The Good Reading Habits Tag

I love doing book tags and I like getting tagged by other book bloggers in tags. I want to thank Mackenzie at Lit Lemon Books for tagging me.

Rules:

• Pingback to the creator’s post
• List some of your good reading habits, the things you think you do well
• Nominate some of your blogging friends

My Good Reading Habits

Setting aside reading time

This might sound like something that should be given, but I feel like I’m able to read as much as I do because I make a point to set aside time to read everyday. Not only does it make it easier for me to meet my reading goals, but it also means I have enough time to really read books as opposed to trying to rush through them.

Planning my reads

When I finish a book, I always know what my next read is going to be. This means I don’t waste time debating which book to read next or procrastinate on making a decision. This doesn’t always work out exactly as planned, but more often than not it does. It also makes me way less stressed because when I don’t have a plan, I tend to freak out.

Reducing my purchases of new books

This is a fairly new good habit I’ve picked up. I’ve focused on reading the books I already own as opposed to buying new ones. I’ve also taken advantage of my local library and services such as Kindle Unlimited to reduce my spending. In reducing the amount I spend, I’ve ended up reading a number of books I’ve owned for years but hadn’t “gotten around” to reading yet.

Those are my good reading habits. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!

I Tag:

Leah at Leah’s Books and Cooks, Krista at The Bookish Hedgemom and anyone else who wants to give this tag a try!

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Blogtober Day 11: Books I Meant to Read, But Didn't

Has there ever been a book that you meant to read, but you just didn't? Everyone kept telling you to read the book, the premise sounded interesting, and then you just didn't read the book. Maybe you started it, but found you couldn't finish it. Maybe you didn't get a chance to read it because you outgrew the genre. I have quite a few books like that. Today, I'd like to talk about them.

The Divergent Series

Let's start off with an easy one. In a post-Hunger Games world, I feel like plenty of readers were looking for more dystopian YA. Many gravatated towards Divergent by Veronica Roth. It seemed to hit many of the same beats as The Hunger Games while at the same time, not being too similar. Many websites and blogs suggested the series for fans of The Hunger Games. Yet, I wasn't able to get past the first few chapters. It felt like a story I'd read before and nothing stood out to me. I stopped reading and decided maybe I should give myself some time, reading something a little different and try again later. By the time the series was finished, and I considered going back to give the series a second chance, I realized I was over YA dystopia.

The Sun is Also A Star

I wanted to read this book. I still want to read it. I own it, it's on my bookshelf, waiting to be read. Yet, for some reason, every time I finish one book and try to decide on the next thing to read, The Sun is Also A Star gets glossed over. I can't think of an exact reason why I keep choosing other books over it, but hopefully one day, I can cross it off of my TBR list.

The Perks of Being A Wallflower

This is an interesting one. A friend recommended this book to me before the movie was made. She said I'd enjoy it, knowing I was a fan of the genre. Then, the film came out. The film came out, teens on the Internet gravitated towards it and certain aspects of the plot were glossed over or became cringe-worthy. I realized I didn't want to read the book any longer, since I already knew major aspects of the story and didn't want to read a story with those themes.

Me Before You

When I heard this book was going to become a movie, I thought to myself "maybe I should read that." Then, I started seeing trailers for it and I realized the book wasn't about quite what I thought. Or, I guess it would be more accurate to say, assuming the movie was marketed correctly, it didn't have the tone I thought it would. After seeing more trailers, I realized the story just wasn't for me.

The Mortal Instruments series

I'm not the biggest fan of paranormal romance/urban fantasy, but I was willing to give these books a shot when the first one came out. Then, I went through my  "I'm different from other girls, I don't read the dumb books that they read" phase and decided to forego reading them based on that. I completely forgot about the series until ABC Family/Freeform created the television series. I started the first one and couldn't get very far, because the author's writing style wasn't something I liked or could even tolerate. So, I stopped reading before I got too far in. The television series isn't bad, all things considered.

Those are some books I meant to read, but didn't. Are there any books like that in your life?

Blogtober Day 4: Cosy Places to Read

I think a lot about good places to read. While it's possible to read almost anywhere, there's a definite distinction that makes somewhere a good place to read and what doesn't. I've decided there are a few characteristics that makes somewhere a good places to read.

First of all, ambiance. I don't know about you, but I prefer reading in places where there's a good atmosphere. I can read on the Metro, but I prefer not to because of how loud and distracting it can be. I like quiet places that are out of the way. There aren't a ton of people, but I'm also not the only person there. This is why, when I was in college, one of my favorite places to go to read was the library, cliche I know. The library was quiet, they had some comfy chairs and for the most part, people left you alone.

Second, comfort. Where would you rather sit when you read? In a big comfy chair, possibly with a blanket thrown over you for good measure, or in a hard plastic chair where you can't lean back on relax? I'd take the first option, any day. Since I love curling up with a good book, I prefer big, overstuffed chairs that practically beg to be sat in. This is definitely why lying in bed is one of my favorite places to read. Nothing says comfort like lying in bed and getting lost in a book.

Third, lighting. This one might be part of ambiance, but I've decided to make it its own category. Obviously, reading in the dark is very difficult, but what makes somewhere a good place to read depends a lot on the lighting situation. I prefer natural lighting to artificial lights. I'd rather sit by the window, where I can get plenty of natural light to read by, than deal with too many overhead fluorescent lights. I'm prone to headaches pretty easily, so the more natural light, the better. Plus, natural light just feels cozier.

For all of the reasons I've described above, I've decided my favorite place to read, by far, and the coziest, is in a big overstuffed chair, in front of a fireplace. I curl up there with my latest read and a glass of something warm, maybe coffee, maybe hot chocolate, and get lost in the tale the author has to offer.

That's my ideal place to read. What's yours?