I’m having trouble believing that it’s been a full year since I decided to take on this silly little project. It was- and remains- simple: my goals were to write more and to spend my time more consciously and get through some things on my Amazon wish list. I’ve accomplished that, and it feels nice, but I’ve gotten a bit more out of it than that.
I’ve learned how to adjust my habits to fit reading into my daily and weekly life. Some weeks have gone better than others.
I’ve learned that you can read more than 50 books in a year and only have one that you really, really, really hate and way more that you really, really, really love.
I’ve also learned that reading more than 50 books in a year means that you sort of forget some of the ones you’ve read somewhere in the middle and that it’s easier to just direct people to your blog than recommend books in person.
I’ve learned that it’s easier to read on the beach or by the pool than anywhere else…though I admittedly probably already knew that.
I’ve learned that when your favorite celebrity retweets you and your previous tweet was self-promotion of your blog, you’re going to get a LOT of traffic that day. (I also learned about Twitter haters and I do NOT like them.)
More than anything, I’ve been reminded how awesome reading can be and how important it is to have something that lets you remove yourself from any other obligations for a little bit. However that manifests itself for you- go for it. (I own an adult coloring book for the same purpose- I recommend that super highly as well.)
Ultimately, it’s really been fun. It’s been so so so fun to talk to people about books- not that I’m ever at a loss for conversation topics with anyone, but it’s fun to have a less typical conversation starter in DC than “what do you do?”. It’s also probably made it more bearable to sit with me on public transportation- I’m more likely to shut up when I have a great book on my Kindle. (Not always though.)
I’ve found so many cool books and authors in the past year as well- even if I haven’t read the book, I’m more aware of authors and their projects, and that’s really nice too. I’m ignoring the fact that my wish list has more than tripled since I started this blog and that it would take me legitimately FOREVER to get through all of those books. (Unless there’s someone who wants to offer me a job just reading? If I make it a full time endeavor, I’m pretty sure I could average a book a day…)
So looking ahead, here are things to expect in the future from carlyreads:
1. I am going to continue to read one book per week for the rest of the calendar year- round out 2015 in the same way it started, literarily speaking, which means there’ll be a new post on Sunday. After that, the plan for 2016 is to pick a certain number of pages to read in a month and take on as many or as few books as it takes to hit or exceed that amount. I have loved a book a week, but it means I’m missing out on some really great longer books that I simply can’t squeeze into my free time.
2. I am going to have some of my favorite people on the planet write some guest posts of books they’ve read. My attempts to diversify my own choices are half-hearted at best given how many books I want to read that fall squarely within my preferences and this is a great way to see representation from more genres from people who have a less biased and more interested take on them.
3. A legitimate attempt to resurrect the Twitter account. The carlyreads Instagram page is getting some good traction and it’s really emphasizing the importance of social media engagement…so please follow both!
That’s about it. I can promise that this blog isn’t going to take a really crazy turn at any point- this is about as far from the book review path as I’m going to get. (Sorry, Mom- no life updates here.)
As always, I am super open to suggestions for books to read. If you’re interested in guest posting, let me know at carlyreadsblog (at) gmail.com.
Happy reading!
Carly
carlyreads 