I've started to see 2013 challenge posts springing up all over the place and it reminded me that I have probably dismally failed at most of the challenges I signed up for this year! I thought it was probably time that I worked out exactly how much I've failed and whether or not it's actually worth signing up for any challenges at all next year. I'm also trying to decide whether or not it's worth running the Telling Tales Challenge again next year. I've really enjoyed it this year, and I know there are a few people who've been really consistent with it throughout, so let me know your thoughts!
Aaaaanyway (and this will be a pretty long post probably), here goes...
2012 Mount TBR Challenge - signed up to read 25 books I already owned. Finished 12 and started another 3 (Anything Goes, North and South and Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell) which I never managed to finish...
50 States Challenge - the most ambitious challenge I signed up for, I knew reading 50 books for one challenge would be.. well, challenging, but then I also didn't bank on getting pregnant and associated baby having, so I think it's ok that I've failed at this one, and I plan to sign up again next year purely because it was a lot of fun finding books to fit the states and I've read some great stuff. Stats as of now are thus: finished 8, started another 2 which I didn't finish (The Grapes of Wrath due to baby having, and This Side of Paradise which I have no idea why I haven't finished).
A Classics Challenge - I feel bad about failing this one. It was a really interesting challenge and I only had to read seven books, so it's particularly pathetic that I only managed two, but on the plus side one of them was The Tenant of Wildfell Hall which is one of the greatest classics ever.
New Author Challenge - break out the champagne because... I have actually completed this challenge!!! I signed up to read 25 authors I'd never read before and ended up reading 37! Admittedly I haven't reviewed even half of them but still, proud that I've managed to complete at least one of the things I committed to!
Mixing It Up Challenge - I aimed to read 13-15 for Ellie's awesome challenge. So far I've read 10, reviewed 2, started one (Anything Goes, again. It's not that it wasn't read, I just have some kind of mental block against non-fiction at the moment), and One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson I started reading and then realised that it was all incredibly familiar because the TV series of Case Histories was based on the first two books, so I stopped reading it.
Reading Shakespeare: a Play a Month in 2012 - this is my second most epic fail of the year. I read A Midsummer Night's Dream in January and... that's it. I really meant to keep up with it, but I entirely failed :-/
Support Your Local Library Challenge - I signed up to read 37 and currently stand at 24. I may finish this by the end of the year as I'm trying to use the library for pretty much all my reading at the moment.
Narnia Reading Challenge - I have so far only read The Magician's Nephew, but I might read the rest in December as they would all be re-reads and fairly quick. We'll see how it goes with the baby stuff...
The Telling Tales Challenge - this is my own challenge so I really have no excuses. I signed up to read 15 books in the fairytale/mythology genre and I've currently read 14. I've reviewed nowhere near all of them, but I am planning to read Kissing the Witch:Old Tales in New Skins by Emma Donoghue in December, so I'll have completed it. I have however failed in my attempt to read 5 classics in the genre :-(
Those Books I Should Have Read - signed up to read 6. Read A Christmas Carol and started The Satanic Verses but it didn't grab me. So basically another epic fail...
The Graphic Novel Challenge - Another year, another completed graphic novel challenge. I am hoping to get all my outstanding reviews written in the remainder of the year, but completion required 12 graphic novels and I've read 13, all of which were awesome.
There are two spectacular failures of 2012, in that I signed up for them but haven't read a single thing towards them. The Les Miserables readalong and the Get Steampunked Challenge. Although I wish I'd done better, I know (and knew at the beginning of the year!) that I'd taken on too much in terms of challenges. It didn't stop me and in all honesty it probably won't stop me for 2013 either, although I do plan to hold back a bit...
The only plans I have so far for 2013 are that I would love to host the Telling Tales Challenge again, if anyone's interested in doing it, and I'd really like to do a challenge to make me read more YA. Also I'll probably sign up for the graphic novel challenge again, because it gives me an excuse to buy graphic novels. Excellent.
You have!? I haven't seen ONE SINGLE challenge post! Well I'm meant to be drafting my Advocacy exam for 9am tomorrow morning, so if now isn't an AWESOME time to go hunting, I don't know what is! :D
ReplyDeleteI've done badly on my challenges too, but I don't really mind. The main thing for me is that the TBR Challenge really did make me focus on my pre-2012 books. I got nowhere near my goal, but I read a good few more than I would have without it. 27 or 28 so far, I think.
I liked your Telling Tales Challenge! Again, I won't finish, but I should be on... four or five by the end of the year!
I MIGHT be able to finish Ellie's challenge though. Wish me luck!
Boo on not finishing challenges, but... "I also didn't bank on getting pregnant and associated baby having..." is kind of awesome. :) Here's to a less challenge-y 2013? The Telling Tales challenge interests me but I realized I rarely read outside of my review queue, sadly...
ReplyDeleteI've seriously failed on all my challenges this year, the most epic thus far being Adam's TBR Pile challenge. Last year I think I read nine of the twelve I'd picked, this year it's exactly 0 so far! I've got time to finish one or two yet though, so I'm not writing it off completely.
ReplyDeleteI'm probably going to fail my own challenge, but I don't really mind - so long as I get round to visit everyone else and get the giveaway sorted for early January, then my hostessing responsibilities are complete, which is WAY more important.
Aaaaand then there's Hanna's challenge. Which I AM going to fail, but then again, it HAS pushed me to read at least two classics I definitely wouldn't have picked up for yeeaaaaars otherwise. One of which is now up there with my most favouritest books. And I might use it as an excuse to re-read Dorian Gray very soon. So... not a complete loss, as it happens. :)
Dude, you signed up for SO MANY challenges! I signed up for like 3, and frankly I now think THAT'S too many! And I agree with Hanna that I haven't seen like any challenge posts (which is fine because I totally don't want to do any challenges next year. Except maybe one. Maybe.)
ReplyDeleteI am really sad that I didn't know about the 50 States challenge though, because I think I could really have rocked that one. So maybe I should check that one out for next year... (NO LAURA! NO!)