Goodbye 2021, hello 2022!
Well book buds, we’ve made it to the end of 2021. As I sit here wrapped up in almost every blanket in my home (cold people come through) I wanted to reflect a little on what this year of reading added up to, goals for next year and tips for anyone looking to get into a reading (of any genre) habit.
Let me start by saying that I had zero goals for this year. I read what I liked, and just kept reading. I read some really spectacular things, some wacky things, and some straight up terrible sh*t that I wont bore you with. Okay, final book read count is (drumroll intensifies)…
Four hundred and forty six books!
Y’all, that is quite the shelf of books I amassed this year. Which look, is a lot, and I am a childless, married human that works from home, and really doesn’t do a whole heck of a lot other than reading. That being said, I am actually really proud of myself. Especially when I had no expectations for my book count other than to keep this hobby up. A hobby that deeply helped me deal with a year of high (and ongoing) anxiety while continued pandemic-ery, abounded.
I found that I am a serious mood reader! Meaning I read what I am in the mood for not what I think I should read. I’ve found that I like to mix up the sub-genres (unless I’m enthralled by a series) and will rarely read the same type of romance back to back. Why this works for me? Well they say the variety is the spice of life, and keeping my interest peaked has been key to keeping my reading habit going this year.
I am completely serious when I say that romance novels did the lions-share of keeping my mental health supported as a means of escapism and comfort when I sometimes struggled to know where to go looking for them. It’s not a replacement for doing the work in therapy, not at all, but my god did it help me find tangible moments of joy among all the chaos.
Thinking about starting a reading habit of your own? Here are my top tips* to approach getting into the groove.
If you’re having trouble concentrating when reading, create conditions to get focused.
I struggled at first to “get into” a book and would find my attention being pulled in multiple directions. Depending on your abilities, this may not be a problem but my nerodivergent ass needs quiet, or ambient noise to focus on the words on the page.
Determine the difference between not for you, and not for you right now.
I have struggled with dropping or DNF’ing a book. For some reason it always feels like some failure on my part. But I have angry-read far too many books this year that I just didn’t like because I created some stupid rule for myself that included not DNF’ing a book. Dumb. If you’re not feeling a book, don’t read it. Who cares if that revelation arrives at page 5 or 550. Not feeling it? Turf that sh*t.
Find all kinds of ways to add reading to your day.
On the treadmill? In the bathtub? During your lunch-breaks? Listen to an audio book while you work, if that is available to you. Fitting reading into my day really upped my habit and gave me little moments to look forward to.
Be open to all kinds of stories.
This one should be pretty standard no? I have been brought to my knees this year by books and stories I never would have thought would have resonated (cough-big blue aliens-cough).
Read what you love.
There is no right way to be a reader. Listen to audiobooks. Read fanfic and WebToons. Let the best part of storytelling take you away for a little while. Read what YOU love and don’t carry an ounce of shame for it.
*Like I mentioned, these are tips that have worked for me (childless WFH person with 0 social life). If any resonate with you, great! If not, also very cool!
My hope for next year is that I continue to deepen my love for reading, this blog and continue to broaden my romance novel horizons. There’s so much to look forward to.
Yours in HEA’s,
Kels