The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion
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Personal Goals for the Challenge
I am new, and so I'm not going to set a specific goal for myself. If I shorten my TBR list, step outside my comfort zone, and keep on outpacing my yearly goal, I'll be happy. I think if I really "played hard" this time out, I wouldn't have as much fun.
Then, Summer is the busy work time for my business, so I expect to do less during that event than I expect I will for Spring.
Next Fall and Winter is when I plan on really going for it. :)
This is my third time in the challenge and I feel like I have finally gotten my bearings so goal number one is no posting errors! Goal two is to read more books I wouldn't read otherwise... I've taken suggestions from friends in two categories lately and have a list of books I will try to fit in from them. I'm focusing less on points this time and more on myself.
I am finishing up the Winter Challenge with 305 points and 20 tasks complete. In the Spring, I would like to get at least 30 tasks completed and have a higher score. My real goal is the number of tasks, not the points, as I want to give those lower point tasks some attention and not just focus on the higher value points to reach my goal.
This will be my first time participating in this challenge so I'm not sure what is a realistic goal. I had a look at the stats from some recent challenges and saw that the average number of points scored was around 350 so I think I'll set that as my points goal. I also want to challenge myself to read a wider range of genres and authors so I'm going to set myself these goals:
* Read at least ten new authors
* Read at least three books that have been translated into English
* Read at least three non-fiction books
* Read at least five books from genres that I'm less familiar with (eg science fiction, fantasy, crime).
My second season just finished with 615 points (vs 520 the season before) - I did not read that many more books, but I think I was more savvy in completing the tasks this time round.I know I must be mad but with (only!) 850 points for grabs this spring, I am going to try to complete the challenge. I feel I need to do it once at least. Woooo, go me. :P
Laure wrote: "My second season just finished with 615 points (vs 520 the season before) - I did not read that many more books, but I think I was more savvy in completing the tasks this time round.I know I must..."
I have been doing the challenge off and on since it was a part of a different group (The Next Best Book Club) and I have never completed it. I totally understand that feeling of it being like "This could be my one chance!" Can you imagine how many tasks there will be next season???
Kathryn CA wrote: "Laure wrote: "My second season just finished with 615 points (vs 520 the season before) - I did not read that many more books, but I think I was more savvy in completing the tasks this time round...."
Haha, it is very likely that I will not make it! Still, I think quite a few people will - so yes, we're looking at a humongous summer challenge! (but then maybe another 'small' one in the autumn? :D)
I am having some health problems that mess withmy reading consistently. Hopefully it will smooth
out soon. I only read for 3 tasks in the Winter, so
hopefully I will do better.
My goals for the Spring challenge:
300 points
finish 5/10/15 challenges
Gravy:
Finish the 20's
MaryAnn (EmilyD1037) wrote: "I am having some health problems that mess withmy reading consistently. Hopefully it will smooth
out soon. I only read for 3 tasks in the Winter, so
hopefully I will do better.
My goals for the..."
Best wishes, and prayers for your health problems!
Katrina wrote: "I'm finishing the winter challenge on just over 200 points, I thought I'd manage more but I didn't read as much over Christmas as I usually do and had a lot of new books for Christmas/Birthday that..."Not as close to these goals as I'd hoped to be, Easter ended up bogged down by marking books and exam papers and then taking a trip away.
This challenge I'm not setting myself a goal as we're trying to move a house and could potentially move during that time, if we do I potentially have 6 weeks at home (school summer holidays) decorating/cleaning if not I have 6 weeks off to read! I'm also on a cruise for a week of that, and 2 days of that is just travelling so I should get through a few books on that trip.I've re-arranged my bookshelves to create a bookcase of books which never get seen, a bookcase which I'm excited to get to and also started using the library more so this time I've written a list where nearly every task so far has 3+ potential reads and where I've tried to feature a book from each of these book cases and the library. I found last time I felt limited by the list I created, but love making a list so just made an even bigger one! Many of the books are repeated. Hopefully this way I won't feel so limited.
My only goal is to read War and Peace and include that - I'm hoping it'll fit in a 20/25 point task as I've not managed to fit it in yet!
How is everyone else's summer plans?
I was hoping I could finish the Spring Challenge, but I wasn't sure. I only have 2 books left though, so I think I can do it. Yay!
Becky wrote: "This is my first challenge ever! I took some time yesterday and posted my reading plan. I have 26 books listed . . . and the full task list hasn't even been posted yet! Wow! Does anyone ever comple..."Well they must complete them; we have like 13 30 point challenges the next season. XD Next season will be massive and I'm hoping it will make the season after more achievable. For this season, I'm hoping to read for 300 points. Baby steps.
So from one newbie to another lol always read for fun and don't be daunted by the task list? I think I'm trying to tell myself that too really.
Becky wrote: "This is my first challenge ever! I took some time yesterday and posted my reading plan. I have 26 books listed . . . and the full task list hasn't even been posted yet! Wow! Does anyone ever comple..."Welcome Becky! Spring was my first challenge and I managed to complete it, so it is possible. Although, 'only' 850 points were needed for Spring and I expect Summer will be a lot more so I'm not expecting to finish the summer challenge.
My first suggestion would be to decide if you do actually want to finish the challenge or if you're happy using the prompts to help you pick out interesting books or authors and completing only the tasks that interest you most.
If you do want to complete the challenge then it can help to focus on shorter books, or on books that are quite easy to read (ie don't plan to read Ulysses or War and Peace!). If you enjoy reading drama then plays are often short. There is a Goodreads list of novellas which are all fairly short too. Also, children's (subject to the challenge rules) and YA books can often be easy and quick reads.
Planning is also important so if you haven't already then grab yourself a post in the reading plan thread and start mapping out what you might like to read during the challenge. The thread is also great for getting ideas from other readers.
Hope that's helpful, and enjoy the challenge!
Oh well the best laid plans etc. I actually started the Spring challenge really well, but the pace I needed to read at to complete the challenge, and this with 'only' 850 points, sickened me of ... reading. I had to stop! So never again.I'm taking my time, and I am inluding some 'big' books I was avoiding last challenge. Here we go 'Ulysses'! :P
I want to break 300 points this time for the summer challenge. I'm going to come in this time just a bit over 200. I also want to get at least five big book tickets - I'll be in a Masters program in the fall and really want to use this summer to knock out some huge books that I want to read.
Since finishing is impossible (I average 600-700 pts at best), I just want to read as many of my owned books as I can. I am trying not to assign them yet, to add spontaneity. With so many tasks ahead, I'm sure to find a fit and allowing myself to read whatever I want will be a nice change from having assigned myself a 3 month booklist. I use my hoopla and overdrive audio to supplement books specific to tasks (free!)
I don't plan on finishing the challenge, I'm using it more to expand my reading. That being said, I do use a spreadsheet and have been trying to use the books that I own first to fill out the tasks. I have a bit of a book habit, so that's usually easily, although the library is where I turn for my newer titles. I also am in another group and participate in the challenges there, but they are usually just a book or two a month so easy for me. I don't use any books from one group challenge to complete another group challenge. I see other people doing it. I do each one separate to keep the spirit of each challenge intact. That being said, last season was my first time with SRC and I had a personal crisis that left my reading very much off track. This season I just hope to see progress and more variety in my reading!
It is not possible for me to complete the challenge but I try to get around 300 points. My goal for the summer is to read 15 books that I already own. The rest (~5) can be audio or ebooks from Overdrive. Part of my challenge is to also fit these books into a 52 book annual challenge that I'm doing.
I'm debating about rejoining the challenge.For a few years I was a competitive member. I even won the first half once and picked the 50 point task. I came in second overall that time and finished several times. I found many new authors and read some good books that I would not otherwise have read. But there was always those one or two tasks that I could not find a book for, or just didn't want to read.
Then I got really, really burned out about 3 years ago. I didn't enjoy reading anymore, and could not turn that competitive streak off enough to just relax and enjoy the challenge. I HATE the posting part. I tried another group, and it was OK, but it was a team challenge and there were downsides to that as well.
I wish there was some way to streamline posting...LOL it is probably called "post your reading plan and edit that, don't worry about claiming points!" Any ideas, how have things changed in the last 3-4 years?
Cindy AL wrote: "I'm debating about rejoining the challenge.For a few years I was a competitive member. I even won the first half once and picked the 50 point task. I came in second overall that time and finished ..."
Instead of looking for books to fit a prompt, I only choose books from my existing TBR and Want To Read lists that fit the season's tasks. I joined the SRC a few seasons ago with the express purpose to help direct my reading. Despite having (or more likely because of having) so many books on my radar to choose from, I often can't decide what to read next. The SRC really helps with that. I will never finish, even when the total points are in the 800s-I just don't have that kind of reading time in my life right now-and I also don't want to fall into only reading shorter books, just so I can read more books and therefore maximize my points, or skip shorter reads because they don't make the minimum (like the 76 page book I just picked up at the library) or books with Childrens as a MPG that can't be salvaged via the AR Book Finder. Don't get me wrong...sometimes when the season is in high gear and I see others racking up the points, I get competitive and want to score up as many points as I can, but then I have to step back and just carry on with a challenge in a way that works for me-otherwise I get frustrated and depressed that so many others manage to finish and I just can't. I have to be careful not to get obsessive about the SRC-it can happen way too easily for me ;)
For this season, because the point total is so high and I don't have a prayer of coming close to finishing, I'm doing something different. I've set a goal to finish all of the 5 and 10 point tasks. So far, I've found a place within those prompts for all of my known book club reads (8 more will come up during the challenge but I won't know what there are until later this month and July). Beyond that, if a book doesn't fit the 5/10 pointers, I should be able to find a place for it elsewhere. I usually read less than 30 books per season, so the 20 required to finish the 5/10 will be doable and I have a set goal to strive for.
Re posting, I created a personal GR group where I copy and paste all of the tasks, organized by points, from the official group to that one. When it's time to post, I just add whatever book links are needed, cut out the extraneous language and post to the Completed Task thread. This works really well and ensures I don't miss any necessary task requirements.
Right now my goal is to finish either with as many points as I can, or finish as many tasks as I can. Not sure which I'm going to go for yet.
To begin with, I will say that finishing a season challenge is not within the realm of possibility for me, so I make alternative goals for myself. Like Lorraine, SRC is mostly a way to help me narrow down my vast number of choices. My method and goals change for every season, just because I enjoy variety. For the Spring season, I wanted to A) complete all the 5 & 10's and B) use as many graphic novels to complete the 5, 10, and 15 tasks as possible. I did complete all the 5 & 10 tasks, so yay me.
I'm a little tired of graphic novels now, and sometimes I feel boxed in by my reading lists, particularly if I'm working on certain point tasks and I know I won't read anything but that limited list.
So this season, I picked books from my TBR and I've made a huge spreadsheet of all the tasks and points, then to give myself the element of surprise, I give the list to my partner and tell him to randomly pick a book for me! If it's a two-book task, I read both.
I probably won't get many points this season, but that's okay! I'm going to read a wide variety of books that I've been wanting to read.
I would like to get 100 points. I think it is fair. I will be reading more because it is summer. I have a week off before I work summer school and we get out an hour earlier. Plus I will have 4 weeks off after summer school.
Thks for the responses. I am going to experiment with the private group idea. I'm assuming you mean cut and paste the task list, put the posting template at the bottom?
I just finished my credential program and have 16 books that have been stacking up over the year. I'd like to get through at least 10 of them this summer.
Cindy AL wrote: "Thks for the responses. I am going to experiment with the private group idea. I'm assuming you mean cut and paste the task list, put the posting template at the bottom?"I do a section with cut and pasted links (task list, calendar, reader board) and also create topics where I copy and paste all of the tasks themselves. It really makes posting so much easier for me than either trying to work off of a paper printout of the tasks or switching tabs back and forth on the computer to make sure I'm getting all of the requirements in.
I am going to try for 300 points, The first book I tried to get posted doesn't fit because there is no print edition, but I will persevere!
I read through some of how this group works about a month ago, but now this is my first time actually participating in the challenge. I spent some time setting up some pages in my One Note book to try to organize a little, but my goals are simple this summer:- read some of the books that keep showing up on my tbr notes that have also appeared on here, such as Pride and Prejudice, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
- use this as an opportunity to read some of the genres I rarely touch, such as science fiction
- complete tasks in each of the point categories (5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 ?)
- enjoy the process
Kim. E. wrote: "I read through some of how this group works about a month ago, but now this is my first time actually participating in the challenge. I spent some time setting up some pages in my One Note book to ..."***complete tasks in each of the point categories (5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30) ***
I like this. My only set goal for this season, because there are so many tasks, was to complete the 5 and 10 point tasks. If I have extra books, I am going to use this idea and try to fit them in each of the other categories so I do one task in each of them. Thanks for that idea :)
I planned all this challenge out but I'm giving up this time. I keep starting and not finishing books, some of this I think is because I ordered books from the library to fit tasks and now I have 14 library books (they all arrived at once) so feeling pressure to read these which is making me not want to read anything. Also, have a lot going on at the moment - buying a house, last few weeks of school holidays, organising going on a cruise (which has a lot more to do than a regular holiday) so I'm not getting as much time to read. So, I'm going to read whatever I feel like when I finish a book for now. I'll be back in either September or December depending on when we move as the new house needs a lot of work.
My parents sold their house. They are house hunting this weekend. They want to move further west from where they are now. They are still staying in the state. They will be 45 minutes away from where I live.
Since there was such an overwhelming # of tasks this season, I decided to just read whatever I want, then try to fit it into a task. figuring pretty much any book would fit somewhere. As a result I have read many books that fit into a two book task. In august I will try and find a book to finish some of these tasks off, but it has been refreshing to read where my mood takes me.
My goal for the fall challenge is to read mostly books that I already own! The group read and my planned task 15.3 book will have to be library books, though. I usually wind up with just under 300 points but I am shooting for 250 due to upcoming vacations and plans to read longer books!
Cindy AL wrote: "I am going to try for 300 points, The first book I tried to get posted doesn't fit because there is no print edition, but I will persevere!"
Do you know you can get ebooks verified for use for tasks without a page requirement?
I've planned my books for this season's challenge (well the ones that are up), not sure how many books I'll get to as we'll be moving next week but I missed having a list. Only 1 book is a library book so I have all the books sitting on my shelves. I don't have any goals points wise as I'm not sure how much reading time I'll have, I have included more non-fiction in my list this time though as I'd like to participate in Non-fiction November.
Marie (UK) wrote: "Cindy AL wrote: "I am going to try for 300 points, The first book I tried to get posted doesn't fit because there is no print edition, but I will persevere!"
Do you know you can get ebooks verifi..."
I had trouble finding it, but here is the link
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
I got over 500 points in the Summer challenge! Super proud but I feel a slump coming on... Do any of you feel a little burned out when you read much more than you normally do? I'm probably not going to do as well in the Fall, but I think I will shoot for half the points in the winter challenge. Yay for small victories!
That's an accomplishment Eshay! This time around I would like to hit at least the halfway mark in points. My main plan is to be more aggressive about defining and defending my reading time from here on out and to attack the books that have been on my want to read list for too long. So many new books coming out and I see way too many great recommendations on here!
EShay wrote: "I got over 500 points in the Summer challenge! Super proud but I feel a slump coming on... Do any of you feel a little burned out when you read much more than you normally do? I'm probably not goin..."Yes, I do. I remember in the Spring challenge starting all guns blazing - I got burned out half way through, and got into a slump.
So never again! I am going for 'Dimes and Nickels' this time. That's quite a big target. Wish me luck. :)
Laure wrote: "EShay wrote: "I got over 500 points in the Summer challenge! Super proud but I feel a slump coming on... Do any of you feel a little burned out when you read much more than you normally do? I'm pro..."Good luck Laure! I think that's a great goal, I might copy you if I get motivated enough to even be close to finishing even that :)
EShay wrote: "Laure wrote: "EShay wrote: "I got over 500 points in the Summer challenge! Super proud but I feel a slump coming on... Do any of you feel a little burned out when you read much more than you normal..."Thanks, started quite slow though. Haha, not sure if I'll make it. :)
What with work and a week away in the middle, I've got the modest aim of getting over half-way in the Fall challenge.
EShay wrote: "Laure wrote: "EShay wrote: "I got over 500 points in the Summer challenge! Super proud but I feel a slump coming on... Do any of you feel a little burned out when you read much more than you normal..."i think it is always a good choice to go for nickels and dimes and you can also try for big book or golden oldies tickets.
Big books over 500 pages
Golden oldies pre 1950's
Try writing a review for book you have read for the challenge
You can also try for moderators pet by being careful when posting and always previewing your post.
All these give you chances to win a task for next season and all are great achievements.
Hello!I just joined and will be trying out this challenge for the summer.
As it is my first time I will not really set a goal for how many points I want to get, I just want to have a good time and hopefully get through some of the books I have stored on my Kindle that I haven't read yet.
DoodlePanda wrote: "Hello!I just joined and will be trying out this challenge for the summer.
As it is my first time I will not really set a goal for how many points I want to get, I just want to have a good time and..."
Welcome DoodlePanda! I am fairly new myself, Spring was my 2nd go-round. You are smart not to set high goals for yourself-I did that the first time and really got myself wound-up-LOL. This time(Spring) I just decided I would look at the challenges and try to fit what I want to read into them. It was much better for me that way-My goal was to try, not kill myself reading, to beat my score from Winter, which I did by a few points. Satisfied with that and I had much time better doing the Spring Challenge. Looking forward to Summer-Good Luck!
Thanks! I plan on reading whatever I feel like and trying to fit them into the challenge as well :)I just finished another (stressful) challenge, so I need a break from rushing to read books and just enjoying them instead :D
Good luck to you too!
Welcome Doodlepanda, I been with this group since 2009. This game is addicting.
Jayme(the ghost reader) wrote: "Welcome Doodlepanda, I been with this group since 2009. This game is addicting."
Thank you! :D
I haven't got a lot of reading done due to stuff happening in life, but I'm still enjoying it so far!
The Seasonal Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
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I also find it difficult to finish the paired books. I'm going to make a real effort to read the two together this season.