Well, hey there! Does that photo above overwhelm you? It kinda does me right now. So many books… so little time! (that is actually the title to the book that started me on my yearly reading challenge lists, btw) I have too many choices on my plate and I have not been reading much because of that. I have a review book that I am reading right now because it is coming due soon (and I am thoroughly enjoying it). Otherwise, all the stacks are too much for my brain since our vacation in July. I am going to try to narrow it down to a stack of five this morning so I can post it here.

I have set a few goals for myself to help me focus more. I will be reading the last two books in the Mitford series after I finish the review read. I have an audio book that has been in progress since June, a nonfiction that I have less than 100 pages on that I have been reading snippets from since January, and I have to go through my bookshelves and purge again. I am freezing my book buying as well… it is quite the “habit” to break for me right now. LOL I need to focus on my own shelves between now and the New Year so I can dwindle it down a bit.

With all that in mind here is my goal for the duration of August… and into September. I must stay focused… on track… stay the course… keep the main thing the main thing… and all that jazz. LOL I might need some blinders, you know… like they put on horses to keep them on the road. I am weak, folks… WEAK!!!

The PLAN I am using to get my reading groove back:

1. Limit my choices – this will give a smaller pile to keep me on track.
2. Don’t buy anything new – Oh boy! LOL
3. Set goals on my reading apps and read the allotted number of pages or minutes per day to keep moving forward. My favorite one for this is ReadMore.
4. Get off the computer/social media/email stuff. Set limits for this and get off and read
5. Opt to read instead of watching a show on the streaming services.
6. Read before bed – go to bed earlier so I can read longer at bedtime. I do read every night but I tend to read 10 minutes and then conk out right away because I go to bed too late. Earlier bedtime gives me more reading time.
7. Read between chores – set a goal to read 10 pages, one chapter, or whatever amount of time I have (10 to 30 minutes for a break). It all adds up.
8. I always keep a book in my bag so if I am waiting I can knock out a few pages at a time. I sometimes use ear plugs to block out excess noise in public if I cannot focus. The little soft noise reduction plugs work great and they are not expensive at all. I keep them in my purse.
9. Audio books help me to “read” more because I can listen while I wash dishes, work on projects, clean things out in drawers and closets, etc… I must admit that ALL of my reading in July was from audio books because we were traveling. I get really bad motion sickness so I cannot read in the car so I listen instead. The addition of audio books to our trips in recent years has been a complete travel game changer. We love it!
10. Dig into more nonfiction – I know this doesn’t work for some people but I do tend to read nonfiction faster than fiction. If it is a topic I am super interested in I can get 50 plus pages read in a day for most nonfiction. The exception would be thicker theology books… pondering is my jam with those.

Ok, here are photos I promised…

For later in the week I have a very bookish travel post for you. I won’t spoil it but I think some of you will be very excited when you see what I got to do on our trip. You will want to add it to your Travel Bucket List. Stay tuned!

~Leann

Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash