I posted a comment recently on an
article regarding to-be-read lists, the gist of which was how deceptive it was when your to-be-read list is on your Kindle. Such a slim device sitting innocently on your bedside table, completely masking the fact that you have the equivalent of bookshelves of books waiting to be read. It also has a large impact on your purchasing habits. When my to-be-read pile had a proper physical presence, I used to moderate my purchasing (“what’s the point of buying that when I still have 20 books waiting to be read”). Now, not so much (“how many books do I have on my Kindle? Oh, who can remember. One more won’t hurt”).
Through the week, I received in the mail my new Kindle Touch. My original Kindle is quite old, and I’ve been looking forward to getting the lighter and more interactive version for a while now. But then I had to transfer all my unread books from the old to the new.
50 books. Waiting for me to read them. Plus another 10 or so on the iPad. Plus about 8 issues of various magazines.
Added to the 20 or so yet to be read physical books I have in the mix (loving Damnation and Dames edited by Amanda Pillar and Liz Grzyb at the moment), it was a sobering experience.
No wonder I struggle to find time to write.
Author: mark
A writer of speculative fiction and all round good egg. Well, mostly good.
OK, sometimes good.
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I am not looking at my TBR list, out of site out of mind :)
I agree – I usually try to cultivate a similar sense of denial. I hate it when circumstances force me to confront my poor habits. I prefer blissful ignorance!
-m