10 Reading Goals for 2023

New year, new goals. Or in some cases the same goals with a better plan to reach them! This year, I’ve decided to spell out exactly what I want my year of reading to look like and share it for some accountability, and maybe inspire you to make some goals too. I feel the need to begin by making it clear that I’m not trying to control my reading but prioritise it because I sometimes forget just how much I enjoy reading in all the excitement and stress of everyday life, and just how good it is to quiet my mind.

Before I talk about my goals for the new year, I think it’s a good idea to reflect on how my reading went in 2022. Unfortunately, I don’t have a clear-cut list to refer to, having only made one real goal and failed to reach it. I aimed to read 40 books last year and only managed 36. While this is slightly disappointing, especially since I was incredibly close, it was also the motivation I needed to make better goals this year and find a way to achieve them.

That’s where my list of goals for 2023 comes in. Ultimately, I’d like to be more intentional with how much time I spend reading while allowing myself more freedom with what I read. So, I’ve compiled a list of ten reading goals to keep me on track for 2023:

1. Read 50 books

This one is self-explanatory but quite ambitious considering I failed to read 40 last year, but I know it’s possible as I’ve done in the past. I want to read more books not just to say I have, but to make a sizeable dent in my TBR and allow me to invite more books to be on my radar. Right now, I ignore a lot of books I might want to read because I know I already have so many.

Reading 50 books will work out to almost one a week, and at least four a month, which might turn out to be a struggle after I read only two books in some months last year. However, achieving this goal will be made possible with the help of my next one.

2. Organise my reading

By this, I mean that I want to create dedicated time for reading outside of picking up a book because I’m either waiting for something or doing something that does not require my full attention. With that in mind, I have decided to read for the last half an hour of my day before I go to sleep instead of just scrolling through social media on my phone or watching something. Not only is this a great time to read because it is usually uninterrupted for me, but it will also help with my sleep, which is always a good thing.

3. Read more classics

Though time-consuming, I love classics for their contemplative language, convoluted plots, and windows into the past, and I want to read more this year than I did last year. Luckily, I already have a few on my TBR and if I get to them, it will help me out with another one of my goals.

4. Post more on this blog and bookstagram

Though not directly linked to reading, my blog and Instagram are a part of my reading life. They both allow me to share my love of books with others and posting more will mean I’m eager to have something to talk about. Posting more will lead to reading more, and vice versa. Or so I hope. In theory, I’ll have more to write about if I read more, but then again, I might be so busy reading I won’t want to post anything.

5. Think before you buy (Kindle)

In line with putting more thought into my reading, I need to stop buying books for between 99p and £2.99 on my Kindle. They are so cheap that the greed in me cannot resist to the point where I think the low price can justify buying books from authors I know aren’t my favourite or have not enjoyed in the past. I don’t need these books, nor do I necessarily want to read them desperately, but I have them, and they are a large part of the reason my TBR is still over 80 books long.

6. Be more genre specific

I like reading, but I also like writing and if I want to help my writing, I should probably start reading more books in the genres I want to write in. This does not mean I only want to read books that come from one or two genres, just that I want to make sure I’m reading these kinds of books regularly.

7. Read what I want – No pressure

Though I don’t do it as much anymore, I often fall into the trap that gets many readers and just read whatever is popular as opposed to what sounds good to me. Last year, I went on a personal reading adventure looking for strange books and read some things I probably would not have otherwise, and I really, really enjoyed it. In 2023, I want to do more things like that, not get my recommendations solely from 20 people recycling the same kind of review on social media.

8. Incorporate more non-fiction

Every year, the thought crosses my mind that I should be reading more non-fiction. Whilst there is a lot to learn from fiction, I’m leaving out a chunk of self-development by not even glancing in the direction of non-fiction books. This year, I’m going to try to make this goal happen, starting off with reading the non-fiction books I already own.

9. Read my shelves

I can’t stress this enough, but I have far too many books on my TBR, both physical and digital, and while I made a small dent in it last year, I have essentially replaced many of these books already. Reading my shelves is also the best way to complete both my goals to read 50 books and to read what I want because the sheer number of books I already have that I’m interested in reading is well over 50.

10. Declutter my books

Finally, decluttering the mess that is my bookshelves is long overdue. I have not purged my shelves in far too long, and it is getting to the point where looking at them makes my skin crawl, not least because some of my books have been relegated to the floor, where they have no business being. This year, I’ll be getting rid of as many of my books as I possibly can, trying not to let my sentimentality get the best of me.

With the new books sitting on my shelves, and my reading journal all set up and ready to be used, I’m already excited about my reading plans for this year. Hopefully, I’ll be able to achieve most of my goals—some of which I’ve already put into motion—but it won’t be the end of the world if I don’t.

What are your reading goals for 2023?