Is Your TBR Pile Stressing You Out?

If you are a big reader, or a book nerd, or just enjoy reading in general, there is a chance you have a really long TBR list. If you are new to the game, TBR means to be read. I mean, honestly. It’s hard to not have such a long list because so many good books that all come out at the same time. You can’t help but keep a list of what you want to read!

I know for a fact that I have this problem, so let’s see how we should deal with this.

One way, especially if you tend to buy books in large quantities as I do, is to try to not buy as many at once. I know, I know, easier said than done. But at least give it a shot. I am talking to myself here too, so we will have to try this together.

Set yourself on buying bans. Or making limits on how many you can get a month. I have been putting myself on bans off and on for the past four years, but I still end up buying more often than I had if I didn’t put on that ban. There’s something about not being able to do something that makes you want to do it all the more. But I have found that setting a three book max a month has worked a lot better for myself. That can help with part of keeping your TBR list just that much shorter and possibly less stressful. I know that I will have at least one a month (from my OwlCrate subscription) and that gives me maybe two more that I am allowed to get.

I have found that having a list of books you want to read but do not own can be slightly less stressful because you don’t have that fear of wasting your money by not reading that book as soon as possible. So try to keep your book buying to a smaller amount and that could alleviate some of the stress.

Another option is to look at which books you would feel more inclined to want to read when making purchases. Make decisions based on the descriptions, on what calls out to you. Even if it’s something outside of the norm of what you read, if it interests you, read it. But if you just want to buy it because everyone else is reading it, possibly think on it a bit more before you purchase it.

Prioritize books! I know this may seem obvious, you are going to prioritize books you want to read before those that aren’t calling to you at the moment, which is what you need to do. Try not to get yourself into a reading slump by being stuck reading a book you don’t like.

Keep a list of books to see what books you haven’t read. This can be either on a word document or in Goodreads because then you can keep track of your TBR list easier. It will feel awesome to move books from the haven’t or want to read list to the complete list. Trust me, it is so satisfying.

You can also organize by genre and length. Say you want to have a quick read, you’ll be able to pick out the one with the least number of pages to possibly read that the fastest. Or say you are feeling a spooky horror or thriller book because it’s fall. You can do it so much easier if you have it in an organized list. Shelve it. If you can see it on a separate shelf from the books you have read, then it will be easier to choose what book to read next.

Making a TBR jar will also help alleviate which book to read next. This will keep you from stressing out in the decision-making process. What you can do is color code pieces of paper for certain genres so if you know what genre you want to read, you can keep to that specific color.

Donate if you won’t read them. I know I have said this time and again, but if you know for a fact that you aren’t going to read it, why keep it, right? This will also help in alleviating some of the stress because you won’t have those books staring at you from your TBR shelf.

Find more time to read. I know, again, easier said than done, but if you wake up about 30 minutes earlier, you can read for that time. You can also take a book to work or school and read during your breaks while eating or just hanging out. I did this all through high school and I read so many books a month.

Read multiple books at once. If you do this, there is less of a chance that you’ll get bored by the book you are reading. But to do this, try to read different genres in different formats if you can. Paperbacks, hardcovers, eBooks, audiobooks. All of these will keep the stories that much more separate in your mind so you can more easily keep track of what each story is about.

While we are talking about audiobooks, these are a lifesaver. If you have a commute, listen to a book instead of the radio. You don’t want to buy one? Borrow some from your library. It’s free, so you don’t have to worry about spending money. Many libraries have an online presence, so you can digitally download the audiobooks to listen to and then return when you are done. You can even find books that you own in physical copy on there and get done with them that way.

Find a book buddy or a book club. This will help keep you both motivated to read the books you promise to each other. It will especially help if you hate spoilers and you both threaten each other to spoil stuff if you don’t read it. I know that would get me in gear.

Reading challenges are your best friend. If you make a post online to say you want to read five books in the next two weeks and tell your friends to hold you accountable, you will feel more motivated to complete your challenge. Especially if they have embarrassing pictures you would rather keep unseen.

So, what have we learned here? Basically, don’t let your TBR pile stress you out too much. You will get it done, whether you use these tips or not. Just breathe and read. Easy as that.

What are your tips on dealing with your TBR stress? Do you do any of these already? Let me know if this helps at all!

As usual, you can find me on social media at dsbookie on Instagram, Twitter, Youtube, and Goodreads.

I’ll catch you all next week!

XOXO

Dana