2021 has arrived! And my first post of the year will be a Let’s Talk Bookish discussion. Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books and Dani @ Literary Lion. This week’s topic is Reading Resolutions and this was actually a topic I suggested, so let’s get stuck in!
Do you set reading resolutions in the New Year? Are they helpful?
I haven’t set myself any formal reading resolutions in the past. But I usually have a goal of a number of books I want to read and a general resolution to read more which has varying results!
This year though I think I might set some more specific goals, such as finishing or continuing particular series, and identifying some books that have been on my TBR for years that I really need to get round to.
I think resolutions can be helpful, and that’s why I’m thinking of setting some this year. Especially with a growing number of books I want to read and having more time to read at the moment, I feel like I’m just going to end up flailing around in a sea of books (literally and metaphorically).
Do you look back to see if you stuck to your goals?
Although I don’t set a specific TBR for myself, I do usually have some books in mind at the beginning of the year that I want to read, so I do like to look back and see how many of them I actually ended up reading. I also do track how many books I’ve read throughout the year and whether or not I’m going to hit my goal.
Do you ever feel pressured/stressed by these resolutions?
I think I’ve often been put off by the idea of having specific resolutions as I didn’t want to feel pressured by them. This year I think I’ll set some loose resolutions, but not be too strict with myself about it because I don’t want it to become a stressful thing.
Do you participate in the GoodReads challenge?
Yes! I have to admit I do get a bit obsessed with checking my progress and working out if I’m going to reach my goal in time. Sometimes I feel like it could potentially suck the fun out of reading when I’m always thinking about how many books I have left to read in the year. But at the same time, I do enjoy having a goal. I usually set something that is a challenge, but is still actually realistic, otherwise I would get stressed out by it.
Do you like setting reading goals or resolutions at the beginning of the year? I’d love to know what you think so chat with me in the comments!
The Last Book On The Left 
I always set a goal for number of books at 52. It’s not that it’s been too much of a challenge to set it but more about the mindset of consistent reading and for me a good pace is one book a week on average.
For the past few years I’ve also set myself the goal of finishing series and being really concious about picking up sequels but I’m now at the stage where I’ve finished a lot of my series and this year I just want to start all the new series that have been sitting on my tbr or I’ve had an eye on.
2020 was also a really successful year for reading non fiction that I loved so wanting to read more this year as well.
It’s great that you’ve got a system of goal setting! I’d like to try and not leave such long gaps between books in series, I often end up starting a lot of series and loving them, but for some reason leaving big gaps before I read the sequels, and I end up forgetting what happened in the previous books, so that’s something I definitely need to get better at!
I think it’s something we all deal with. I’ve found that if I have a lot of series on the go then it’s easier to focus on the ones where there’s only 1-2 books left and then you feel more accomplished reading them down and it all becomes a lot more manageable.
All the best for your 2021 reading