So, this is the last #ShelfLove update from me for this year!
The prompt is to show how you’re doing. Well, you can check out Mount TBR in the top menu on my blog. If you compare my books bought/acquired in 2015 with other years, I’ve made some serious progress in thinking before I buy. Also utilising the library, and only buying books I’m sure I want! Which is not to say I’ve had no duds this year, or that I’ve done particularly well at tackling the backlog — I still apparently have 440 books unread from 2013, for example. Eek. But I’ve dealt with some of the causes of that backlog, and learned to stick to a budget!
#ShelfLove Breakdown
- 58/51+ already owned books read from prior to 2015 (302 books read altogether)
- Spent: £21 out of ~£30 budget (budget is 10% of my income) for January
- Spent: £20 out of ~£25 budget for February
- Spent: £22 out of ~£25 budget for March
- Spent: £15 out of ~£16 budget for April
- Spent: £45 out of ~£30 budget for May
- Spent: £18 out of ~£40 budget for June, plus stuck within holiday budget
- Spent: £45 out of ~£50 budget for July
- Spent £51 out of ~£60 for August
- Spent £30 out of £40 for September
- Spent £20 out of £20 for October
- Spent £36 out of £50 for November
- Spent £0 out of £25 for December
Here’s my more general progress on resolutions:
- No books impulse-bought (pretty much all year, with only one or two lapses)
- Read every day (even if it was only a page or two)
- Bed before midnight (less great at this)
- Up before ten every day (some struggling in December)
- Only bought one book from a series at a time (except where I was confident I’d like it)
- Posted to the blog every day (I missed one day through a scheduling mess-up)
- Commented on at least one other blog every day (no days missed except when I had no internet access)
- Tithed 10% in every month
- Done 85 hours volunteering total (just short of the goal, not really under my control)
- Reading/reviewing books from NG/etc (82% ratio)
So not bad at all, right?!
I’ll be taking part in this challenge next year too, so hang tight for my starting post as 2016 opens.
Great work in 2015 ! Looking forward to seeing your updates in 2016 as well 🙂 Great job with your NG ratio too!
Julie S. recently posted…Can You Guess The Christmas Story? [Infographic]
Thank you! Looking forward to participating, it’s been very useful!
Wow, you spent $0 in December, that is seriously impressive! I bought the most in November and December because of all the holiday sales! :S
It was surprisingly easy! There’s something to be said for practising self-restraint, apparently. I’m not even jumping on any sales!
I do well in reducing the tbr for a spell then I grab piles of zombie freebies or sale books and I’m back where I started! I went a bit mad on Boxing Day…I didn’t spend much but I got a pile big enough to keep me in books for several STSs! I do need to get more reading done next year to catch up!
Haha, yeah, I can have that problem too. But I haven’t touched the sales so far, despite having some Amazon vouchers to spend.
Wow, Nikki, you did great with your challenges! I think it’s completely reasonable to want to sleep in during the winter, it’s so hard to get up when it’s cold and dreary outside. I know I’d be sleeping late if my kid didn’t wake us up early each morning (seriously, sleeping in on the weekends is one of the things I miss the most).
And wow, you posted every day? Congratulations, that must take some serious determination.
Thank you! I’m pretty pleased with the progress.
Mostly it’s a matter of scheduling posts well in advance, haha!
Great job, Nikki. Will you be joining us for the #ShelfLove Challenge in 2016?
Terri M., the Director recently posted…Stormy Smith, author | In the Spotlight Book Release
I will! I have a post scheduled… in the next couple of days sometime.