CONQUERING YOUR TBR

I don't know about you but I personally see my TBR constantly growing faster than I can red them - perhaps I should just stop buying books and read the ones I have. But where is the fun in that? so I have done EXTENSIVE research to find tips and tricks on how to conquer your TBR! I hope at least one works for you and I will be sure to update you guys with my progress over on insta!

have a physical pile

Make sure you have a physical pile of books so that you can constantly see it. This will remind you of the pile and for me personally having a random pile of books that aren't on my bookcase annoys me a little, making me pick up a book from the pile and just begin reading! The problem I have fund with this is if I just move the pile somewhere I can't see it or cover it with a blanket or towel then it is no longer a problem haha. You may be wondering but what if my pile is too big? Do not fret! keep reading and you will find out ways to make it smaller and more manageable.

keep it close at all times

Put your now physical TBR somewhere somewhere that you will constantly see it - this can be next to the tv, in the fridge, on the sofa - or even your bedside table so that you it is the last thing you see when you go to sleep and the first thing you see when you wake up. This way you have a chance of thinking about a book you may have seen on the pile until you finally pick it up and begin reading it.

set yourself goals

Set yourself realistic goals. read 50 pages a day or 30 minutes a day whatever suits your schedule! you could choose to do this before you go to sleep or first thing in the morning with a cup of coffee and some toast. My time of choice would be after putting my little boy to bed and my dinner is cooking as this gives me around 40 minutes of uninterrupted reading - this is completely meal dependant - I sometimes find that after this I am so into the storyline that I will continue to read after I have eaten either to find out that piece of key information we have been waiting for, or because the enemies are finally becoming lovers and my personal favourite - it is finally time for the 'fuck it' moment. My mistake however is not having a book downstairs at this opportune moment so my goal moving forward is to ensure there is always a book readily available!

size matters

How many people would actually admit to this? Size really does matter. too big and its intimidating, too small and there's just not much to work with. I hear your question don't worry - what is the perfect size? TBR pile size that is. you want the pile to be big enough that you feel slightly intimidated and feel a need to whittle it down but not so big that you want to cover it with a blanket and walk away. This will vary from reader to reader, for me 7-8 books is intimidating enough for me to start reading but for you it may be lower say 5 or for you super fast readers out there perhaps even in double digits - it is whatever works for you!

If the pile you already have is too big simply take some off! Split it into multiple piles, categorise them; this could be alphabetical, by author, by season whatever you would like to do! you can be as creative or as boring as you like it is your process and no one else's. An idea I had was to sort one big pile into several: 'series I have started', 'stand alone books', and 'new series'.

whittle it down

Do not be afraid to take books off of your TBR pile! If it no longer interests you it's gotta go - if it has been on there for over a year then, girl, what are you doing? you are never going to read that book get it outta here!

next you could see if there are any with the same kind of theme. if you have 6 books that are enemies to lovers why not half it? pick 3 you would like to read the most and move the other 3 for a later time. This is not their pile. You must have variety in your pile! you do not want to exhaust yourself by reading your favourite trope over and over as much as i love romantasy even I need a break sometimes. why not try a ranking system? you can rank it by favourite authors, themes, tropes or genres and then cut away the bottom 4. Don't worry those books are still there. you can always make a new pile after the completion of this one. That forced proximity book you had to cut out is still there waiting for you - I promise.

make a second holiday pile

A second holiday pile simply means deciding what books are urgent and what isn't. there will be books you know you absolutely will read... one day... but that simply isn't now. You want your TBR pile to be books you need to read NOW not eventually.

time sensitive reads

If there is a book that could be irrelevant this time next year add it to the top of your pile! this could also be said for books on your TBR that are in a current political, social or cultural climate. similarly; if your book is LGBTQ+ for example why not read it during pride month? or if it is a love story set at Christmas time; why not read it during December?

curate your pile by season

Winter is coming! as George R R Martin likes to say and as the days grow shorter and darker you don't want to be reading a depression filled novel. I certainly don't. let us save those for the summer. You could turn your TBR pile into 4 seperate piles dedicated to each season. This is great if your goal is to finish your pile by the end of the year. struggling? just think - 'what books do i want to read in winter, spring, summer and autumn?'

mix it up!

The order of your pile is crucial to success. I do not suggest reading the same trope back to back as you will exhaust yourself and lead to burnout. Why not try alternating? some romantasy then dark romance perhaps? we both know swapping from Xaden Riorson to Zade Meadows never hurt anyone - unless that's what they want. Whatever your choice of MMC or FMC variety will keep your energy going and keep you ready for the next read.

An idea I had while reading about this was to alternate between books I am less drawn to and one I am insanely excited to read. This way I get through a book I am less enthusiastic about and get the reward of the book I really wanted to read.

stop buying books

Yeah... I scoffed at that too. Painful as it may be, if you are committed to denting your TBR so much you feel a need to stop buying books then I commend your self control but do not wish to join you. While going cold turkey on your buying habits would definitely allow you to knock out your TBR as you aren't adding to it I would rather limit my book buying as opposed to stopping it. My new goal is to stick to one book a month but I think we all know how that is going to go - yes, it is going to go horribly.

wrap them up!

Try wrapping up the books in your TBR and dedicate a shelf to them. You could get someone else to do this so you don't know which order they are in and have a true surprise awaiting you - you get the excitement of opening something while also getting the accomplishment of knocking out another book on your TBR. I think this is an amazing way of moving through your TBR as you get to feel like you are gaining a new book when you actually had it all along.

This is all I have for now but if you would like another one of these do not hesitate to ask over on my Instagram and be sure to let me know which of these tips and tricks have worked for you - if any. And as always happy reading!