Self-imposed reading rules - what are yours?

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

I break my reading into "sections" - usually a section of a book is a chapter but sometimes long chapters are split into multiple sections, or short chapters are combined into a single section. Sections are roughly 10 pages long, but for some books a section might be shorter (for very dense prose) or longer (for those thriller-type books that we zip through). Based on that, I try to read a "section" of 4 books each day. I usually have 7-8 books going at one time so 1-2 books I will try to read every day until they are finished and the others will be rotated and read every 2-3 days.

I've also arranged my readings of certain genres (mystery, science fiction, fantasy) to focus on completing the various series I have started. I try not to start any new series until I finish (or decide to abandon) another series.

For those reading genres where I'm not reading a lot of series, I try to alternate books by authors I have read with books by authors who are new to me. I have been selecting my upcoming reads based on Goodreads ratings, but that could potentially change in the future since I don't think my reading tastes align perfectly with many other readers at Goodreads.

I created a "wish list" shelf for books that I would like to purchase if I find them at the right price. I have created a "maybe" shelf for books that I'm in no hurry to locate but if I run across a copy I might pick it up.

If I get to a point where I don't want to read a book anymore, I DNF it and give it a one-star rating. That could be on page 1 or on the 2nd to last page of the book (although at that point I'd probably just tough it out). I've gotten pretty good at figuring out what I'm going to like and what I'm not that I'm not too worried about kicking something that I might love. There are just way too many books on my shelves to worry about whether or not I might like one book.

I usually drop into Goodreads once per week (usually on the weekend) to check on my reading groups and to update my page count on my currently reading books and to write reviews for anything I have finished. If I have some free time during the week (I am a working single father so "free time" is not something I have much of) I might drop into some of my favorite groups for a quick update.

As for reviews, I try to summarize my thoughts into three sentences or less, conveying as much information as possible, and I try to make them entertaining and informative as well. I do have some rules here:
- no lengthy plot summaries
- no superlatives ("great" "awesome" etc.)
- no using "I"
- no gifs or pictures
- and I will never, ever, ever start a review with "wow," "OMG," or "@#$%" (or any variation thereof)

Ratings work like this:
5 stars - personal all-time favorite that I would recommend to anyone who will listen (or, weirdly, I might not recommend it to anyone because it's so precious to me that I would be afraid that if someone didn't like it I might think less of them for it), and I probably kept my copy for future re-reads
4 stars - liked it a lot and recommend it to others
3 stars - solid read
2 stars - it got tiresome and I wanted it to be over
1 star - I hated it, might not have finished it
I mention these ratings only because I try to differentiate my ratings from many people who appear to be using the "Uber" system. With Uber, a 5-star rating appears to be the expected baseline, and a star is deducted only for a major issue. 3 stars, on the Uber system, is a poor rating, and 1-2 stars are almost unheard of - a felony was probably committed. I don't rate books on the Uber scale.

I have been messing around with Audible, which I use for non-fiction books during my lengthy commute to and from work. I don't think I will ever read fiction books on Audible since I am a visual person and enjoy reading the prose rather than listening to the story.

I buy almost everything used, typically for $1 at a couple used bookshops near me. I use my credit card points to get Amazon gift cards and I also use paperbackswap.com and bookmooch.com to trade used books via the mail. I only mail smaller books through those sites - larger books especially hardcovers are taken to a local used book shop that is pretty decent about giving me good trade value (my books stay in pretty good shape and are usually the type of book this store likes to stock).

This is probably straying off topic, but I approve just about all friend requests. Author spam gets you deleted, blocked and reported. Same for sock puppets. And I have had to delete some people who kept blowing me up with invites to their Star Wars reading group and also someone who made some bizarre comments. I usually only reach out to friend invite people who have similar reading/reviewing tastes as myself, but if someone sends me a friend invite I accept it almost without question regardless of their tastes.

I don't know if those are rules, guidelines, or just the weird way I like to do things, but there they are.

[Luke]

An extremely temporary rule of mine is to not start any new (non-challenge) books before 2019 is through. Wish me luck.

[Jessica-sim]

1. I am only allowed to buy one book per month
2. I'll only join in on group reads if the book is already on my "want to read" list or in the 1001 To Read Before You Die-list.
2a. Or, if 2 fails and the group read is appealing, I can join in only if there are copies in local libraries or digitally on Scribe.
3. Unless it is really really aggravating, I try and finish each book I started.
4. Prefer to read untranslated versions.

[Erin]

Wow! This thread is five months old and there’s food for thought in your ideas and suggested reading rules.

I’ve stuck with my original rules but I’m still interested to learn more reading rules from you guys.

[CindySR]

Rules? I don't need no stinkin' rules!

j/k! But really, I read for pleasure so if it doesn't feel right, pivot!

*full disclosure, I am a type B personality with some kind of self-diagnosed ADD so there's that. LOL

[Robin P]

As a young person, I thought I had to finish every book and read everything in the book. Now I am happy to quit something or to skim something (especially in nonfiction, where certain elements of the subject may not interest me). However, in the last year or so, I made myself finish books I didn't like because they fit a challenge, or they were for a group. No more! I am the organizer of a local book group, so I felt obliged to read everything. People take turns suggesting books and I wanted to support them. But I'm not going to do that anymore - I will still go to the meeting but let other people discuss it. I probably will say something about why I didn't like it. (I do sometimes finish books I hate, such as Gone Girl, because I want to see how the author gets him/herself out of the messy plot.)

Another thing that has changed - as a younger person, before the internet, I would have welcomed challenges to "expand" my reading, and ideas of what to read. Now I feel like I know what I like and I find some of the challenges, like Read Harder, to be way too restrictive.

I always have one audiobook going and more than one print book. But I try to have the style and subject matter be different so I don't get them mixed up. I rarely do nonfiction on audio because there isn't much room for expression, which is what I like in fiction on audio.

[Shauna]

RJ - Slayer of Trolls wrote: "I break my reading into "sections" - usually a section of a book is a chapter but sometimes long chapters are split into multiple sections, or short chapters are combined into a single section. Sec..."

Your rules for reviews are great. I have never really considered trying to formulate a way to convey what I mean in a consistent way. Usually, I flounder straying too far into too much detail or too little. You have my wheels turning.

[Shauna]

Robin P wrote: "As a young person, I thought I had to finish every book and read everything in the book. Now I am happy to quit something or to skim something (especially in nonfiction, where certain elements of t..."

What a wonderful insight to gain. It opens up so much more possibility. I remember the moment that I realized that I wasn't actually required to finish a read. I had been sleeping my way through Anne Tyler's "Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant". I was so very bored. Now my motto is "Life's too short to waste reading something that I am not enjoying". I, too, will sometimes finish something I don't like if the author managed to hook me in spite of myself.

[Terry]

I would add these rules to my earlier post:
1. Rate the new books I read as follows:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Loved the book and would recommend it.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Liked the book very much.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ The book was okay; had some redeeming qualities.
⭐️⭐️ I finished the book but didn’t enjoy it much.
⭐️ Did not finish.
2. Try to write a review of every new book read.
3. Do not write reviews of books read in the long ago past-unless I am very confident of what I would say.
4. Make the reviews as engaging as possible and useful to someone deciding whether or not to read or listen to them.
5. Keep reviews short if I don’t like a book, but say why.
6. Read mostly fiction, but mix it up (genres, contemporary, classics, authors, etc.) and just enjoy reading.
7. Keep track of what I am reading on Goodreads and try to increase my reading over time.
8. Participate in the social aspects of sharing literature including groups and/or book clubs.
9. Friend people who write engaging reviews.
10. Don’t get hung up on too many rules and give myself permission to break or ignore a rule pr even a challenge.

[Andrew]

my rules are that i have none. No discipline, no fixed commitments. I grab, read, abandon, pick up again books to my liberty. To be honest, it makes life abit hellish, the amount of "on hold" books I have, or books stuck on my shelf with a stray bookmark languishing out of them is embarrassing. On the other hand, I've gradually come to accept my mad, erratic reading habits. It's just more enjoyable, I like sitting about the pages of literature, jumping from subjects. I get bored veeery easily, and something that takes my interest should be prioritised over something boring me.

having said that, I do have some very lax rules. I try and read to at least the end of a chapter, if the book is really good I do several at a time. It helps compartmentalise your goals, and also makes it easier to pick up again if you're starting new. If the chapters are super long, find a break in the text, that's the equivalent of a chapter.

I used to try and read everything start to finish, no exceptions. Now I don't care. I started reading the History of Bees but gave up after chapter 3 because of how absolutely fucking awful it was, how badly it was written and how boring the plot was. Do it. don't waste time.

I mostly want to read non-fiction, as I'm far more interested in politics and history than fiction. Fiction can rather bore me, and I often find it more difficult to read. Non fiction stuff, especially if it's a topic I am interested in and the content is brilliant, I can race through them sometimes in a week. Book clubs overwhelmingly lean me towards fiction, but I'm trying to read at least one non fiction a month.

loose rule; dont buy fiction, library it. No point is spending money on something I'll almost never read, and even if I do, I almost never keep them. Non fiction is always buy, as I like to underline and note important stuff.

ratings:
5 - flawless masterpiece
4 - very, very good. highly recommended
3 - average, dull and meh.
2 - terrible, but must have at least one facet I at least like and/or admire to give it that extra star.
1 - unspeakable dogshit from start to finish. zero worth at all.

Another rule is do not, and I repeat DO NOT, overcommit yourself to book clubs. I can only really read 3 a month, if even that, so there is zero point in piling up tons of books that I just cannot possibly read. Reading is fun, that turns it into a chore. Choose a core like 1 or 2 you've been dying to read forever, and stick to that. I prioritise IRL book clubs, just cus it's funner to actually meet people.

that's about it really.

[Andrew]

oh, and if a books on the boxall 1001 or Guardian 1001, it gets slight priority in reading order. Only slight though, much of the ones on these lists are overrated crap (the Guardian one for my money I infinitely better, then have a brilliant range of genres and some suprising books pop up. The Guardian list also has much more sci fi, whereas the Boxall one has almost none, so that tips it for me).

[Andrew]

oh, and also on not buying fiction, classics, poetry, sci fi and plays are the exceptions, 1) classics, poetry and plays I often like to underline and scribble, and 2) I like sci fi, so consider it more worthy to buy them, as I kinda feel right having them as part of my collection, and there's a much greater chance I'll keep them. :)

[Carter Reads Classics]

I typically read a set amount of pages per day. And mostly for understanding and to become smarter.