I love to read, and I read a lot. I'm always in the middle of a book. I freak out if I'm stuck somewhere without something to read. Luckily, since I got an i-Phone I have a Kindle in my phone so I'm never stuck without a book. Just don't look at my credit card bills....
At the beginning of the year, a bunch of my writing friends were pledging to read a certain number of books during the year. One said 60, another said 80. I thought about it and decided to keep tabs on all the books I read during 2012. Not as any kind of challenge, but just out of curiosity. I already keep tabs on how many films I see in the course of the year because I review everything I see.
So today I opened up my spreadsheet to enter the latest book I finished, and realized I'm already over 80. And it's not even September yet. I'll definitely get over 100 by December 31st. How do I manage to read this much? I'm a little baffled. Sure, I read on the bus going to and from work. I read in the bath before I go to bed. I read in bed on Sunday mornings while my partner gets breakfast for the kids.
But that's about it. Not a whole lot of hours. My bus trips aren't hours long (although my baths sometimes are...). I read fast, but over 80 books? That seems quite insane! Especially since I haven't included unpublished manuscripts in that tally and I've read at least 10 of those this year too, and critiqued them.
How many books do you think you've read this year?
I have no idea how many books I've read. I've been deep in edits though, so that's taking a toll on my reading. Still I read when I run on the treadmill, so I always get some time in that way.
ReplyDeleteI go through phases where I read a ton, and then not so much. When I am working on my own writing I don't read as much because it is difficult for me to keep everything separate in my brain. I read a lot this summer because my kids are home and it is too distracting to write, but easy enough to find time to read.
ReplyDeleteI don't keep count, but I'm reading a novel that's about 890 pages right now--The Passage by David Cronin. I NEVER read books that long, but this thing has totally hooked me in!
ReplyDeleteI go through periods when I read and they seem to coincide with my writing schedule. When I'm between projects I read.. When I'm neck deep in edits or drafting, maybe a book a month. But since I write YA and adult romance, I seen to have even less time to read...grrrh
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