Happy Tuesday!! This week’s Top Ten Tuesday theme (hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl) asks us to share ten bookish discoveries we made in 2019. In the same vein, today I’m going to share eight helpful bookish hacks I discovered in 2019. These might seem simple or obvious, but sometimes you just need someone else to point it out to you for it to make a difference. In no particular order, they are:
1. Listen to audiobooks on double time speed. When I first started listening to audiobooks on my phone, I used to wonder why the different speed settings existed and who would actually use them unless a recording was unusually slow or fast. And then I started listening to books on double speed… and I’ll never go back. It’s a little funky at first, but as soon as you get used to it it’s magical. You get through so many books that way!!
2. Read books you are genuinely excited about. This might seem super obvious, but it bears repeating as a former college English major who was assigned to read many books that I would rather not have read. Unless you’re actually in school and are assigned books to read (or are part of a book club or something), you can read whatever books you want. The more excited to read a book you are, the faster you are likely to read it.
3. A little Goodreads review goes a long way. I usually don’t get around to reviewing books until a while after I’ve read them, and I used to have problems remembering my thoughts on them… that is, until I started leaving short reviews on Goodreads right after I finished reading something. Even just a little Goodreads review is enough to jog my memory when I go to write actual reviews for this blog.
4. Scheduling blog posts ahead of time might just be the best thing ever. I’ve been scheduling posts in advance for years, but last summer I really took advantage of this feature and scheduled an entire semester’s worth of posts ahead of time over the summer. I don’t know how I would blog without it! 
5. It’s okay to put books down and return to them later on. Some people talk about how difficult it is to put a book down even if they’re not enjoying it because there’s this pressure to finish every book that you pick up. However, I think putting a book down is a lot easier if you give yourself the option to pick it up at a later date. Sometimes it’s just not the right time to read a book for scheduling reasons or otherwise, and it’s perfectly okay to give it another down the road. (This recently happened to me with The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. I first tried to read it a year ago but didn’t have enough time, so I picked it up again this past winter break and finally finished it.)
6. The best way to maintain a bookstagram feed is to take a bunch of photos all at once. In 2019 I switched to a very specific theme that only involves photos taken against one wall of my bedroom at school. I’ve never had such a specific theme before and I was worried about maintaining it while on winter break. Before leaving for winter break I woke up a bit early to take a bunch of photos in front of the wall, and based on my feed you would never know that I’m not in that apartment!
7. When in doubt, return to old favorites. Rereading is reading, too. Towards the end of 2019 I reread some bits of The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien again and it was just so much fun. Despite Lord of the Rings being my favorite series, I was surprised by how many small details I had forgotten since my last reread a few years ago. If you’re stuck in a book slump, try returning to some old favorites to get you back into the swing of reading.
8. Books are an excellent medicine. I’ve always appreciated the way books can help people through specific experiences and challenges in life, but I felt it most strongly in 2019. Some really great books helped me through a really $#!%& time last year, and it’s amazing to look back and see how those books worked their magic.
What do you think of these helpful hacks? Have any others to recommend? What bookish discoveries did you make in 2019? Let me know in the comments section below!
Yours,
HOLLY
Great list! I LIVE for scheduling blog posts in advance, I love doing it. One of these days I need to read some Tolkien!
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Oooh yes, definitely read some Tolkien!! He’s one of my favorites.
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Great post! Scheduling posts is a lifesaver for me.
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Thank you!! Me too!
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So many good points! 2 times speed is just a bit too fast for me, but I do listen at 1.5 or 1.75 and that does help a lot with getting through books faster. I started pre-writing and scheduling posts and it has helped so much with being more consistant! Even just writing the outline in advance. Oh and I love your instagram theme! I’ts very cohesive and recognizable 🙂
My TTT.
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Haha I agree about the audiobook speed–some books are just way too fast on 2 times speed, but I always give it a go just to see and then slow it down if I need to. And thank you so much! ❤
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These are all great hacks. I learned that audiobook one this year and it has changed how I listen to books. So great.
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Yes, audiobooks make such a difference!!
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Scheduling posts is a godsend! And the double speed for audiobooks is a great idea. I used to do that for video lectures in college especially when professors spoke slowly.
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Haha that’s a really good idea for lectures!! I definitely wish I could do that for mine sometimes…
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I just started scheduling post out at the beginning of the year it’s changed my timing so much
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It’s so helpful!!
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My favorite tip is if you’re in a slump to pick up a YA or children’s book! They’re easy to breeze through and make you feel good to get one more book knocked off your challenge and put you back in the mood for something more age-appropriate.
Rachel || http://anotherstationanothermile.com
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Oooh that’s some really great advice!! I love reading Roald Dahl books whenever I need a pick me up.
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I whole-heartedly agree with ALL of these!
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So glad you agree!!
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Rereading books always blows my mind – I miss SO many small details on my first read especially if I’m loving it and zooming through it! My new discovery last year was finding out that my library has an app that I can borrow ebooks onto my phone – makes it so much easier to get in 10 minutes of reading when on the tube to work!
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Yes!! I use a similar app to get my audiobooks and I get so much more reading done on my commute/while cooking, cleaning, etc. I love it!
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These are such helpful hacks! I started listening my audiobooks at 1.5 and 1.8x speed (not completely at 2x yet), but it’s been SUPER helpful in finishing a lot of books. I also learned how helpful(!!) it was to take bookstagram photos ahead of time. I loved reading your post 😍
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Absolutely!! I wish the app I use for audiobooks had 1.8 speed–sometimes 1.5 is too slow, but 2.0 is just a bit too fast! Thank you so much! ❤
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These are great!! I learned to put books down if I wasn’t enjoying them this past year! And it made my life so much better! I thought I would feel guilty, but I only did for a short while. Now I realise there are too many books to waste my time with one I am not enjoying!!
Also – taking multiple bookstagram photos at once is the ONLY way I can maintain a steady posting schedule!
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That’s awesome that you’re putting books down if you don’t enjoy them! You’re so right–why waste valuable reading time on books you don’t enjoy?
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Ahh I LOVE these so much Holly, these are wonderful reminders. I’m always trying to be mindful of the books I pick up, because I don’t want reading to be like a chore, I want to read books I’m genuinely excited about. And yes to writing down quick reviews on goodreads, I do that too and I’m glad I do, it helps me with my future reviews weeks later ahha 🙂
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Glad you agree with these and find them helpful!! 🙂
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Love this list! I especially love the part where you say read what you’re excited for. I get all worried about publication dates… but honestly if I read a book when I’m hype for it I wind up reading more and still meeting publication dates for ARCs. I have to remind myself to give myself the freedom to read what I’m excited for when I’m excited for it
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Thank you so much! So glad that you agree!! ❤
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I think I needed a reminder to read like that myself though because I’ve been sending myself into slumps trying to read the books I feel like I’m supposed to be reading
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I love this post so much, Holly!! I discovered a few of these little hacks last year too, and haven’t gone back since! Listening to audiobooks at twice the speed and stocking up on Bookstagram photos are HUGE lifesavers! 🙂
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Thank you!! ❤
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I love this post so much! I think that it’s so useful to have “obvious” tips and tricks pointed out because those are the ones that people find so obvious they forget that not everyone around them knows them too! I only realized a lot of these, like leaving myself a mini-review, so I can write a full review later, or reading books I’m genuinely excited about, in the past year or two! And I’ve been a reader my whole life!
I think the most important tip for me from the ones you mentioned is to put a book down if you’re not in the mood. I just recently read a book that I started a few months back and really disliked. I put it down and gave it another try last month, and really enjoyed it! The timing just wasn’t right. On the other hand some books I put down indefinitely. I realize once I put them down that I’m just not interested, and never pick them back up. And I’m okay with that!
Great post!
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Thank you!! I’m so glad you feel the same about many of these! I completely agree–sometimes a little reminder about “obvious” things can be so helpful.
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