Romance Readers Reading Challenges discussion
2020 Challenge Archive
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2020 May Pick-It-For-Me! Challenge
TIPS TO MAKE THE CHALLENGE ENJOYABLE FOR EVERYONE!Pickees
✱ To help your picker understand the type of books you like or are currently reading, please make sure your ‘read’ shelf is up to date. You can create shelves for books you DNFed (Did Not Finish) or authors that don’t work for you as well as favorite books and authors. In addition, you might consider updating your profile. You can include info about your favorite books, authors, genres, themes or tropes (or themes/tropes you dislike – i.e. secret baby).
✱ Please do not specify likes/dislikes in the sign-up thread. This information will not be included in the pairings and your pickee may not see your message and does not need to rely on that information when making picks.
Pickers
✱ Please remember this is primarily a romance readers group. Thus, most, if not all, of your picks should be romance. There are various sub genres within the romance category - Contemporary, Historical, Paranormal, Romantic Suspense, Erotica, M/M, Urban Fantasy. If your pickee reads a wide variety, you could add a non-romance as a choice.
✱ You will be using 8 picking rules to select books for you pickee. Choose at least 4 new titles for your pickee. These can be brand new to them (not found on any of their shelves) or a book found on their shelves if they've never read any of the author's work previously. The remaining 4 titles should come from your pickee's tbr, with a minimum of one from their preferred shelves if provided. Be sure to pick at least one book for each picking rule, but please limit your picks to no more than two books per rule as sometimes having too many options is worse than too few.
✱ Please remember when you are giving new recommendations, you are not limited to titles that you have read. You can choose books that are new releases, on your tbr, or titles you looked up on Goodreads or Amazon that you think your pickee would enjoy.
A few hints to help with book selection:
✱ Check the book’s publishing date. Select "date pub" from the checkbox selections and save.
✱ Check pickee's personalized shelves, especially their exclusive shelves. A personalized shelf is one the member has created. (e.g., 'to read next', 'favorites' ‘didn’t like’)
✱ Make sure the books you choose are not on their 'read' shelf. Just because it isn't rated doesn't mean it wasn't read.
✱ Look at your pickee's 'read' shelf and see what genres they have recently read or read the most. Reviewing their ‘read’ shelf might help you in choosing something they are interested in reading right now.
✱ If your pickee reads lots of books in a genre you are not familiar with (erotic romance, GLBT, YA, etc.) Contact the Mods or the month's organizer for guidance.
✱ Include a variety of books (e.g., shorter page count, new addition to their 'to-read' shelf, an older book on their 'to-read' shelf) This variety gives your pickee options when choosing the book or books they will be reading this month. Use the sort feature within their shelves to determine date a book was added, published or read; page numbers, ratings, etc.
If you want to volunteer to make repicks:
✱ We love that you want to help out, but please remember those who need picks have been waiting for a long time already. Please only volunteer if you are able to make the repicks within a few hours of the deadline. Thank you!
2020 May PIFM ChallengePairings:
✓ = Picks Made, through message #112
Please pick for the person below you in your group, the person at the bottom picks for the person at the top. For example, Fran picks for Navi.
Seeing Family:
✓ Navi - pifm
✓ Nayara
✓ Chaos Book Reviews. - tbr-owned
✓ Lekshmy
✓ Meagan - read-asap
✓ Nancy H
✓ HeatherMarie - 0-picking
✓ Laura H
✓ Sonja - pifm
✓ Suzanne
✓ Carina - nextofftheshelf
✓ Fran(Private) - a-pifm-shelf
Eating Out:
✓ ☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎ - pick-it-for-me
✓ Kat - 'recent'
✓ ☘KathyD☘ - c-m-g-39
✓ MountainKat - to-read-asap
✓ Mary-Megan - pifm
✓ LaurLa - 04-pick-me-please
✓ Allie
Coco
✓ Carrie - current-tbr
✓ Becca - pifm-tbr
✓ Apoorva
✓ Aiswrya
✓ Courtney - may-pfm
✓ Gabriella - pifm
Remember to pick four NEW books and four from your pickee's TBR or preferred shelf. Please limit your picks to no more than two for each rule, too many choices can be as bad as too few!
2020 May PIFM ChallengePicking Rules:
I think we are all going a little stir crazy these days and dreaming about what we are going to do first when this 'new normal' changes to the next 'new normal'! 🤷🏻♀️
These dreams are going to be the basis for our picks for May, even if we might not get to do any of them yet in May...
👨👩👧👦 Visit with Family! - I think missing family is probably the hardest part of this quarantine for many of us.
📚 Recommend a book where family, in whatever form it takes, plays a part in the story.
😤 Get Away from My SO and/or Kids! - But as much as we miss some family, we may have been locked up with some that have been driving us crazy!
📚 Pick a stand alone book, because we don’t always need to be with our loved ones!
🍝 Dine Out! - I can’t wait to eat food that I didn’t prepare myself, how about you?
📚 Select a book set in the food industry or with food on the cover.
📽 See a Movie, in a Theater! - Has sitting in the dark with some popcorn, candy and a soda ever sounded so good before?!
📚 Recommend a book that reminds you of a movie/TV show, has been made into a movie/TV show or should be.
✈️ Travel and Go on a Vacation! - Have any spring or summer plans that have been canceled? Planning to make up for that?
📚 Pick a book set in a different locale than you or your pickee.
🏋️♀️ Go to the Gym! - It is a lot harder to motivate myself to workout without my regular class and routine. How are you doing?
📚 Recommend a sports romance, a book about an athlete or a book with someone who obviously works out in the cover.
🖥 Get Back to Work! - Beyond the paycheck, though that is important, for many of us our work is a big part of our identity and routine. With this quarantine, we are removed from that and many have had to become homeschool teachers for their kids. Getting back to normal means getting back to work.
📚 Pick a book that has something to do with business - corporate, shop owners, whatever.
🏰 Go to Disneyland! - Disneyland is my happy place - and I miss it! This may not be your happy place, but I think we all have one - and can’t wait to go back there for a visit!
📚 Recommend a humorous or happy book.
2020 May PIFM Challenge
Yay! I love these xxI'm going with seeing family, I've had a bunch of takeout during lockdown... 😂
Use my wtr shelf, thank you xx
This sounds fun!Getting back to the park I miss getting outside more :(
My WTR shelf is fine
Can I ask a question about the challenge here or is there a different thread for that?
Eating out!! I'm so tired of making my own meals! And WTR please. Thanks!
Meagan wrote: "This sounds fun!Getting back to the park I miss getting outside more :(
My WTR shelf is fine
Can I ask a question about the challenge here or is there a different thread for that?"
You can ask a question here. 😊
And if possible, please choose from the two options - that is how I am sorting into groups. It doesn't really matter all that much, I can just put you in the one with lower numbers.
okay so I have two questionsquestion 1 is can you put books you haven't read on shelves? if so how do I do that?
and question two how many suggestions do you recommend we give is there a good number I see it has to be between 4-10
Meagan wrote: "okay so I have two questionsquestion 1 is can you put books you haven't read on shelves? if so how do I do that?
and question two how many suggestions do you recommend we give is there a good numb..."
I am not sure what you are asking in your first question. If you mean for this challenge, you can create a 'picking shelf' that has books you definitely interested in reading soon - you can have books you haven't read on that shelf or books you want to reread. I have a 'to-read-asap' shelf that I use for this challenge that has books that are on my short list. But your regular to read shelf is fine to use as well and many people just use that.
As to your second question, when the signup period is over I will post the pairings and the picking rules. There will be 8 rules with guidelines to help you make your picks. You need to make at least one pick for each rule, but no more than two. That means a total of 8-16 picks. Of those, at least 4 will come from their to-read or preferred shelf and at least 4 need to be new to the pickee. Read through the first post and the tips post right below - they can help explain the challenge further.
MountainKat wrote: "Meagan wrote: "okay so I have two questionsquestion 1 is can you put books you haven't read on shelves? if so how do I do that?
and question two how many suggestions do you recommend we give is th..."
that answered both my questions thank you I'm going to have to play around with my TBR and make a new shelf I didn't know you could put books on a shelf if you haven't read them smh
I'd have to day, seeing family. We've had video chats constantly but it's really not the same. LOL
Please use my TBR Owned shelf.
okay so I made two shelves "read asap" and "2020" for whoever to look through
I'm in! (private profile, happy to friend anyone who picks for me)Seeing family
PIFM shelf- https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
I'm in! though I've sucked at the last few challenges. I'll finish something this time around. I swear! Eat out
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
Going on date night with my fiancé Pick from my recent shelf
Im going with eating out i hate doing dishes
Going to the library lol but as that isn't an option I'll pick eating outPlease use https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎ wrote: "I'm going with eating out!! I'm so tired of making my own meals! LOLPick for me"
Carmen, your link is broken. Please let me know which shelf you want as your preferred shelf.
I am of course in as well. I am desperately missing my family, especially the littles and the littlest little who just turned 7 months old. But I'm not going to lie, I'm more than likely going to stop to eat on my way to see them!And my shelf - to-read-asap
MKat I have added the link to my post (message 15). Please add it to the list :)
Apoorva wrote: "MKat I have added the link to my post (message 15). Please add it to the list :)"The 'want to read' or 'to read' shelf is the default shelf if no preferred shelf is provided. I only provide links to preferred shelves since the picker won't know which shelf to use without it. 😊
MountainKat wrote: "Apoorva wrote: "MKat I have added the link to my post (message 15). Please add it to the list :)"The 'want to read' or 'to read' shelf is the default shelf if no preferred shelf is provided. I on..."
Okay.😊
My apologies everyone - even though I typed it up, I had signups ending today (24th) not yesterday (23rd) in my head! 🤦🏻♀️ And even when I checked, the 24th still stuck in my head! 🤷🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️I will get the pairings and rules posted shortly!
Oh no problem! I did wonder about that, but figured you're really busy with all these great challenges and Friday makes more sense anyway 😂 Look forward to it xx
MountainKat wrote: "My apologies everyone - even though I typed it up, I had signups ending today (24th) not yesterday (23rd) in my head! 🤦🏻♀️ And even when I checked, the 24th still stuck in my head! 🤷🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️I w..."
No worries MKat! Know we all have so much going on and then we're all stuck at home so the days blend together. How did it even get to be April 24th anyway?!
No problem, MKat! I missed a whole day this week, too, on which I was to do something for my 93-year-old mother who lives next door! Of course she is a drama queen so instead of calling me and reminding me, she chose the 'you're just too busy for me' line - lol! [She truly is great, just a bit dramatic at times!]
OK, pairings and picking rules are posted above! Finally! 🤦🏻♀️
Thanks everyone! Life is just a time-warp these days! And yes I started singing the song in my head when I typed that... 🤣
Mary-Megan, I have to walk away from my computer for a while - I'll get your picks up later. (And hopefully I will not get my days mixed up again or even think I've already made my picks! 🤷🏻♀️)
Romance Readers Reading Challenges
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What is the Pick-It-For-Me Challenge?
The Pick-It-For-Me Challenge (PIFM) is a reading challenge where each participant gives and receives book recommendations based on a given a set of rules. The assignment method and book selection rules change each month so it’s always new and always different.
The idea of the PIFM challenge is that you will get new-to-you books and authors selected for you as well as a push to read some books that have been lingering on your shelves. You may not be interested in the new books recommended, which is why you also get a minimum of four books from your shelf.
You only have to read ONE book to complete this challenge!
After signups are closed, your names and any extra info will go into the super secret PIFM randomizer and it will select someone for you to recommend books to and someone to give you recommendations. This list will be posted along with any specific picking rules for the month.
In order to participate you need to either HAVE YOUR PROFILE SET TO PUBLIC (preferable), or friend the person giving you recommendations. PLEASE NOTE: if you choose to keep your profile private, it is your responsibility to send a friend request to the person picking for you as soon as possible after the matchups are posted. Whether your profile is private or not, it is also very important that your profile be set to receive Private Messages (PMs) in case anyone needs to reach out to you (mods, organizer etc.)
Everything gets done in this thread so be sure to come back often!!!
Repicks:
You can ask for repicks if:
✱ The books picked for you are not yet released.
✱ If you have already read the chosen book(s) and they are on your ‘read’ shelf.
✱ If you did not receive four picks from your ‘to-read’ shelf, with at least one from your preferred shelf.
You may NOT ask for repicks because:
✱ A book is not available at your library.
✱ A genre or author you don’t enjoy.
INFORMATION NEEDED TO SIGN UP
Please sign up in this thread with the answer to the following question:
✱✱ What are you most looking forward to when the 'stay at home' orders end? ✱✱
Seeing Family
Eating Out
✱✱ If you have a preferred shelf, please list it along with your pick! ✱✱
IMPORTANT DATES
Sign ups will remain open until April 23 (8 pm US EDT).
For your convenience a Time Zone Converter.
You’ll have until April 27 (8 pm US EDT) to make your recommendations.
Please do not start reading your book(s) until the first of the month. You then have the entire month to read your pick(s) and give some feedback.
If you’re new please read the PIFM Guidelines and FAQ. If you have any questions that are not addressed there, please feel free to ask!
✱Please note that late sign ups will be included at the host's discretion and no one will be included after re-picks are assigned!✱