It’s that time again! No, not for the obligatory reflecting on last year and focusing on my goals for next year – that should go up tomorrow. It’s time for this year’s #beatthebacklist challenge acceptance post! Seriously, y’all, this continues to be my favorite reading challenge I’ve found. I’ve participated since the very first year in 2017, and I just can’t resist the reading community (and the bonus bingo cards that are still WAY too encouraging to my brain but effective in reminding me to read!). I still have yet to “win” the challenge, but each year I’ve read a little more of my backlist than I might have without the challenge to cheer me on. And this year I’ve even found the associated Discord which might help even more!
Last year, I read far less than I did in 2022 which was a bit of a bummer – only 46 total according to Goodreads. On the upside, almost half of those were backlist titles! A total of 21 in fact! Yes, it wasn’t half of the 52 of my goal, but still, that’s progress so I’ll take it!
As always, reading progress and community is the whole point for me. If you’d like to join me, feel free to check out all the details here: https://austinedecker.com/beat-the-backlist/
Anyway, my big goal continues to be to knock out the few ARCs I have on my shelves if at all possible so I can get on with donating them either to the local high school (for YA) or possible to some of my readers as random newsletter prizes (once I uh… actually get that set up!). Reading diverse authors is also a big focus, especially authors of color. There aren’t currently as many on my shelves since I haven’t allowed myself to buy near as many physical books in recent years since I’m SUPPOSED to be lowering that overall number lolsob, but I should have more than a few in the mix! And third, for the past few years, I’ve kept this goal list to solely fiction, but I have several writing craft, lifestyle, and witchy non-fiction reads that I’ve kept separate on my shelves, and I’d really like to get some of those read this year, too. We’ll see how it goes!
And now, without further ado: the 2024 Bingo Card and my current (tentative as lord knows my reading whim often drags me off to some of the nearly 50 OTHER backlist books on my shelves lolsob) list of goal books from the physical TBR:
2024 TBR MOUNTAIN BEATTHEBACKLIST GOAL LIST:
1. THE INHERITANCE OF ORQUIDEA DIVINA - 1/03/24 - "an unexpected inheritance"*
2. OTHER BIRDS - 1/08/24 - "bird is the word"
3. DARK AND SHALLOW LIES - 1/09/24 - "character name is a color"
4. THE BOOK OF COLD CASES - 1/10/24 - "hotel, mansion, or castle"
5. MANGA CLASSICS: THE STORIES OF EDGAR ALLEN POE - 1/13/24 "coauthored or illustrated"
6. CIRCE - 1/16/24 - "a retelling of a classic"
7. DEEP AND DARKEST RED - 1/24/24 - "dance the night away"
8. ASH - 1/25/24 - "popular throwback"
9. GIDEON THE NINTH - 2/07/24 - "first in an unfinished series"
10. MANGA CLASSICS: HAMLET - 2/08/24 - "published 100+ years ago"
11. SONG OF THE CURRENT - 2/13/24 - "on your TBR 5+ years"
12. IDENTITY - 3/25/24 - "that's not my name"
13. LIFE WITHOUT ENVY
13. WITCHY MAMA
14. SAVE THE CAT WRITES A NOVEL
15. FORESHADOW
17. SLEEP NO MORE
18. THE INNOCENT SLEEP
19. APOCALYPSE SCENARIOS
20. LETTERS TO THE PUMPKIN KING
21. LAKESEDGE
22. CINDERELLA IS DEAD
23. ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD
24. AS OLD AS TIME
25. BEAUTY QUEENS
26. SPINDLE
27. AETHERBOUND
28. THE ONCE AND FUTURE WITCHES
29. THE ONES WE’RE MEANT TO FIND
30. AN UNKINDNESS OF MAGICIANS
31. QUEENS OF INNIS LEAR
32. A RUSH OF WINGS
33. UPROOTED
34. COLD THE NIGHT, FAST THE WOLVES
35. REBELWING
36. THE VERY SECRET SOCIETY OF IRREGULAR WITCHES
37. THE MAKER’S GUIDE TO MAGIC
38. WRITING MAGIC
39. LAKELORE
40. VENOM & VOW
41. DEEP AND DARKEST RED
42. SERENDIPITY: TEN ROMATIC TROPES, TRANSFORMED
43. OUT NOW
44. THE DISASTERS
45. THE BELLES
46. THISTLEFOOT
47. THE STARLESS SEA
48. THIS SPLINTERED SILENCE
49. THE GRIMROSE GIRLS
50. THE PRINCESS AND THE SCOUNDREL
51. THE PASSAGE
52. A HISTORY OF WILD PLACES
So there it is! Probably more ambitious than I’ll manage, as per the usual, but still a list I think I can sink my teeth into (or otherwise update, rearrange, and start over as I wish LOL).
And of course, every year I either reread things or read new releases or backlist that I only have electronic copies of, which I still want to track, but won’t give myself credit for on the handle bingo card above, AKA:
THE BONUS BOOKS:
1.1 INHERITANCE – 1/07/24 – eBook/audiobook – First read of electronic only backlist title
3.1 SAN DIEGO 2014: THE LAST STAND OF THE CALIFORNIA BROWNCOATS - 1/10/24 - First read of electronic only backlist title
8.1 LOST IN THE MOMENT AND FOUND - 2/01/24 - First read of electronic only backlist title
8.1 DEAR WRITER, YOU NEED TO QUIT - 2/13/24 - Reread of electronic only backlist title
11.1 IRON AND MAGIC - 2/29/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.2 MAGIC BITES - 3/03/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.3 MISLAID IN PARTS HALF KNOWN - 3/04/24 - First read of electronic only backlist title
11.4 SMALL MAGICS - 3/04/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.5 MAGIC BURNS - 3/06/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.6 MAGIC STRIKES - 3/06/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.7 MAGIC MOURNS - 3/07/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.8 MAGIC BLEEDS - 3/07/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.9 MAGIC DREAMS - 3/08/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.10 MAGIC SLAYS - 3/10/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.11 GUNMETAL MAGIC - 3/11/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.12 MAGIC GIFTS - 3/11/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.13 MAGIC RISES - 3/11/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.14 MAGIC STEALS - 3/12/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.15 MAGIC BREAKS - 3/14/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.16 MAGIC STARS - 3/14/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.17 MAGIC SHIFTS - 3/16/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.18 MAGIC BINDS - 3/17/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.19 IRON AND MAGIC - 3/18/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.20 MAGIC TRIUMPHS - 3/19/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.21 MAGIC TIDES - 3/20/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.22 MAGIC CLAIMS - 3/21/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title
11.23 BLOOD HEIR - 3/22/24 - Reread of electronic & physical backlist title