Top Ten Tuesday – My Top 10 Bookish Goals & Resolutions for 2018
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!
This week’s TTT topic is Bookish Resolutions/Goals for 2018. This is a topic that has been on my mind a lot lately since we’re at the start of a new year. I did pretty well with most of my goals last year, but there’s definitely always room for improvement.
Here are some areas that I hope to work on for the upcoming year…
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MY TOP TEN BOOKISH RESOLUTIONS/GOALS FOR 2018
1. GET BETTER ABOUT SCHEDULING AHEAD (I.E. STOP PROCRASTINATING!)
Procrastinating is probably one of my worst habits as a blogger and it’s something I really need to work on. I finally started using the built-in Schedule Posts feature on my blog late last year, but thus far, I’ve not been very good at scheduling more than a few days ahead. I’d like to work toward having at least 2 weeks’ worth of posts scheduled at all times. I’m a procrastinator at heart but if I can improve on this, it will make my life so much easier.
2. MAKE A DENT IN THE ENORMOUS PILE OF UNREAD BOOKS THAT I ALREADY OWN.
Between the physical books in my house and the e-books on my Kindle, I probably have enough unread books to keep me busy for at least a couple of years. It’s time to really do something about that, both in terms of reading more of them and in purging the ones I’m just not interested in reading anymore. I’ve joined the Beat the Backlist Challenge again this year in hopes that it will keep me motivated to achieve this goal.
3. WRITE MORE DISCUSSION POSTS.
This was one of my goals last year as well and while I did okay with it, I’d like to do better this year. Part of my issue last year in addition to the eternal struggle to come up with topics to write about is that because of my extreme procrastination (see Goal 1), I never seem to have enough time to actually sit down and write discussion posts. If I can get Goal 1 under control, hopefully there will be more time to work on discussion posts. I also joined a discussion challenge in hopes of facilitating this goal.
4. FINISH MORE SERIES.
This goal kind of ties in with Goal 2. I have so many series where I read the first book, loved it, purchased the next books, and then nothing… Since I am also constantly starting new series, it’s time to finish up some of those that have been lingering for ages.
5. REQUEST ARCS MORE SELECTIVELY.
Now that I’ve been consistently reviewing for almost 2 years, I have been getting approved for a lot more ARCs than I used to. I’m starting to reach that point where I have too many sitting in my queue waiting to be read and because I don’t want my ARCs to turn into the same problem I have with older books, I want to work on being more selective about the ARCs I request. I’d love to be able to keep my Netgalley percentage at 80% for more than 10 minutes, lol.
6. READ AND PROMOTE MORE DEBUT AUTHORS.
I guess this one is self-explanatory but I also signed up for a challenge to motivate me to achieve this goal. I’m hoping to read at least 12 debut authors this year.
7. CONSISTENTLY POST AT LEAST 5 TIMES A WEEK.
I’m pretty confident that I will never be one of those bloggers who is able to post everyday. I’m just not a good enough planner for that, and I know I’d be setting myself up for failure to even attempt it. I managed to post at least 4 times a week all last year and sometimes even made it up to 5 or 6 posts on weeks where life wasn’t too chaotic. I’m aiming for 5 posts every week this year. Fingers crossed!
8. STOP COMPARING MYSELF TO OTHER BLOGGERS.
This is probably as much a mental health goal as it is a blogging goal, but I want to really focus on just doing my own thing and not comparing myself to other bloggers. My favorite part about blogging, aside from the community itself, is that there really is no right or wrong way to blog. When I first started blogging, I remember reading comments out on social media from fellow bloggers “I don’t understand why some bloggers do __________.” (fill in the blink with the nitpick of your choice). Comments like that used to stress me out and make me second guess everything I was posting and feel like a failure. After almost two years of blogging, however, I’m getting better about ignoring comments like that. Once I was able to do that, I started enjoying blogging so much more. I want to continue that trend this year.
9. REMEMBER REAL LIFE IS GOING TO GET IN THE WAY OF BLOGGING SOMETIMES & THAT’S OKAY.
This goal ties in with Goal 8 and not stressing over my blog. Even though I know real life comes first and that it’s occasionally going to get in the way of whatever I’m doing with my blog, I still have those freak out moments when I don’t get to post as often as I had planned or if it takes me a few extra days to visit all of the blogs I want to visit. My goal for this year is to really stay mindful of the fact that blogging is a hobby. If I have to step away from it to attend to real-life issues that come up, it will still be here when I come back. The blogging community isn’t going to forget I exist because I had to take a few days off.
10. EMBRACE MY INNER MOOD READER.
I had a few moments last year where reading felt like a bit of chore. I won’t call it a slump because I was still okay with the books I was reading, but even though I enjoyed them, sometimes I felt like I was forcing myself to read popular books even if I wasn’t really into them at the moment. This year I want to make a point to listen to my inner mood reader. If my inner mood reader has no interest in reading a popular book that has been super-hyped, but would rather I pick up my old copy of Pride and Prejudice and re-read that instead, then I’m going listen to the mood reader rather than force myself to read something I’m just not feeling at the moment.
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These are all really good goals, even though they aren’t ones I’m personally aiming for. I’d Like my TBR to go down a bit though! I have a personal resolution very similar to number 8, but for life in general 😊
Amy x
Thanks! I hear you on number 8. I need to do the same in my personal life as well. Hopefully we’ll both be successful on that one.
All such good ones, and I have a lot of overlap with you. I struggle with the comparing thing, so I like that you included that on your list. Good luck with all of these things.
Thanks! Good luck with your goals too!
What a great list – I should definitely try harder at 2, 5 and 8.
Easier said that done of course.
Lynn 😀
i know, right? I’m going to try really hard to accomplish all of these, but we’ll see, lol.
Good luck with your goals! I’m a procrastinator when it comes to my blog, too. That might be why I struggle with discussion posts, too. 🙂
Hopefully we’ll both be successful when it comes to discussion posts this year 🙂
Such great goals. I especially like the write more discussion posts. Looking forward to reading those.
Thanks! I think that’s the one I want to work on the most. It has consistently been my biggest weakness ever since I started blogging.
These are great goals!! Definitely share some with you – read more of my books and select less ARCs. Good luck!!
Thanks! Good luck to you too!
those are great resolutions! especially the not comparing yourself to other bloggers & finish more series!! i intend to (try) and finish all the series i started last year!! should be fun xD
Yes, I’m really looking forward to finishing or at least continuing some series this year. I have left too many hanging after the first book, lol.
I think we all struggle with comparing ourselves to others! That’s something I want to work on this year, too. I also want to do more discussion posts, but coming up with original content can be so hard!
I agree! Usually I feel like I’m rehashing something that has already been talked about everywhere else.
My biggest one is to tackle the books I haven’t read that I own. At the moment that list is only at 12 books so I’m good. I also want to try writing reviews and posting them to my blog. My bookish posts seem to get the most traffic.
That sounds like a great plan to me 🙂
Procrastination is one of my biggest blogging stumbling blocks! It’s how I ended up being 6 months behind on reviews. Oops! I need to be better about it in the new year. Thanks for the reminder 🙂
Good luck with your resolutions. Happy TTT!
Hopefully that is one goal we both succeed at this year 🙂
great resolutions Suzanne! I Especially like not comparing yourself because I do that to! I agree that some posts and comments are just plain negative. I remember when I started blogging there were a lot of “Why I don;t follow your blog” posts with things like “because you only post tours” “because your blog aesthetics are not pleasant” I was like WOW!!! Thank god they kind of stopped or… maybe I also got better at ignoring them 😉
Your blog is awesome! Have no doubts!
I remember seeing a lot of that as well. While I’d love to think those kind of comments have disappeared, I think I’ve just gotten better at ignoring posts and comments like that. Thanks! I enjoy visiting yours too 🙂
I think these are all great bookish/blogging goals. I definitely want to read more of the books that I already own. I’m already doing pretty good with not requesting too many ARCs, but I still have some I need to get through so once I’m on top of that, I should be okay with a back and forth of my review books and my own/library books.
-Lauren
That’s what I’m hoping to do as well.
Some great goals you have here, good luck!
My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2018/01/16/top-ten-tuesday-142/
Thanks!
I love your goals, Suzanne! I hope to be better about scheduling ahead too. I do good for awhile and then stop because I’m ahead to enjoy the sudden free time, forgetting I need to keep going or else I’ll have nothing to post. I really need to stop beginning new series until I finish or catch up on the ones I’m reading… Good luck with all your goals!
Haha, that’s exactly what I do. I pat myself on the back for getting a few days ahead and then somehow end up behind again almost immediately.
This list of goals is seriously perfect! I’m with you on all of these – especially those first few, like being more picky about ARCs and scheduling more blog posts ahead of time! I have a really bad habit of not writing a post until 1-2 days before it posts, or sometimes even the morning of the day it posts, and it leaves me feeling really pressured and stressed out.
Same here and I’d like to alleviate that stress and pressure. I definitely do not want my hobby to become a source of additional stress in my life, lol.
Scheduling really does relieve pressure. I used to be so good at it! I’m doing okay so far this year.
I agree. The few times I’ve managed to get a little ahead, I’ve felt so much better about my blogging.
Great goals! I’m definitely aiming to get better at scheduling ahead and reading more backlist books too, but I especially love your last few goals about not comparing yourself to other bloggers, being ok with real life getting in the way sometimes and embracing your inner mood reader 🙂
Thanks! I saw that you’re going to listen to your inner mood reader more too. Hopefully we’ll both be successful with that one 🙂
Ugh, these sound like things I NEED to do. I always tell myself that I’m going to be more selective with ARCs, but no. I don’t.
I’m afraid to look at what books I have on my kindle. Maybe I’ll do COYER (I forget what it stands for, but it’s about reading ebooks) some point this year.
Overall, I’m saying “Sammme” to all of these and I believe in you! GOOD LUCK SUZANNE!!!
Thank you!!!
These are awesome goals! I think it’s hard to just let life happen sometimes, and its great never to compare yourself to others. There’s more then enough books and reviews needed for all of us to have a place in the blogging community!!
Exactly! Well said.
I just visited your blog but for some reason, it’s not giving me the option to comment on any of your posts. I’ll try back later.
I’m kinda relating to all of these! Especially real life/ scheduling and discussion posts. I want to do a lot more discussions this year if I can swing it…
Good luck with these, great list of goals!!
Thanks Greg!
I think you’ve shown great intelligence in your list of blogging goals – particularly with your resolve not to compare yourself to other bloggers. Like you, I think that route leads to madness. I enjoy reading a series of excellent book blogs, but we all have different time pressures on us, so it’s unhelpful at best and daft at worst to try and model ourselves on other people’s blogs. Best of luck with your goals:)).
Thanks! And yes, exactly. It just adds unnecessary stress and pressure to what is supposed to be a fun hobby.
I am a mood reader too. And I have become very very picky with my reads. We cannot read them all
Exactly. Too many books, too little time.
It may be my first TTT, but I found it comforting that so many bloggers are thinking along the same lines when it comes to scheduling, ARCs and discussion posts to name a few. Which actually makes me realise your number 8 is an important one for me too 🙂 Great list, Suzanne!
Thanks!
These all are great goals! I want to read more of my older books this year too. Last time I counted (a couple of years ago so it’s definitely grown since then) I had 400 unread books, which is just insane to think about lol I feel like number 8 and number 9 are really important as well. It’s so easy to start comparing yourself to others, but I always try to remind myself why we’re all in this at the end of the day: because we love books. Good luck!!
Thanks!
Great goals and good luck! I can relate to several of these and I am working on getting through my backlist as well. It is crazy how books can just accumulate. I don’t think my NetGalley percentage has ever gotten to 80 lol.
Funny enough I don’t schedule posts ahead of time, I like to start up posts and save them as drafts before finally publishing. Enjoy your weekend!
Thanks, you too!