Shelf Control: Changes & New Beginnings

Posted in Shelf Control by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

New year, new beginnings, new decisions, new directions…

I’m writing to announce a change here at Bookshelf Fantasies — specifically, about my Shelf Control weekly posts.

Back in 2015, I created Shelf Control and invited others to participate as well:

Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up!

Over the past seven years, I’ve featured 347 books from my shelves. I’ve been joined by wonderful participants, all book bloggers sharing their own variety of featured books. It’s been so much fun sharing and exchanging ideas, reading plans, and insights!

This past year, I’ve noticed that hosting a weekly book blog meme has occasionally started to feel more like an obligation and less like pure enjoyment. I’ve written in the past about my strong belief that book blogging should be a source of fun and happiness, and if it ever starts to feel like work, then I should reconsider what I’m doing. I still love the idea of Shelf Control, but I think it’s about time for me to cut back on commitments and just post when the inspiration strikes.

For that reason, it’s time for me to pass the reins to a new host!

I’m delighted to announce that Mallika at Literary Potpourri will be “adopting” the Shelf Control meme and will become its new host! Mallika has been the most involved participant in Shelf Control over the years, and her book selections are always fascinating.

I’ll still participate in the meme, but I love the idea of contributing now and then, rather than feeling forced to find a new book to feature week in and week out. So, look for my posts… just not necessarily every week.

Thank you to one and all who’ve participated by sharing your own Shelf Control posts and/or commenting on mine! Your thoughts, comments, and insights have meant so much to me.

Please join me in thanking Mallika for taking over Shelf Control, and please check in at Literary Potpourri for future Shelf Control posts!

Happy New Year!

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28Dec2022

Shelf Control: Taking stock – 2022 round-up

Posted in Shelf Control by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.

Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.

Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!

A few years ago already, I shared my intention to do a “taking stock” Shelf Control post on an annual basis, to see how many of the books that I’ve featured as Shelf Control picks I’ve actually ended up reading.

Well… that was in 2019, and I only just remembered that I’d intended to make it a yearly tradition! Oops.

Better late than never — so here I am, at the end of 2022, ready to do a little tallying.

In 2022, I shared 47 Shelf Control posts.

Of those 47:

I have read a grand total of TWO books.
There are FIFTEEN that I’d put into the “unlikely to read” category. Upon reflection, I just don’t feel all that interested in taking the time to read them.
Some of these may end up in my donation pile, whenever I get around to doing another bookshelf purge.

Keep in mind, that’s just the 2022 selection of Shelf Control books!

Going back to when I first started this weekly feature (in 2015 — I can’t quite believe I’ve been doing these post for that long!) my stats are a little intimidating:

Total Shelf Control books so far: 347
Number of Shelf Control books I’ve read since posting about them: 33
Number of Shelf Control books donated or otherwise discarded: 63
Number of Shelf Control books that I doubt I’ll ever read (I still have them, but they may be next to go): 61

Which means:

Of the books I’ve featured, I have…

190 books still to read!

Which just goes to show that these Shelf Control posts do seem to help me in some way — they at least force me to really think about the books on my shelves, and eventually decide if I’m still interested. Although as my stats show, the most probably outcome for my Shelf Control books (particularly those I’ve owned for more than a year or two) is that I’m unlikely to actually read or keep them, when push comes to shove.

Still, this isn’t necessarily a negative. Since I don’t seem to ever quite stop adding to my home library, getting a bit of organization and motivation to donate the books I don’t intend to read is really a good thing.

Onward to 2023! Let’s see how my shelves are looking a year from now.

Happy New Year!

And for those doing a regular Shelf Control post this week:

A Novel Start
Bookshelf Journeys

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Want to participate in Shelf Control? Here’s how:

Write a blog post about a book that you own that you haven’t read yet.
Add your link in the comments or link back from your own post, so I can add you to the participant list.
Check out other posts, and…

Have fun!

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23Jan2019

Shelf Control: Taking Stock

Posted in Shelf Control by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.

Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!

A question came up last week as a comment on a Shelf Control post:

Of the 152 books I’ve highlighted so far in my Shelf Control feature, how many have I actually read?

Wow. That is a BIG question.

Shelf Control has been a way to force myself to go back, again and again, to my overflowing bookshelves and take a look at what’s already there. I pick up new books all the time, usually through Kindle deals or at library sales or at used book stores, but still, the fact remains that I buy more and more books when I already have enough unread books on my shelves to keep me busy for years!

So, rather than feature another Shelf Control book this week, I thought I’d take stock and try to answer the question. Luckily, I organize Shelf Control (as well as so much else in my life) through the glory of spreadsheets, so it’s not that hard to figure out.

According to my worksheet:

Total Shelf Control books so far: 152
Number of Shelf Control books I’ve read since posting about them: 14
Number of Shelf Control books donated or otherwise discarded: 9
Number of Shelf Control books that I doubt I’ll ever read (I still have them, but they may be next to go, whenever I do another shelf purge): 12

Which means:

Of the books I’ve featured, I have…

117 books still to read!

Will I read them? I hope so! I bought them for a reason… and I still find them interesting enough to hold on to. It’s always hard to strike a balance between new books, ARCs, library books, and books on the shelves, but sooner or later, I do end up going back to books I already own. Of the 14 featured Shelf Control books that I’ve actually read, there was only one that I’d consider a dud. As for the others, I’ve read a classic I’ve always meant to read, gotten hooked on series that I’d been curious about, and have read some amazing fiction that moved me and entertained me. I call that a win!

Maybe I’ll do one of these “taking stock” posts once a year (or more often) to see where I stand. Meanwhile, pardon the interruption in my regular schedule! Next week, I’ll be back with yet another book from my shelves… and hopefully, I’ll actually read it before too much time goes by.

If you wrote a Shelf Control post this week, don’t forget to share your link!

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Want to participate in Shelf Control? Here’s how: