How many books will I read this year?

Last year I read 91 books out of my goal of 90 (just made it!). This year, I'm taking a look at my 2020 reading goal, what I've accomplished so far, and what I think I'm going to shoot for.

Just how many books will I read this year? 

This is always a difficult question for me. I love reading - I mean, I love writing, but I don't think I'd be the writer I am without reading. No, I know I wouldn't be the writer I am without reading. So, when it comes to making reading goals for the year I take it seriously.

But first, let's take a quick look at my history - how many books I pledged to read and how many I did read (data courtesy of Goodreads):

2013 - 39/50 books read
2014 - 44/50 books read
2015 - 53/50 books read
2016 - 65/55 books read
2017 - 81/60 books read
2018 - 100/70 books read
2019 - 91/90 books read

I mean, considering what I talked about in my post on Wednesday, I'd say I did a pretty good job of keeping up with my goal from last year.

Looking ahead to this year, I considered a lot of things when making my goal. I thought about how, now that I've been married 8 months, we're getting into the swing of things. We'll hit 1 year in May (woohoo!) and I think we've really started getting our routine down.

Then I looked at my work load as well as the goal I talked about in Wednesday's post. My focus on my "one thing". Basically it came down to this: it may not look like I have time to read a ton of books, but I'm going to make time.

I've decided to read 100 books in 2020. 

I know, that's crazy. I did a poll on my Instagram page and 79 to 9 think that I can do this. Well 9 people, thank you for doubting me (hehe) because I like nothing more than a challenge to prove to others that I CAN do something. I'll have to share my "writing my first book" story some day in example.

Anyway, I've made my goal - it's set in "Goodreads Stone" and I am working my way toward it. Currently I've reached 9 books for January and am hoping to make it 10 as of tomorrow.

How many books have you read in January? 

And you want to know why I am okay with this goal? I think some may think I'm adding too much on my plate or that I'm not thinking through all the things I will need to do, etc. As I considered it (and I did think of only putting 80 books this year) I realized that this goal is totally in line with the 're-focus' I'm doing in my life and my heart.

I want my writing to be central (after Jesus and The Mr. of course). I want to work on mastering my writing craft this year and to do that, guess what I need to be doing? READING 😃 Yes, I'll be putting craft books on my TBR, but the act of reading other YA books and books by authors who write well is working toward my goal. It's going to help me learn and it's going to give me insight into the craft of writing.

I absolutely love this quote by George J.R.R. Martin (below) and wanted to leave it with you all today. When we read, we expand our minds, worlds, universes. We gain perspective into life in a different way through the lens of a character and the author. I hope, if you're a writer, you are reading (a lot).

Come follow me in my journey - become my friend on Goodreads: http://goodreads.com/eahcreative

How many books do you want to read this year?