Bookish New Year's Resolutions

Happy New Year!

Like most people, I try to set a few goals for myself every year. I never take them too seriously, and I usually forget about half of them by the time February comes around, but as a compulsive list-maker, it's something I still love to do. Seeing as my main goal is always to read more, this year I decided to dedicate my entire list to books. Here are my 10 bookish resolutions for 2018:

1. Conquer my TBR:

Everyone should have a to-be-read list. It's great to always want to read more books. However, this becomes a problem when you suddenly realise that you own an an entire shelf's worth of books, bought months or even years ago, that you still haven't read yet. I will be happy even if I only make a small dent in my TBR, because it's probably impossible to completely eradicate it. Some books I bought this year but have yet to read include John Green's Turtles All the Way Down, Zadie Smith's Swing Time, and Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. 

2. Read en français:

It has now been two years since I stopped studying French. While I still have a fairly decent grasp of the language, I know that I am already forgetting it. I don't want to lose my French; I want to improve on it. I still haven't read Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, which is every language student's go-to book, so I definitely want to get around to it in 2018.

3. Get into graphic novels:

I thought that I could combine two resolutions in one by reading graphic novels in French. This is because graphic novels are very popular in France, but also because an accompanying visual might help me with any language difficulties that might arise. I'm not sure where to start - so recommendations are more than welcome! I love the film La Vie D'Adèle, which is itself based on a graphic novel, so that might be a good one to begin with.

4. Keep up with university reading:

My reading pace suddenly, and understandably, slowed when my English degree came to an end in May. While I'm no longer studying literature (and therefore no longer obliged to read three novels a week), I still have to read a lot for my masters in Publishing Media. It is always a challenge to stay on top of required reading lists, so I'm going to try my best for my final year in academia. 

5. Prepare for my dissertation:

I'm currently in the midst of figuring out what I want to write about for my dissertation. I only have a very broad idea at the moment, so I want to ensure that I spend the upcoming semester reading everything I can get my hands on, making use of the library, and hopefully writing something that I am proud of.

6. Blog regularly:

Last year I started my bookstagram account, so I hope to keep it up and maintain a certain level of consistency. Not only is it fun, but it is also directly relevant to the jobs I will likely be applying for in a number of months. I haven't made use of this blog in a while, so I hope to change that this year. I have unlisted my past blog posts in the hopes that 2018 will be much more consistent.

7. Write reviews:

This is an extension of the above resolution. I would love to not only keep track of the books I read (which I do via goodreads), but also review them - or at least, the ones that really stand out to me.

8. Return to the classics:

Despite having a degree in English literature, there are some authors who I'm almost embarrassed to say that I've never read before - like Tolstoy. I have a beautiful edition of Anna Karenina, published by Vintage (the six Russian classics they published this year to mark the centenary of the October revolution are some of the most gorgeous books I've ever seen), so I might start with that.

9. Tackle some genre favourites:

As well as tackling a few 'serious' classics, I want to read a few of the founding texts of my favourite genres - such as fantasy, dystopian, and sci-fi. I'm currently listening to The Fellowship of the Ring, and I hope to read all three LOTR books this year. I also want to read Orwell's 1984, and there's a beautiful edition of Frank Herbert's Dune that has been catching my eye all year.

10. Read whatever I want:

Given the above nine points are all about my reading plans for 2018, it might seem contradictory to say that I don't want to be overly-prescriptive with my reading. Ultimately, it should be something that you do because you want to, and not simply just so that you can tick a box at the end of the year. As always, life is too short for shitty books, and sometimes the best books are the ones you never planned on reading.

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Do you have any bookish resolutions for 2018?