2021 reading goals

It’s a new year and I think everyone is as pleased as I am to see the back of 2020. And though I don’t believe that the new year has to be a time for goal setting and reflecting, I do always enjoy lounging around for the last few days of the year before refocusing and planning for the year ahead. I like setting goals and having something to aim for; I enjoyed sharing my book-related goals at the beginning of 2020 and I would like to do the same this year.

There are fewer numerical goals for me this year in favour of more vaguely definable aims — it’s easier to find success in something that has varying degrees of achievement!

Read 100 books

I set this as a goal for myself in 2020 and I achieved it and then some, with a total of 138 books read. I’d like to do the same again this year.

Reduce my Physical TBR

This is a must for me this year. I didn’t succeed quite as well as I hoped to with this last year, but I have devised a different system that I am hoping will work a lot better this year. My 2021 book buying challenge post will be published in a week or so (hopefully!).

Enjoy Bookstagram Again

I burnt myself out towards the end of the year and everything reading-related (with the exception of actually reading) fell out of the window. I fell out of love with bookstagram. It was making me stressed: I was comparing my feed to others in a similar way I’d tell myself off for comparing myself to a fitness model, and then wondering why I wasn’t enjoying taking photos or posting. I took a month-long break in December and am excited to take photos again and share my thoughts on books without obsessing over it.

Limit ARCs Accepted / Read and Review ARCs Pre-Publication Date

These two go hand-in-hand and involve two things I’m not very good at: accepting that I can’t do everything, and saying no. I hate turning down review requests and there were a couple of times last year where I took on too many ARCs. It was a struggle to read and review them all and it only succeeded in making reading a bit of a chore, which is no good for me or the wonderful books that I couldn’t dedicate enough time to. This year, I must say no to more review requests and concentrate on the ones I do accept, ensuring I have enough time to read and review them before their publication date.

Listen to More Audiobooks

I stopped listening to audiobooks somewhere around October and I would like to start again this year. I am hoping to listen to audiobooks whilst doing exercise, going on walks and playing on my switch. And, maybe even a commute if that becomes an option again – though never did I think I’d wish to use public transport.

Review Every Book in A Short Format

At about the same time I stopped listening to audiobooks and being active on bookstagram, I also stopped reviewing the books I was reading. I didn’t want to give up reading, but I couldn’t bring myself to write out pages of my thoughts on every book. In 2021, I want to review every book I read in a mini-review style of about 100 to 200 words, just a summary of my thoughts and feelings to look back on and share.

Reread My Favourite Books

I love rereading my favourite books and, since I didn’t get to all of my 2019 favourites in 2020, I now have two years worth of favourites to squeeze in somewhere. At a minimum, I’d love to reread The Starless Sea, A Song of Wraiths and Ruin, Good Omens and How to Stop Time.

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Do you have any reading goals for 2021?