2017 Challenges…Also Known As the Post with the Best Intentions

Posted December 19, 2016 by Cristina (Girl in the Pages) in Challenges / 12 Comments

Reading Challenges are the ultimate failed new year’s resolutions for me. I go in so, so pumped for them and somewhere (usually toward mid to late spring) I end up getting so busy I don’t have time to keep track of them, let alone remember what challenges I signed up for. I’m still reading, sure, but without any real direction and certainly not with any speicifc goal in mind (I’ve turned into a pretty picky mood reader this past year). For 2017, I want to be super picky about the challneges I sign up for, and limit the amount that I participate in so that I can really focus on them and keep track of them. Luckily, the challenges I’ve come across that interest me are all relatively casual and without leveling, so I can really set achievable goals for myself this year!

Diverse Books Reading Challenge Challenge hosted by Mishma @ Chasing Faerytales and Shelley @ Read.Sleep.Repeat.

Goal: 6 Books

I think now more than ever is an important time to push ourselves to read books that expand our perspectives. This challenge is great because the creators put together an expansive list of recommendations, and there’s mini challenges each month that focus on a certain type of diverse read. I’m hoping to participate in at least half of the mini challenges, for a total of 6 books throughout the year.

Flights of Fantasy Challenge hosted by Alexa @ Alexa Loves Books and Rachel @ Hello, Chelly

Goal: 10 Books

I love Alexa’s blog and always see her mention this challenge, so I decided I wanted to join in on the fun this year! I was also really shocked to discover that, as of now, I’ve only read 6 fantasy novels in 2016 (and more than half of those were Sarah J Maas novels). That’s much lower than I expected, and I definitely used to read much more fantasy when I was younger. I’d like to get back into fantasy reading and I think this is the way to do it!

Bookish Bingo hosted by Bekka @ Pretty Deadly Reviews

Goal: As Many Bingo Squares as Possible!

Bookish Bingo is seasonal and it’s fun to find books that fill in squares that can be determined by anything from genre to cover color! It’s a super fun, super low-stress challenge and I’m excited to get back into it.

Goodreads Challenge

Goal: 55 Books

Of course, the Goodreads Challenge is always there. 2016 was my first full year working full time so I lowered my reading goal considerably from the year before (from 70 to 50). I’d like to slowly build my reading capacity back up, so I’m aiming for 55 in 2017.

Retelling Challenge

Goal: 5 books

Achieved: 2 Books

So I failed pretty hard on this one, however I feel like fairy tale retellings have become a bit overdone and therfore become a bit out of vogue. I did manage to read two retellings, ACOMAF and Heartless, but those would have been on my TBR anyways due to both authors being auto-buy authors for me.

Must Read in 2016 Challenge

Goal: 10 Books

Achieved: 8 Books (so far)

I really loved this challenge created by Lauren @Bookmark Lit because it was so chill, and it was a melting pot of genres and themes. It was literally just a push to get me to make a short TBR of books I had really been neglecting to read. As of now I’ve finished 8 out of the 10 I initially chose for this challenge, and I’m currently reading another (I ended up DNF-ing one book, so if I manage to finish the 9th I’ll consider this challenge completed!)

Rock My TBR Challenge

Goal: 24 Books

Achieved: 28 Books

So this seems like it’s cause for celebration, however I found this challenge sort of hard to feel accomplished about because while a majority of what I read was from my physical TBR that I owned, I kept buying MORE books and thus it felt like no real dent was being made by this challenge for me. I love the concept, however I just didn’t feel it was a super effective challenge for me.

Backlist Books Challenge

Goal: 10 Books

Achieved: 8 Books

I really really loved this concept as well, but I didn’t quite meet the challenge goal due to my own restrictions I placed on it (I was focusing on backlist books only if they were published in 2014 or earlier). Still, not too bad of a showing on this one. I’m also currently reading Grave Mercy so if I finish that before the end of the month I’ll be at 9!

Goodreads Challenge

Goal: 50 Books

Achieved: 52 Books (so far)

I’m currently ahead, so I’m definitely pleased! I’m hoping to hit 55 before the end of the year!

Are you taking part in any 2017 challenges? Let me know in the comments!

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12 responses to “2017 Challenges…Also Known As the Post with the Best Intentions

  1. Manca

    I am so happy I managed to read over 100 books in 2016 🙂 I hope I add a few more before the year ends. I’ll probably try to read more diverse and fantasy books in the next year and try to read 110+ books 🙂

    • I am always so awed and impressed by people who are able to read so many books in one year! (I think my personal best has been 74 books in a year). I’ll admit, I’m hoping to squeeze a bit more in before the end of 2016 as well!

  2. Hey, you actually did pretty well. You had a good reason for not finishing the retelling challenge, and you came pretty darn close on the others (and yay for exceeding the Goodreads goal!). I’m still pushing for my 50 books this year, and I’m sitting at 42. But I have at least six books that I’m in the middle of, so I’m trying to finish those up to clear out my “currently reading” shelf on Goodreads AND finish my challenge goal. I think I can, I think I can!

    Also, bookish bingo games look like fun. I might jump in and do one this year just for fun! Hope you enjoy participating in those in 2017.

    • Bookish Bingo is so fun, I love how random the squares are so it’s a good fit if you’re a mood reader, as it’s easy to choose a read that can cater to one of the spaces. I know how you feel about being in the middle of a bunch of different books…I find it super frustrating, but I’m usually in the middle of 4-5 at a time due to mood swings in reading, different formats, losing interest, etc. I hope you can hit your goal of 50!

    • Yes, do it! The hosts are so sweet and it’s a good way to challenge yourself to pick up more fantasy novels (even though I love them I feel like I definitely find myself avoiding starting them sometimes because they can be so dense and it takes some work to get into them…)

  3. I’m so thrilled that you are joining Rachel & I for Flights of Fantasy in 2017! We love encouraging other readers to pick up a fantasy novel (or two or three), and we hope you hit your personal challenge goal <3

  4. I joined the backlist book and bookish bingo this year, but I found that the bingo pressure me too much and I find it hard to track which books are backlist and which books aren’t 😀 I already completed my goodreads challenge though, so that’s a yay 😀

  5. You did well with your challenges in 2016! I’m taking part in the Diverse Books Reading and the Goodreads Challenge too. I pretty much lost track of my challenges in 2016, but I’m hoping to be better next year. 😀 Good luck for yours!

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