Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2023 Challenge - General
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Excited chatter while we wait for the 2023 list to post!!!
Trish wrote: "So the "book from your favourite prompt from a previous PS challenge" has gone this year?Boy am I going to need the listopia for some of the others - including NaNoWriMo, as I have no idea how yo..."
Prompt 19 is the new location for the favorite past prompt.
Melissa posted this for NaNoWriMo in another thread:
https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/1...
I think you're right on the longest and shortest TBR prompts being from a couple years ago. Since I don't keep my TBR on GR anymore, I'll just go for a <250 page book and a >500 page book or something similar.
I've been doing the challenge for years, so glad I'm not the only one that wasn't crazy about this list! So many repeat prompts and even repeats from the 2022 challenge! I'm fine with the standard repeats (book you meant to read last year, book turning into a TV series/movie, fave prompt from previous challenge) but the prompts for map, just text on the cover, shortest book/longest book, BookTok rec, recommended by a celebrity, think your best friend would like, holiday, and two languages have all been done already recently! My only consolation is that I'm starting a part-time MBA program in the summer and probably won't have time to finish the challenge this year anyway.
Melody wrote: "Meg wrote: "So I looked at the list using Nadine's link, and I'm kind of surprised (ok, shocked) with the use of "a fat lead" under #10. What's wrong with "heavyset" or something gentler like that?..."I'll definitely read more on the movements, but it needs to be taken into account that childhood bullying on this issue sticks no matter how they're working to undo things or make things more positive. For example, I wasn't that large as a kid, but I grew up in an extended household of petites so I was the target for size jokes, put-downs and shaming. Nothing can erase that trauma. I'll stick to larger-sized, I think.
Geez didn't mean to turn this into a soapbox!! Sorry all!
I'm really sad about the challenge this year. The list is disappointing and lacking in creativity. Take your most basic prompts and repeat them, no theming, the advanced prompts are just as easy as the regular ones... This challenge got me back into reading after a tough time in my life and I've done it every year since 2017. It's something that I always really look forward to. I just wish they'd tapped into the community for help - there are so many amazingly creative people who could've helped. Some of the prompt suggestions I've seen here and on FB are really cool and inspiring.
Meg wrote: "Melody wrote: "Meg wrote: "So I looked at the list using Nadine's link, and I'm kind of surprised (ok, shocked) with the use of "a fat lead" under #10. What's wrong with "heavyset" or something gen..."No, I totally think that's valid. I heard Aubrey Gordon talking about this on a podcast recently and she was talking about how personal a lot of this terminology is. She prefers "fat" as a term, but acknowledges that the experience of that word is different for everyone. I think both things can be true here: this is a word that's being reclaimed by some members of the community, but it still can be connected to trauma for a lot of people. Not everyone's preferred term is your preferred term and a lot of people are not part of activist spaces. It's a tough needle to thread.
Also, totally relate to your experience here. I too am the largest in a very petite family. It's definitely a thing that impacted me too.
I was just curious and it looks like 23 prompts are exactly the same, which is almost half! I do like a lot of the new prompts though!5. A book with mythical creatures (2017)
9. A book with a color in the title (2015)
13. A book published the year you were born (2015)
14. A modern retelling of a classic (2019)
15. A book with a song lyric as its title (2018)
17. A book with a love triangle (2015)
21. A book set in the decade you were born (2018)
22. A book with a queer lead (2018)
23. A book with a map (2020)
25. A book with just text on the cover (2020)
26. The shortest book (by pages) on your TBR list (2021)
27. A #BookTok recommendation (2022)
29. A book your friend recommended (2015)
30. A book that's on a celebrity book-club list (2018)
31. A book about a family (2019)
33. A book about an athlete/sport (2018)
36. A book you think your best friend would like (2021)
40. A book by an author with the same initials as you (2015)
43. A book that takes place entirely in one day (2019)
47. A book about a holiday that's not Christmas (2017)
48. A book that features two languages (2022)
49. The longest book (by pages) on your TBR list (2021)
50. A book with alliteration in the title (2018)
Robynne wrote: "I'm wondering about the first prompt in the advanced section. A book written during Nanowrimo?
Not everyone writes during Nanowrimo let alone completes a book and gets it published."
I’m not thrilled with this one, the fanfic or self-published. I tend to steer clear of self-published because my internal editor can’t handle the lack of editing.
Also not thrilled with two books published in 2023 — that’s not going to help me read down Mount TBR — or longest book by pages. 😕
Michelle wrote: "I'm really sad about the challenge this year. The list is disappointing and lacking in creativity. Take your most basic prompts and repeat them, no theming, the advanced prompts are just as easy as..."Totally agree with this. It just feels like I've done most of them already in the last couple of years and feels a quite uninspiring. Can't see me making this challenge my main one to focus on for next year, which is a real shame as I have enjoyed it so much previously.
Melody wrote: "I was just curious and it looks like 23 prompts are exactly the same, which is almost half! I do like a lot of the new prompts though!5. A book with mythical creatures (2017)
9. A book with a col..."
Found out their "theme" this year was "a trip down memory lane." Feels like an excuse to not put in the effort this year to me.
Cendaquenta wrote: "oh, I really dislike prompts that are based on specific information about yourself. Same initials, book published in birth year. Gives me the same vibe as those scam posts that go around, like "you..."I thought about this. Not only do I hate all the books published the year I was born, I hate giving this out.
I might pick the year I graduated, the year I got married, or the year I became a mom. No one can say I'm wrong because no one on Goodreads knows my birthdate.
Trish wrote: "SAlso, wasn't "longest book" on the list only two years ago? Because I remember reading Les Misérables for it (which I didn't finish until January this year)..."It was. I read the shortest book (which was a Poe short story), but balked at reading Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell which is over 1000 pages.
Mod
yeah no kidding. I'm very very grumpy about all the repeats. (Mostly because they chose categories I didn't exactly love the first time around!) I'm going to go stew in my grumpiness for a while now. Just picture me like Oscar the Grouch.
Trish wrote: "So the "book from your favourite prompt from a previous PS challenge" has gone this year?Boy am I going to need the listopia for some of the others - including NaNoWriMo, as I have no idea how yo..."
It's on there. It's 19.
Mod
This is probably something where not everyone will agree. I'm fat, and I don't mind the term fat. Using other terms implies that being fat is something to be ashamed of or to hide. But here I am, there's no hiding my fatness when you see me!! Would I prefer to be less fat? yes! Am I ashamed? no!
So, I assume they had that same thought process. I hope they ran it past some sensitivity readers first!
Dubhease wrote: "Cendaquenta wrote: "oh, I really dislike prompts that are based on specific information about yourself. Same initials, book published in birth year. Gives me the same vibe as those scam posts that ..I might pick the year I graduated, the year I got married, or the year I became a mom. No one can say I'm wrong because no one on Goodreads knows my birthdate.."
Good idea!!
I'm so disappointed with this list - it's not just so many of the prompts are repeats, but also that all of the repeats seem to be ones I disliked previously. The "same initial as yours" was one I hated with the most passion the year it was originally in, but I disliked or was meh about so many of the others (birth year, birth decade, holiday, mythical creature, song lyric, love triangle, takes place in one day, alliteration). It was fine in those years, because hey, can't reasonably expect to love all prompts, especially when it's made by and for people from a very different culture to my own. It's fine to dislike one or two prompts, and then never have to worry about them again. But soo many meh prompts this year!The new prompts are also ones I feel very meh about - self-published? fan fiction? so many romances? Not my jam. Also what's up with being published specifically in 'spring 2023'?
Man, I'm really really disappointed. I think I'll either skip this year, or do a year I missed before. Anyone has suggestions for other challenges with 50-ish prompts and an active community? (I'm aware of ATY and will check their prompt list - I've done it before and preferred PS, but I guess the script is flipped)
Or maybe I'll just pick and choose prompts from this community and make my own "PS - Community Edition", lol.
Nadine in NY wrote: "Meg wrote: "So I looked at the list using Nadine's link, and I'm kind of surprised (ok, shocked) with the use of "a fat lead" under #10. What's wrong with "heavyset" or something gentler like that?..."I think that's cool, Nadine. If I could shake it as a trigger I would.
Nadine, thank you for the phrase "stew in my grumpiness". It made me laugh, and now I feel a tiny bit less grumpy about this whole list!
Mod
I'm sure you've figured it out by now. I'm very sorry! In my haste, I forgot to unlock that post where everyone can put their plan. Oops!!
Mod
we have to find that silver lining where we can ;-)
Heather L wrote: "I’m not thrilled with this one, the fanfic or self-published. I tend to steer clear of self-published because my internal editor can’t handle the lack of editing."Self-published doesn't mean lack of editing. There are some established authors who wrote a book while under contract for a different book, and published their extra book themselves. (I think this is what T. Kingfisher did with the Saint of Steel books.) Other established authors chose to self-publish something because they didn't want to be locked into a contract again (Ilona Andrews is doing this now. Blood Heir was self-published, as are all of the Innkeeper books.)
Others, like Shanna Swendson, got dropped by their publisher four books into a series and self-published the rest.
Nadine in NY wrote: "Melissa wrote: "That's a lot of repeat prompts."yeah no kidding. I'm very very grumpy about all the repeats. (Mostly because they chose categories I didn't exactly love the first time around!) I..."
Lol, slamming a trash can does seem to help him so.....
Hi everyone, I've missed this group - hope you're doing well! Juggling my regular full-time job and building my writing/books-related career has been tough, so I haven't been able to keep up with the weekly check-ins. (The good news is I launched my reader/writer newsletter today that includes a feature of local bookstores, book recs, a book giveaway, etc. yay! http://eepurl.com/ie8YXn)
I just peeked at the list and think I have a similar feeling I'm seeing in the comments here. Tons of repeats... :(
I've been one book away from finishing this year's challenge for months now since doing BIPOC-authored books only made some of the prompts extremely limited (I'm stuck on the "became a movie this year" since the only diverse ones were books I've already read, and I usually only reread books for book clubs since I have thousands of others on my TBR to get to). So I'm deciding if it's worth it to push through and reread Exit West in the next few weeks so I can officially check that box, but I don't know, maybe I'm ok with not finishing?
And I'm mainly questioning this because the 2023 list is clearly one I'm not interested in completing. Three romance prompts? Yikes. I have no issue with those who love to read romance, but as someone who's ace/aro it's a terrible shaming experience, so I just don't think I want to push on that. Maybe for 2023 I'll just focus on the new prompts I'm excited about, which I think will help me find books I could enjoy that I wouldn't have found otherwise? I'm open to these ones, but might forget about the rest...
-Bought from indie bookstore (I do this a ton, so it's easy)
-About a vacation
-First-time author
-Celebrity memoir
-Color in the title
-Maybe a non-romance with a fat MC (I'm in the camp of reclaiming that word and taking away the negative connotation, but totally understand it's not for everyone.)
-Normally I'd avoid the Hollywood one, but since I ended up pleasantly surprised by Evelyn Hugo, I might give it another chance.
-Banned/challenged book
-Queer lead
-Rabbit on the cover
-Bought second-hand
-About a family
-About an athlete/sport (if anyone didn't get into the Beartown series thanks to this prompt a few years ago, I can't recommend it enough. No sports interest needed.)
-Historical fiction
-About divorce
-Author with my initials (LO) might be really tough... Have we already done that one?
-Written during NaNoWriMo
-Takes place in one day
-Self-published
-Pet character
-Non-Christmas holiday
-Alliteration in the title
So maybe I'll do this 22-prompt version of the challenge and see how that goes? Is anyone else doing a hard pass on any prompts?
Happy reading!
Boipoka wrote: "I'm so disappointed with this list - it's not just so many of the prompts are repeats, but also that all of the repeats seem to be ones I disliked previously. The "same initial as yours" was one I ..."Yes, join me in doing a shortened version so we're only targeting the prompts that don't make us groan and dread reading! :)
Melody wrote: "I was just curious and it looks like 23 prompts are exactly the same, which is almost half! I do like a lot of the new prompts though!5. A book with mythical creatures (2017)
9. A book with a col..."
Wow, thanks for compiling this. That's a lot... I wasn't sure about a few of them that seemed familiar.
Michelle wrote: "I'm really sad about the challenge this year. The list is disappointing and lacking in creativity. Take your most basic prompts and repeat them, no theming, the advanced prompts are just as easy as..."Totally agree they should have pulled in community suggestions instead of doing repeats!
Meg wrote: "So I looked at the list using Nadine's link, and I'm kind of surprised (ok, shocked) with the use of "a fat lead" under #10. What's wrong with "heavyset" or something gentler like that? Not trying ..."Yes, I totally agree! I jumped as I read the word! Here in Sweden the reading list would not have contained that word. It's appalling. To whom can one make a comment so that they will change it?
I think the most disappointing one to me is A #booktok recommendation. This was on last year's challenge and one of my least favorite prompts.
Trish wrote: "So the "book from your favourite prompt from a previous PS challenge" has gone this year?Boy am I going to need the listopia for some of the others - including NaNoWriMo, as I have no idea how yo..."
No, it's #19.
Doni wrote: "I think the most disappointing one to me is A #booktok recommendation. This was on last year's challenge and one of my least favorite prompts."Well, I googled "booktok" for a similar prompt this year and actually found a list containing classics so I'll chose one of those.
Mod
Lynn has been without Internet again! She's getting it restored now, so she'll be able to unlock the second half of the prompts later tonight hopefully.
Mod
It's unlikely that they will change it, but that shouldn't stop you from voicing your disapproval! Our points of contact have been on Facebook: Melissa Hayes and Jada Gomez. You can message either of them through Facebook, or post on the Popsugar Book Club Facebook group. If you go to the Popsugar website, there are links to message Jada Gomez through Twitter or Instagram. Melissa Hayes does not have any contact info on the Popsugar site (I'm not really sure if she is a Popsugar employee - her FB profile indicates that she is not), so I think the only way to reach her is via Facebook's Messenger.
I have no idea how successful any of these methods will be. I've never tried to reach either one of these women, they are both new to me.
I'm glad other people said there were lots of repeats. This is only my second year, but I still thought I recognized a lot of prompts and thought I was imagining things. I think it's the "nostalgia" theme, but I wish it wasn't quite so many. I just looked at my bookshelf for things I already own, and can fit most of my books into prompts. But I'm still moving in, so there are plenty of books to come.
One thing that was not repeated: award prompts. I will count that as something good from the 2023 list.
Nadine in NY wrote: "Nike wrote: "Meg wrote: "So I looked at the list using Nadine's link, and I'm kind of surprised (ok, shocked) with the use of "a fat lead" under #10. What's wrong with "heavyset" or something gentl..."Thank you so much! 🙏
I've got a question about prompt 18. It says state, not country and I immediately think of states in the US. Is that how I shall interpret this? As a state in the US or as a country world wide?
Wow, I really have to agree with a lot of the comments here. There are always a few prompts that I don't like or have trouble with, but this year... it's like they made a whole list out of my problems, or at least a lot that are uninspired. I'm seriously considering sitting this one out.A possible alternate plan: reading as many of the Goodreads Choice nominees as I find interesting, in as many years and categories as I feel like. I was thinking of doing that anyway, but maybe I'll do a bigger version this year.
Melody wrote: "I was just curious and it looks like 23 prompts are exactly the same, which is almost half! I do like a lot of the new prompts though!5. A book with mythical creatures (2017)
9. A book with a col..."
Thank you for this, now I know which of my lists to consult from previous years. 🙂
Melissa wrote: "Heather L wrote: "I’m not thrilled with this one, the fanfic or self-published. I tend to steer clear of self-published because my internal editor can’t handle the lack of editing."Self-published..."
I know there are some established authors who have turned to self-publishing for various reasons, but it can be difficult to find those authors, and especially if it’s just one book at end of a series. Some of this year’s prompts are just too much effort. 😏
Sorry guys, I think I'm jumping ship.I'm making my own challenge and having way more fun!
Nadine in NY wrote: "AN FYI TO EVERYBODYLynn has been without Internet again! She's getting it restored now, so she'll be able to unlock the second half of the prompts later tonight hopefully."
What a bummer day to not have Internet! Sorry, Lynn!
I really don't like this list 😞 Too many repeats, too many pop culture-centered prompts. It's so... materialistic. Tiktok is a waste of time, I don't usually buy new books unless it's an absolute favorite author, and I hate celebrities. (Aaaand this is the second time today that I've felt like Statler & Waldorf from the Muppets.)I might just choose to do a previous year's list that I didn't participate in, instead. Is that allowed?
After spending a little time with next year's prompts and my current TBR list, I've decided that I will be taking another year off from the POPSUGAR Reading Challenge. I really want to continue focusing on my physical TBR list, and most of the 2023 prompts just don't lend themselves to that.
Nike wrote: "I've got a question about prompt 18. It says state, not country and I immediately think of states in the US. Is that how I shall interpret this? As a state in the US or as a country world wide?"i think it mostly has to do with the banning that has been going on in the the US, but interpret it world wide if you prefer.
Mod
Yes I think Popsugar's intent was each state of the USA. But I think we should expand that to include any state OR COUNTRY, and I included a note about that on the post & Listopia (or at least I meant to!! it all became a blur after a while!!). The spirit of the prompt clearly is any book banned or challenged anywhere in 2022 - they just kind of forgot about the rest of the world.
So wait, someone said there were 23 total repeated prompts in the thread. I know they do a year-themed list each year but pairing the year 2023 with 23 repeated prompts was a terrible idea. Do you think that's what they did? Choose a Nostalgia theme and picked 23 past prompts for 2023. They really phoned it in this year. :(I think I'll do a modified version of the challenge this year and just pick out the prompts that I'm interested in (and maybe add Nadine's awesome 23-themed prompts in there too).
I think we should create our own challenge! (using Nadine's awesome advanced prompts of course.)
I have so far crossed out 18 prompts, which might change as I follow all the threads. I am going to swap these for ATY reject prompts. You can find the list here if anyone else needs help in making their DIY challenge for next year:https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Dedra ~ A Book Wanderer wrote: "No, 'a book that fulfills your favorite prompt from a past challenge' is #19 on the 2023 list. Not sure why it moved, though."Weird. But thanks for pointing it out.
Thanks also to Dedra and Brandon for the NaNoWriMo tips.
I agree with a lot of the comments here, that this is a weak list.
Dubhease wrote: "I thought about this. Not only do I hate all the books published the year I was born, I hate giving this out. I might pick the year I graduated, the year I got married, or the year I became a mom. No one can say I'm wrong because no one on Goodreads knows my birthdate."
Sounds fair. I may do decade I was born, but I don't want to be specific.
Doni wrote: "I think we should create our own challenge! (using Nadine's awesome advanced prompts of course.)"
I'd second Around the Year in 52 Books (https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...) if you want something different, as its created co-operatively by the group members. It does have some of the same or similar prompts as PS, but a lot of different ones, too.
I haven't found Nadine's alternative prompts yet. Can someone post the link?
Doni wrote: "I think the most disappointing one to me is A #booktok recommendation. This was on last year's challenge and one of my least favorite prompts."
I was saved on that one this year by an Amazon subtitle of "#booktok made me buy it"
Brandon wrote: "One thing that was not repeated: award prompts. I will count that as something good from the 2023 list."
Agreed. Apart from the Hugos (SF/Fantasy), I've usually been really disappointed by most of the Award books I've read.
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Books mentioned in this topic
War and Peace (other topics)Beartown (other topics)
Exit West (other topics)
Blood Heir (other topics)
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
T. Kingfisher (other topics)Ilona Andrews (other topics)
Shanna Swendson (other topics)
No, 'a book that fulfills your favorite prompt from a past challenge' is #19 on the 2023 list. Not sure why it moved, though.
You can do a quick google for 'published books written during Nanowrimo'. There's also a Goodreads list, but I think it needs to be updated.