It’s New Year’s Eve, and the minds of many people are turning towards establishing aims and goals for the coming year. For some it is to move those underused muscles a bit more, or perhaps a change of diet or hobby. If you are seeking inspiration, you have perhaps come to the right place. I have just one suggestion for you, read more! If you would like to do so in 2015 but are having problems with motivation, or need to break the habit of turning to other distractions when bored, I recommend signing up for the Goodreads Reading Challenge. What the challenge is in a nutshell, is a way to track how many books you have read in the year, and you pick the number you aspire to read.
I am delighted to say that I sighed up for the challenge in 2014 and completed it. I wanted to read fifty-three books, just over one new book each week. There is no way that I would have read as many without the challenge hanging over my head, pushing me on. I have suggested it to people who are finding returning to reading difficult, and they had some concerns about how the challenge would impact styles of reading. In this post I will address those concerns through the lens of my own experiences.
Goodreads Challenge
1. The risk of avoiding longer books to keep up with the challenge:
This is a very real concern when undertaking a challenge such as this. If you are two or three books behind you might be tempted to avoid that George R.R. Martin tome and reach for book which is basically a pamphlet instead. In response I say, so what? I am one of those people who are guilty of living by the mantra, “I like big books and I cannot lie.” Because of this, I have missed wonderful stories and tales contained in smaller packages. Take the Goodreads Challenge as an opportunity to explore shorter books and you just might discover a new, petite, favourite. In 2014 for example, I discovered Death of Grass by John Christopher, a great read which I never would have considered before.
Yup…
2. Forcing people to read will not make reading any more enjoyable:
This was definitely the case for me with school and university. Large reading lists squeezed the joy out of spending an evening with my nose stuck in a book. I fell out of the habit, much to my regret, and lost out on much reading time. So if you are seeking to change the habit of reaching for the TV remote or opening social media when you have a free minute, signing up for a challenge may help. Yes at the start it may feel that you are forcing it, but my the middle, if not earlier, you will be reading like the internet has evaporated off the face of the earth. Also the fact that the challenge is voluntary, with the ability to set your own goals, acts as a buffer against the feelings of obligation which makes hobbies so burdensome.
3. Books are expensive, how can I afford a year’s worth of books?
As I said above last year I read a total of fifty-three books. Buying fifty-three books was not an option for me in my financial circumstances. Many people are in the same boat as me; rent, heat and food must come first! But luckily for us there are ways we can get our hands on coveted books without spending lots of money. First I would say become reacquainted with your local library. Most of them are fee, or have a nominal membership fee, and they are full of wonderful books, across a wide range of genres, waiting to be discovered. Some libraries will even order in books for you if your desired read is not on their shelves while others will permit you to visit libraries in other areas with the same membership card.
Sadly libraries are being closed at an astonishing and frustrating rate, and nowadays not everyone has a library close to them. If not the Internet, our previously distracting nemesis, is here to help. Try ebooks on Project Guttenburg or audiobooks on LibriVox. The books available through these services are in the public domain and are free to readers. If you have some cash set aside for books why not hunt for books in local jumble sales, charity shops, or second hand book stores? Let serendipity take over and see what you find, I have often been pleasantly surprised.
4. How will I find the time to read? Will I just be setting myself up to fail?
Setting goals which you cannot or do not meet can absolutely be disheartening. The Goodreads Challenge does not have to sour the reading experiences of those whose time is scarce. I recommend audiobooks so that you can slip reading in while you are commuting, exercising, cooking dinner, cleaning the house, and so on. Without audiobooks I would not have reached my desired target, sitting down to read is just not an option for some people, and that is ok.
As stated previously you set the number of books you hope to read in 2015. Do not be too ambitious and select a number that you find manageable. If you do not meet your final number that is ok too, be proud in the number you did manage. It will be more than you had completed at the start of the year.
My Words On Words 