t feel stressed by it! Best of luck Jamie! Happy New Year!
Ash @ Typing Tiara says
I feel the same way about the chunkier reads. It’s a sort of guilt that you’re taking the time to read that one book when you could be using it to read several smaller books and without fail those chunkier books always launch you behind the challenge which makes you not want to even read them in the first place. Which means I have tons of chunkier books still on my shelves because with how high I normally set my challenge I feel like I really just can’t afford to give those books the time that they deserve.
Ultimately I decided to knock my challenge down from my usual two hundred books to only one hundred books for the year and within that I want to read at least ten classics, try to branch out into other genres more, and I’m doing the PopSugar Reading Challenge. Which now that I type it all out still seems like a lot. I might end up bumping my challenge down yet again.
It’s hard to decide for sure, because like you I like watching that widget. Decisions, decisions.
Becky B says
Yes, I tried the Goodreads challenge a while back and didn’t like keeping track of what I read. I think counting everything makes it feel forced like reading for English in school used to. I like your goal of diversifying your reading and just reading more.
I think I’m going to try to get more of my NetGalley and TBR pile books, and throw in some comic books too this year.
Tanya Patrice says
I change the number throughotu the year so I’ll always win the Goodreads Challenge 🙂 But honestly, I stopped letting it affect me a year or 2 ago. It used to make me only read shorter books, and do crazy things like turn to picture books to complete it – sn’t that neurotic?!
Mary @ Books In Her Head says
You know what, I completely agree. I had been planning on setting a goal, but after not finishing my goal for 2014 by a huge number and remembering the cringes I felt looking at the number of books that I was behind made the Goodreads challenge not feel worth it. The Goodreads book challenge does prevent me from reading longer books, from reading things like magazines and articles that don’t count towards the goal. And yet today, on January 1st when I went onto Goodreads and saw the slot to type in my 2015 goal my fingers were itching to type in a number . Maybe this year I’ll type in something super doable, like 80 books and then just relish in beating that number. Or, I could stick with my original plan to not be bogged down by the ridiculous notion that the number of books you read in a year defines you as a reader or a blogger. I can’t foresee what I might impulsively do in the future, but I think that it would be better for my enjoyment of reading to not set a goal this year.
Mpur Chan @ Reading Wonderland says
I’m doing a Goodreads reading challenge. 2015 is the first year I’m doing it. So, I’m kinda excited. I plan to read 60 books this year. In average, I have to read about 5/6 books per month. Oww, yeah… I think that amount is high. The problem is that I am bad at time management since I spend most of my time at work. But, that’s the challenge, right? 🙂 This challenge is not only about reading but also about learning how to manage time. 🙂
Danielle says
Last year I did the reading challenge, but this year I don’t want to. Instead I have other goals like reading all of my unread books, read at least one Classic, etc. It sounds better and more fun to me than obsessing over the amount I read.
tabithasbookblog says
I’m not interested in doing a numbers related challenge this year. Quality over quantity, right? This last year I was beyond overwhelmed with the pressures of being a book blogger that I just stopped for awhile. And I love blogging so I knew I had to change the way I look at blogging.
I made a Goodreads goal of 100, just so I would stop getting the alerts. And I’m doing the Contemporary, Re-read, and Rory Gilmore Reading challenge this year. And then the “Let me Count the Ways” which just keeps track of word count.
Love this post!!
Daniel says
Perhaps it’s just me, but I’m still not phased with chunky books with a goal/challenge in numbers. I set my goal at 50 last year, and made it, and managed to read all of ASOFAI, which meant that nearly 1/4 of all the pages I read, was from 5 books!! I don’t let it come into my mind about oh I need to read so many books to reach my goal, until it gets to December, and I see, well, if I read 11 books, I’ll make it, so I make an effort. And I don’t feel guilty for not reading anything, or taking my time, because the goal isn’t everything to me.
Emma @EverEmma says
I’m really trying to move away from numbers this year. I feel like goals with numbers really just end up holding me back and have nothing to do with the person I want to be! The only reading challenge I’ll be participating in is a seasonal challenge over at Semi-Charmed Kind of Life (http://megancstroup.blogspot.com/2014/10/semi-charmed-winter-2014-book-challenge.html). This forces me to be a little big more intentional when it comes to my reading, without overwhelming me.
Heather says
I was disappointed when I didn’t make my goal this year – especially since I was ahead of the game u til the last couple of months I just couldn’t get into reading! I then automatically signed up for the 2015 Goodreads Challenge without even a second thought. It would be fun to not truly keep track on the challenge until the end of the year – maybe it will remove some of the pressure and I can get more “quality” reads out of it instead of just reading whatever short book I can find in order to reach my goal! I’m glad you brought this up and I will definitely think on this some more!
Laura Plus Books says
Best of luck with this! I think it’s amazing that people are choosing to just read. I set my goal at 40 which is reasonable enough that I don’t find it pressuring at all. I find it more motivating than anything else. 😀
Jamie says
I used to find it very motivating early on and then it just got to be too much for me which is sad! Who knows what this little challenge of mine will bring. I’m curious if I’ll find it didn’t push me to read or if maybe I’ll read the same-ish! I wonder how I’ll feel at the end of next year vs. the end of 2014 (burnt out).
Good luck with your goal!!
Holly (Holly's Reading Hollow) says
For 2014 I did exactly what you are doing for 2015! I didn’t make a set number of books to read in 2014. Instead I had specific reading goals I wanted to accomplish, mostly revolving around reading books with different publication and/or acquired dates, and it went really well (which you can read about by clicking my account name)! I didn’t make all of the goals, but this gave me so much freedom to read whatever the heck I wanted and I loved it. I also took a step back from blogging and it helped me refocus my love for reading and blogging by the time the end of the year rolled around. Such a great decision and I think it’ll be great for you too! I love your 2015 book goals; best of luck with reaching them!
Jackie says
The only challenge I’m doing this year is the Goodreads Challenge, heh! I’ve tried doing other challenges in the past– fairytale retellings, more non-fiction, sci-fi, etc. but those were too constricting for me. The moment I declared I was going to read more sci-fi, the genre suddenly became unappealing and all I wanted to read was high fantasy. It was really counter productive. So, now I just declare a number, and let my mood dictate the types of books I want to read.
I certainly have types of books that I’m interested in exploring– sci fi (of course) and graphic novels, but if I don’t read those this year, that will be okay because my nose was still buried in other books I’m sure I will love. As for the Goodreads challenge…well, I’ve never met it and all I’ve ever declared is 50 books! And, I have no hard feelings about that either. I’m a very distracted reader. I’ve accepted that.
Kristilyn (Reading In Winter) says
I do like challenging myself to read a certain number of books a year, especially when it’s something that’s totally attainable. For me, 100 books is doable and at least then I feel like I’m making a dent in my reading list and keeping up with the authors I love. It IS totally stressful, though, when you see how far behind you are in it (it’s currently saying I’m one book ahead … yay!). That’s the only real challenge I do, though. I do want to strive to read more Canadian, but I don’t want to push myself. I still love reading what I want, when I want. It’s always when I sign up for other challenges that I burn and fail … best to keep it simple!
Eisya says
I am writing a serial of blog posts on challenging one’s reading. I’m researching about Goodreads reading challenge when I stumble upon your post. Despite being an active Goodreads user, I’ve never attempted the reading challenge. I’m more concerned of quality than quantity of books. Hence I started a book club amongst my close friends. I enjoyed our book club discussions because they challenge my way of thinking and allows me to listen to views of others. It’s also a good reflective exercise.
I’ve written a short post on how to establish a book club. Feel free to visit at http://ssreaderscorner.wordpress.com/2014/10/15/challenge-your-reading-1-join-a-book-club-or-a-reading-group/
Mel@thedailyprophecy says
I love to do challenges to, well, what the word says: challenge myself. I like the idea of pushing myself to do new things, like with some challenges I have to read outside my comfort zone 🙂 I don’t mind if I don’t achieve my goals. It never feels like failing to me, because reading is a hobby and you can’t fail at that – only when you don’t enjoy yourself 🙂 This year I set a lower goal than before, because I know I’ll be busy and this is realistic to achieve. I can always put it higher if I feel like it.
kimberlybuggie says
This is such a great question. I used the same number as last year but I agree, I’m not sure I’m going to go for a number at all. It’s more important for me this year to read books I’ve wanted to read for a while that are larger and more intimidating! So that might take the number down low, but I might enjoy longer adventures!
Good luck with whatever you decide. Sometimes though it’s not the number!
brittany @ The Book Addict's Guide says
YES. I pretty much always feel the pressure and WHY do I do this to myself!? I normally read between 120-130 books so this year I set my goal to 100. I do like to participate in the GR challenge but I also don’t want to stress myself out this year! If LIFE happens. I can’t stress about not reading. I’m sure I’ll get ahead and I’ll feel great! (I mean, I hope)
Deanna says
I totally understand this. When I was reading A song of ice and fire I didnt make the goal I set because those books are long. I’m still doing the challenge on goodreads but I dialed it down to 30 which is totally doable. I also want to do rereads and I find the challenge holds me back from that. I’m also doing a few reading challenges to shave off my very long Tbr list!