Bout of Books 9.0 - Goals/Updates

*Sings* Ce-le-brate Good Books Come On! *Ahem* It's time for Bout of Books 9.0, January 6th-12th with our favorite hostesses, Amanda and Kelly!  It's just the thing to get your 2014 reading started off with a bang!

Signup Here!

Link Your Goals up Here!

As for me, I'm going to concentrate on my Seriously Series Challenge list and see how far I can get!

Updates:

Currently Reading:



Finished:




Day 1:
Allegiant - 2:10 listened
The Getaway - 26%

Day 2:
Allegiant - 4:00 listened
The Getaway - Finished! 61 pages
Catacombs - Started 36 pages

Day 3:
Allegiant - 7:22 listened
Catacombs - 120 pages in

Day 4:
Allegiant -finished! 11:51 total
Catacombs -166 pages in

Day 5:
Catacombs - finished! 236 pages
Hunted - started listening
Photographs & Phantoms - started

Day 6:
Photographs & Phantoms - Finished! 64 pages
Hunted - 1:31 in, probably won't finish for the 'thon but that's still an hour and a half of "reading" I did for it! ;)
That Thing at the Zoo - started

Day 7:
That Thing at the Zoo - finished! 63 pages

Final:
Total Pages: 424 (60 1/2 pages per day)
Hours listened: 13:22 (1.9 hours per day)

Seriously Series 2014

I'm joining Kelly at Reading the Paranormal for the Seriously Series 2014 Challenge!

For details and sign up, click on the image above, you know what want to join us!

I'm going to concentrate most of my effort on finishing off or reading up to what I own of series that I have already started.

Declared Levels:
Series Started Before 2014: Seriously Spectacular Series Star
Series Started in 2014: Semi-Serious
Series Re-Reads in 2014: Semi-Serious

Currently Reading

Finished Reading

Series Started Before 2014

Series = 0/19

 

Total Books = 0/32

 

Format	Author	Series	Title
Audio	Veronica Roth	Divergent	Allegiant
Audio	Kevin Hearne	Iron Druid	Hunted
Audio	Lauren Willig	Pink Carnation	The Garden Intrigue
Audio	Lauren Willig	Pink Carnation	The Passion of the Purple Plumeria
Audio	J. R. R. Tolkien	The Lord of the Rings	The Two Towers
Audio	J. R. R. Tolkien	The Lord of the Rings	The Return of the King
Paperback	Ann Aguirre	Sirantha Jax	Endgame
Paperback	Molly Harper	Jane Jameson	Nice Girls Don't Bite Their Neighbors
Paperback	J. R. Ward	Black Dagger Brotherhood	Lover Reborn
Kindle	Carolyn Crane	Disillusionists	Head Rush
E-book	Carolyn Crane	Disillusionists	Devil's Luck
Paperback	Stephen Harper	Dreamer	Offspring
Paperback	Jennifer Rardin	Jaz Parks	Another One Bites the Dust
Paperback	Thea Harrison	The Elder Races	Storm's Heart
Paperback	Thea Harrison	The Elder Races	Serpent's Kiss
Paperback	Anne Bishop	Black Jewels	Shalador's Lady
Paperback	Anne Bishop	Black Jewels	Twilight's Dawn
Kindle	Sonya Bateman	Gavyn Donatti	The Getaway
Paperback	Sonya Bateman	Gavyn Donatti	Master and Apprentice
Hardback	Karen Marie Moning	Fever	Dreamfever
Hardback	Karen Marie Moning	Fever	Shadowfever
Paperback	J. R. Ward	Fallen Angels	Crave
Paperback	J. R. Ward	Fallen Angels	Envy
Paperback	J. R. Ward	Fallen Angels	Rapture
Paperback	Ilona Andrews	Kate Daniels	Magic Mourns in Must Love Hellhounds (Kate Daniels 3.5)
Paperback	Ilona Andrews	Kate Daniels	Magic Bleeds
Paperback	Ilona Andrews	Kate Daniels	Magic Dreams in Hexed (4.5)
Paperback	Ilona Andrews	Kate Daniels	Magic Slays
Paperback	Ilona Andrews	Kate Daniels	Magic Rises
Hardback	Anne McCaffrey	Tales of the Barque Cats	Catacombs
Kindle	Christine Cody	Bloodlands	Blood Rules
Audio	Eoin Colfer	HitchHiker's Guide	And Another Thing...

Series Started In 2014

Series = 0/2

 

Total Books = 0/7

 

Format	Author	Series	Title
Hardback	Ann Aguirre	Razorland	Outpost
Hardback	Ann Aguirre	Razorland	Enclave
E-book	Ann Aguirre	Razorland	Restoration
Hardback	Ann Aguirre	Razorland	Horde
Paperback	Katie MacAlister	Silver Dragons	Playing With Fire
Paperback	Katie MacAlister	Silver Dragons	Up in Smoke
Paperback	Katie MacAlister	Silver Dragons	Me and My Shadow

Series Re-Reads In 2014

Series  = 0/1

 

Total Books = 0/5

 

Format	Author	Series	Title
Audio	Douglas Adams	HitchHiker's Guide	Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Audio	Douglas Adams	HitchHiker's Guide	The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
Audio	Douglas Adams	HitchHiker's Guide	Life, The Universe and Everything
Audio	Douglas Adams	HitchHiker's Guide	So Long and Thanks For All the Fish
Audio	Douglas Adams	HitchHiker's Guide	Mostly Harmless

2013 Seriously Series Challenge Wrap Up

2013 is not quite over, but I don't think my list is going to change too much in what's left.  While I did not complete my ambitious series list for this challenge, I did make progress and finished off or caught up to what I owned on 4 series started before 2013 and 1 series started in 2013.  This totaled:  4 audiobooks, 7 novels and 1 novella.  I did get started on a few of the others as well, and was able to read 9 novels and 1 novella in those series.  My original goal was for 34 total reads and I achieved about 65%.  Even though I only made a D grade, I'm still happy with what I achieved, and am definitely in for 2014!  Some of those I didn't finish I will carry over and we'll just give it another try!

Series Completed:

Series started before 2013

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

• A Breath of Snow and Ashes - finished 3/11/13
• An Echo in the Bone - finished 8/9/13

  Simon Canderous by Anton Strout

• Dead Matter - finished 1/9/13
• Dead Waters - finished 5/25/13

Iron Druid by Kevin Hearne (added 1/30/13)

• Tricked - Finished 3/18/13
• Two Ravens and One Crow - finished 4/27/13
• Trapped - finished 5/24/13

The Vampire Empire by Susan and Clay Griffith (added 1/30/13)

• The Riftwalker - finished 5/22/13
• The Kingmakers - finished 8/6/13

Series started in 2013


The Modern Tales of Faerie by Holly Black

• Tithe - Finished 4/23/13
• Valiant -Finished 9/9/13
• Ironside - Finished 10/22/13

 Series not completed but made progress: 

 Series started before 2013

Sirantha Jax by Ann Aguirre

• Killbox - finished 3/5/13
• Aftermath -  finished 11/15/13
• Endgame

Fever by Karen Marie Moning

• Faefever - finished 9/28/13
• Dreamfever
• Shadowfever 

 Jane Jameson by Molly Harper

• Nice Girls Don’t Sign a Lease Without a Wedding Ring - finished 1/10/13
• Nice Girls Don't Bite Their Neighbors  

Phaedre's Trilogy by Jacqueline Carey (added 1/20/13)

• Kushiel's Chosen - finished 2/18/13
• Kushiel's Avatar - currently reading

Series started in 2013


Midnighters by Scott Westerfeld

• The Secret Hour - finished 2/24/13
  
• Touching Darkness
• Blue Noon (added 3/18/13) 

Elder Races by Thea Harrison

• Dragon Bound - finished 8/24/13
• Storm's Heart
• Serpent's Kiss (added 1/14/13)

Jaz Parks by Jennifer Rardin

• Once Bitten, Twice Shy - finished 8/1/13
• Another One Bites the Dust
  

Percheron by Fiona McIntosh

• Odalisque - finished (4/2/13)
• Emissary

Enchanted Inc. by Shanna Swendson - the first one was cute, but I've decided I'm just not interested enough to continue.

• Enchanted Inc. - Finished 1/27/13
• Once Upon Stilettos
• Damsel Under Stress 

Fallen Angels by J. R. Ward

• Crave
• Envy 

Blogger's Mindset by Amanda Shofner

From Goodreads: What makes bloggers give up and step away from their blogs? Burnout. Feeling overwhelmed or defeated. Over-committing. Jealousy. Life. Sound familiar? Your blogging experience is shaped by how you approach blogging and how you think about it. The Blogger’s Mindset is about finding your way to the right mindset. Learn how to build your blogging foundation and keep blogging when the blogging gets tough. Determine your why, who, and focus. Get real about your commitment and the nuts and bolts of blogging. Address your brand and evaluate your approach. Check your attitude. Find out what it takes to stick with it.

The Blogger’s Mindset is an uplifting slap in the face. It brings the harsh realities of blogging to you while at the same time offering you encouragement to go on, find your purpose, get focused and make it work for you.

There is good advice for blogging that is also good advice for life. I felt like Amanda wrote this just for me, addressing my negative self-evaluations and making me realize that no one else is making those comparisons, just me. You have to get rid of undermining thoughts; they are only a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The answers to success are inside you, Blogger’s Mindset gets you to ask yourself the right questions:

• Why are you blogging?
• Who are you blogging for?
• What is your purpose?
• How can you build a community?

If you answer these questions truthfully, it might change your whole perspective about your blogging method and style.

I put off reading Blogger’s Mindset until I hit one of those low points where I start asking myself, why bother? Who cares? Why am I doing this? It was the perfect time for it. While it would be helpful to bloggers at any time and stage of their blogging career, it was more powerful for me when I was experiencing one of those down turns and needed that pep talk/swift kick from someone who’s been there. I plan to keep it handy to look through again whenever I fall into one of those dips in the road.

Visit Amanda's business website, The Path of Least Revision for tips, tricks and editing services.  She knows her stuff, she does!