Happy Tuesday everyone!
Today’s Top 10 Tuesday post is all about my 2024 Reading Goals! I love goal-setting, even for something that is a hobby for me. I have a lot for this week’s post, so I’ll cut the intro and get straight into it!
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Artsy Reader.
1. Read 100 books
Last year, I read 86 books WHILE IN GRAD SCHOOL. I am still shocked that I managed that (although, it really shows how much I used reading to procrastinate). For this year, since I am officially grad school free, I am aiming for 100 books!! Ambitious for me, I know, but after I made the rest of my goals for the year, I thought 100 books was a perfect amount to help reach those other goals.
To reach 100, I have to read approximately 8 books a month. Last year, I mostly read 8-9 books a month (with a few months where I only read 3-4). I think this is an extremely attainable goal for me since I average reading two books a week!
2. Read 10 books from my Book of the Month backlist
As of now, at the beginning of 2024, I have 28 books on my shelf from Book of the Month that I have not read. At the beginning of 2023, I was at 54 so I have made a lot of progress in the last year. Some of those books I unhauled or DNF’d but I am trying to be more mindful of the books I keep on my shelves.
Side note: I have read 88 books from Book of the Month in the three years I have been subscribed! Kind of a fun little statistic to see how much I’ve read vs unread.
I also stopped purchasing Book of the Month every month, only really buying books I know I will read. Additionally, I have a few coworkers with the subscription, so I am usually able to borrow a book from them if I want to read it. This has helped keep my number down!
3. Get my unread tbr percentage down to 40%.
This is going to be the most difficult one. When I say I have a lot of books on my physical TBR, I mean I have A LOT. In March of 2023, I had 216 books on my shelves that I had not read. Insane. As of typing this, I have 187 books unread (51%). My goal is to make the majority of my (hopefully) 187 books read from my physical TBR so that I can finally continue growing my book collection.
I just did the math and I need to read (or unhaul) 55 books on my physical TBR to reach this goal….and that is ONLY if I do not purchase any new books I have not read. I’m excited to come back to this one at the end of the year and see how great my willpower was in 2024.
Note: I do plan on unhauling books this year, as many of the books I have on my physical TBR are almost six years old. I have a list of books that I will get rid of at the end of the year if I do not reach for them.
4. Get Netgalley ratio to 90%.
I started the year with 30 books to read and review from Netgalley.
Now that I am finished with grad school, I am hitting this one hard this year. Just yesterday, I finished a book of my Netgalley backlist, and I am planning on starting another one this week. I would really like to get back into ARC reading and reviewing, especially now that I have restarted my Bookstagram account.
Right now, my Netgalley ratio is at 63%. I have a graphic novel Netgalley reads blog post in the works right now, and I am hoping that reading 6 graphic novels from my backlist will bring up my ratio significantly.
5. Read from more indie authors
I have had Kindle Unlimited for a few years now, and it was honestly a waste of money for me until last year. In 2024, I really want to increase the number of KU books I read, but I especially want to focus on indie authors!
Since getting back into Bookstagram over the past few months, I have built a list of indie authors I would like to check out this year. I already have a blog post planned for some indie reads I am looking forward to this year.
6. Build my Classroom library with more diverse books
This goal isn’t really a personal goal, but rather a career one. I have been slowly building a classroom library in the four years I have been teaching. The school where I work has a library, but I work in a small town and the choices are outdated and have no diversity.
For the first three years of teaching, all of the books in my library were either donated or purchased by me (Book Outlet was my SAVIOR for this), but this year, I was lucky enough to get some money though a grant to build my classroom library!! I already have put in an order, but I really want to focus on diversity when selecting my next round of books. COMMENT ANY SUGGESTIONS FOR 10-12 GRADE STUDENTS! 🙂
7. Post on my blog at least 5 times a month
Not necessarily a reading goal, but a goal that is adjacent to reading nonetheless. I have had this blog for a very long time (7 years..8 maybe? I can’t remember), but I have focused solely on books for about four years now. In those four years, I have accomplished a lot, and my book blog always fell on the back burner.
Over the last few months, I have started being more active on my blog again, and I have loved being more consistent! This is something I really enjoy doing, especially because it makes me appreciate the books I am reading so much more! I think five blog posts a month is a very attainable goal for me, especially since I have a little more free time on my hands!
8. Document all my books into a spreadsheet
This is one that I am likely not going to try to complete until this summer. I would like to catalog all of the books I own, mostly so that I have an easier way to keep track of my unread books. I currently just recount every so often, and it takes a little bit of time.
I have purchased a spreadsheet (I don’t remember from who, but if I find it, I’ll link it!) for Google Drive and will be filling it out slowly when I can!
9. Read 10 Books With Students
Another kind of a weird goal, but I would really like to read more books that my students are reading!
I am currently reading “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder” right now at the suggestion of another student, but there are two other students reading it at the same time as me! It really warms my heart to see high schoolers get excited about me reading a book with them! It feels like a mini-book club in my classroom!
In 2024, I want to continue finding YA books to recommend to my students. So, reading books that some of my students are already reading is a great step to accomplishing that goal!
10. Read From at Least 30 New-To-Me Authors
I am usually really good about reaching this goal without even trying, but I do like to have it on my list regardless. I easily can get stuck with reading authors I have known and loved in the past, so I try to be mindful of what authors I am reading from.
The number may seem high, but I have really made an effort to have more variety in my reading over the past few years. I have read six books so far in 2024, and five of them are from authors I have never read from before!
Phew – that was a lot! Even so, this is my favorite post to make at the beginning of the year because it really allows me to get into a positive mindset for reading! It also gives me something to look back on when I want to check in with my goals!
I am so excited for what 2024 will bring, both in the real world and reading world!
If you are still with me, be sure to answer the question of the day in the comments below!
QOTD: What is the number one reading goal you have made for yourself this year?
Until next time, xx
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