Book-Related Problems I Have
Top Ten Tuesdays are hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, where we make lists of our top ten books based on that week’s prompt… and then we stalk other people’s answers to add a million books to our TBR. The topics are provided ahead of time and can be found here.
1. I’ll never be able to READ ALL THE BOOKS!
Every week there are new books that get released. On top of that, add in classics and backlist books I haven’t gotten to yet. There will never be enough time in my life to read all the books I want to read! I know everyone here probably has that same issue, but it’s a very sad feeling. This can also relate to the fact that I never know what to read next because I’m too excited about too many books. Do I read the one I’ve been really looking forward to? Do I read the one I just bought? Do I read the new release? Do I read the ARC? I don’t knooooow. I’ll never know!
2. I buy books on release day because I’m so excited… then let them sit on my shelf for weeks/months/years.
You know how it goes – you’re all excited about a book release and you run to the store/internet to buy it that day…. and then it sits on your shelves for god-knows-how-long. This happens to me TOO MUCH. Day before payday and I have $20 in my checking account? Better buy that new book that’s $10 instead of waiting until, ya know, when I’m actually going to read it. WHY??
3. I’m a mood reader, which is rarely a good thing.
I have to really be in the MOOD for certain books. Having too many ARCs is a huge burden for me if they’re not books I’m genuinely interested in. I can usually tell exactly what kind of book I want to read next and have to read one within that genre. I can’t easily switch between genres and I get VERY burnt out from genres. If I read too many contemporaries in a row, I have to switch to something a little heavier or a fantasy.
4. I go a bit crazy at the library whenever I go.
Browsing the library can be a dangerous thing, especially because of the previous problem. I look around, grab books I’ve been looking forward to, and bring them home. I never read them right away for some reason and then sometimes I’m NEVER in the mood for them, because of the whole mood-reader-thing. I end up having to renew them the maximum amount of times and sometimes get fines. I should learn to only go to the library with certain books in mind that I plan on reading right away.
5. I have weird feelings about book formats and always end up wanting the physical copy, regardless of the other copies I may own.
I love audiobooks and I love reading on my Kindle. I may use that Audible credit for a book I’m really excited for or buy the Kindle book because it’s on sale. Then, I read/listen to the book…and I want to own the physical copy. Sometimes I get buyer’s remorse about the format I originally bought it in because the cover is so pretty and the book is so great that I just NEED it on my shelf. I listened to Open Road Summer as an audiobook and now I’m dying for the physical copy. Now, do I buy the hardcover even though I prefer paperbacks, because The Start of Me and You is preordered and I want them to match? Or do I just buy the copy I prefer? I read Catching Jordan on Kindle, but now I have Stealing Parker and Racing Savannah as paperbacks. Sooo I need Catching Jordan in paperback even though I already technically own the book. SO MANY OPTIONS, SO LITTLE MONEY.
5. It’s hard to keep track of series and I don’t know how or when I’ll read them all.
I have issues with series because of the format thing, too. Sometimes I start a series when the paperback of the first book is out, but the other books are still hardcover. What do I buy?? They must match! I bought Splintered as a paperback because it’s so gorgeous, then bought Unhinged as an ebook because it was on sale. So now, what do I do with Ensnared? It’s either hardcover or Kindle. On top of the logistical issues of buying books in a series, I always have trouble keeping track of them. It’s torture to read an amazing ARC of a series-starter and then not be able to read the second book for a LOOONG time. Much longer than the regular folks of the world. I’ve been using a Series Tracker in one of my YA groups on Goodreads, which is helpful, but sometimes I even forget to update that.
6. I have no idea how to (and no motivation to) organize my shelves.
This goes for both Goodreads and physical shelves. On Goodreads, I only recently started creating shelves for different genres, review statuses, and topics. I wish I could be more specific but there are so many books… where do I begin? Not to mention the fact that I have shelves like “summer books” that I never remember to update or add when I put a book on my TBR. Now, my physical shelves are in a similar situation. I don’t know how I want to organize them. I want to keep some favorites together, but I also want to keep things alphabetical. I want to put series in order. I also kind of want to do rainbow shelves instead. UGH.
7. I tend to over-do it.
Just take a look at my Challenges widget and you’ll see why. In my quest to read all the books, I take on way too many things. I want more features, more readalongs, more challenges, more books, more books, MOAR BOOKS. I set my Goodreads challenge at 200 books and it’s been stressing me out for no reason. It’s only February! Who cares if I get behind? I don’t need to post three reviews a week. No one will miss them or know the difference. Sometimes I have to remind myself that this is a ~*HOBBY*~ and I need to keep it that way.
8. I don’t like getting interrupted while reading and/or trying to find reading time.
Sometimes things are getting reaaaally good… and then Chris starts talking to me. Or something funny happens on the TV. Or I decide I should probably get my butt out of bed and get ready for work. There are countless interruptions during my reading time. Even when I find myself having some uninterrupted time to read, I end up distracting myself with Twitter or Goodreads instead. C’mon girl, you want this time…now use it!
9. I feel like all of my “free time” is best spent reading, and I make myself feel bad for doing other things.
I know this is stupid and I shouldn’t feel this way, but I can’t help it. If I wake up with some extra time in the morning and decide to watch a show instead of read, I feel like I wasted my time in some ways. I keep all of my stupid challenges in mind and think I should be finishing that book instead of binging the two latest episodes of Chasing Life. I neeeeed to remind myself that I can read WHEN I want. I don’t have to read 24/7. I’m allowed to have other hobbies and interests.
10. I hate taking notes… but have a terrible memory.
I do take notes while I read… but not well. I find that I’m forcing myself to write things down because I feel like I need to take some kind of notes. I have a bad memory, especially when it comes to book details, so note-taking is really a necessity. Sometimes I look at my notes and wonder why I bothered. I am GREAT at note-taking for schoolwork or regular work, but I am sooo bad at taking notes on books. I’d rather just bury my nose in it and hope I remember everything when I write the review.
I’ve been trying to be better about my shelves on Goodreads, and am slowly making my way through every book and shelving it more specifically based on genres and themes. My bookshelves at home are alphabetical by author and split between contemporary and paranormal/fantasy/everything else. I definitely have that problem with buying books and not reading them right away. I’ve been doing better on that lately, but then I feel guilty about all of the books on my shelf that I own and have yet to get too!
Yes! I went through one day and moved all of them to basic shelves, but I still want to go through each shelf and make it more specific. I also am thinking of just making one big “adult” shelf instead of trying to separate those, because I don’t read them too often anyways.
I totally agree with the book-release-day-buying! I’ve done that with 3 books recently, and I can feel them staring at me from my shelves! I just have other books that I need to read first, that’s all! I promise I’ll read you, books! (That’s just me talking to my books. It’s okay. It’s totally a normal thing.)
I also totally feel you on your shelf organization! My shelves at home are not really organized in any way, but I know where all of my books are just by memory … my Goodreads shelves though? A whole other story. I just add books to the shelves willy-nilly, with no real rhyme or reason. Especially with blogging, I need to get a handle on this – it’ll make blogger organization so much simpler.
Great post, Lauren. 🙂
TOTALLY normal to talk to your books. Normal to hug them once you finish reading, too, right?
I know what you mean about the shelves. It’s hard to make a system, reorganize everything, then stick to it. Seems impossible.
Great list! I can especially rate to #1. Of course I think that is an issue all readers have. Ha. But I feel so much anxiety when I think of all the books out there that I may never read!
I know!! It’s so sad and stressful haha
Keeping track of series is the worst! I finally created a goodreads shelf “series to finish” to help me with that problem. 🙂 I also always get more books than I will read at the library. :/ Good thing they are free!
I need to do that too! But my problem is that I don’t usually add all of the books in the series to my TBR – just the first book. I add the second book once I finish the first. I should think about making that shelf and just adding everything at once. It’d make it much easier to keep track of.
I definitely relate to number 1 – but try not to think about it too much because it causes all sorts of life anxiety about time and things to fit in :-/ Haha – I do #2 sometimes as well, there’s books I’ve been excited for and snap them up and then don’t get around to them for a while. I think I feel better knowing I have them ready and waiting! For your number 9 I kind of feel the opposite – when I was younger my mum didn’t always understand why I would “waste” time reading so much instead of doing other things, and I think that has stuck with me a little. I could be being more “productive” instead of reading and accomplishing something, so sometimes I have reading guilt instead. Only sometimes though 😉 R x
Haha I know what you mean! My mom was VERY into reading like me, same with my dad – so they were constantly just sitting around and reading. I definitely didn’t have that problem 😛
#1: Yes, yes, yes! biggest problem there is!
And I agree about the library strongly too. My card is almost always maxed out and I have even kidnapped my husband’s card a few times (tsk tsk to me).
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Haha whatever works!!