2019 Reading Resolutions and Goals

Coming off my worst reading year since I started keeping track (2009), I was hesitant to make many elaborate resolutions or goals. Then, I looked at last year's goals, which were good for quite a few laughs, as I accomplished none of them. But, I realize, I like making goals, even if I won't actually meet them. I'm not quite sure why that is, but perhaps it relates to my love of making lists. So, I have two sets of goals this year: the realistic (resolutions) and the less realistic (goals).

Call me cynical or call me realistic, but I will be shocked if I manage them all. And, really, isn't it more fun to have fun?

2019 Reading Resolutions:

1. Read more than in 2018.
This should be easy, right? The bar (54 books) is so low. If I'm being honest, I'm really hoping to read 104 books, which is two a week. That should be relatively easy too, as that's more in line with a typical year.

2. Write about each book I read in 2019.
Since I got into Litsy, I realize I write quick reviews there when I finish books, and I've all but abandoned this space. I want to make them work together better, so in 2019 I'm going to post reviews on Litsy once they're published here. Not each post will be a review. Some might be a sentence, some might be letters, some might be lists. I want to write whatever I feel like writing about each book. The important thing to me is writing something about each one.

I can manage these things. More importantly, I want to do these things. I've finished one book in 2019, and I've already reviewed it!

2019 Reading Goals

In 2019, I am re-embracing Reading Challenges. I think I need both goals and community support to push me to read more. I have signed up for more challenges than I can likely complete, and that's okay with me. I'm drawn to challenges that both allow me to read books I would read anyway, push me to read books I've meaning to, and challenge me to read things I otherwise wouldn't. Here are the challenges I've starting (listed in order of which I'm most committed to finishing:

1. Reading Women

I mostly read women, so this challenge is compelling. Of the 26 prompts, there isn't a single one that I'm dreading. It's a nice, diverse list. There's also a GoodReads group for participants. I'll use the hashtag #ReadingWomen2019 to track my progress.

2. Booked 2019

Booked 2019 is big on Litsy, and the prompts are mostly exciting. It's also a relatively easy challenge, as you read six books per season. For me, about one prompt a season will be a push, and that's about right. I'll use the hashtag #Booked2019 to track my progress.

3. Around the Year in 52 Books

This challenge is both the biggest (52 books), and the most restrictive: there's a prompt for each week. Some are easy. Some are really hard. I'm prioritizing it because I need that weekly push to keep myself out of slumps. And if I don't, I won't stand a chance. I'll use the hashtag #AtY2019 to track my progress.

4. Hello Sunshine

At the end of 2017, Book of the Month provided the best book recommendations for me. Early in 2018, changes in the editorial team (who are not bad, but I think they have very different taste than I do) made that a less successful source of recommendations. Instead, I found myself really enjoying Reese Witherspoon's picks. They're a nice mix of fiction, mystery, and nonfiction. I've read six of the eighteen picks from 2017-2018, so I'm challenging myself to read the twelve backlist picks, as well as all 12 2019 picks. I'll use the hashtag #HelloSunshine to track my progress.

5. Pop Sugar

I debated doing the Pop Sugar challenge, as it's one of the longer ones, and some of the prompts are hard (and unappealing), but I'm going to give it a go because a lot of the prompts are fun. The GoodReads group is a nice community too. I'll use the hashtag #PopSugar2019 to track my progress.

6. Read Harder

I've always wanted to do this Book Riot challenge, but I never have. This might not be my year, as some of the categories are really hard, but a lot are really fun, and it's geared toward reading diversely, which is really important to me. Again, the GoodReads group is great too. I'll use the hashtag #ReadHarder2019 to track my progress.

7. Litsy A to Z

I jumped on this challenge as a whim because so many people I follow on Litsy do it. The premise is simple: read 26 books, one for each letter of the alphabet. You can choose to use all titles (first letter of the first word, not counting articles), authors (first letter of last name), or a mix. I chose a mix because it's easier. You can also add an optional challenge category. I picked to count only books by women. This is the only challenge I haven't mapped out some or all of my picks, but I want to give it a few months and see how far I get first.

So....there's probably no way I will finish all of these, even with double (and triple and quadruple) counting books. I'm aiming to only count each book once for each challenge, but it can count for as many challenges as possible. For now, I'm having a lot of fun with the challenges. If they stop being fun, I'll probably stop doing them. I like the Litsy and GoodReads communities for each of them, and I like a sense of structure to my reading.

Now tell me: what are your reading goals and resolutions this year?

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