Reading Life #13: Reading Projects
How I'm putting a little spark back into my reading life
This is Reading Life, a monthly series featuring a short essay on reading reflections, tips, and the bookish life. Start finding book recommendations you love by upgrading to paid today!
Routines benefit from an occasional critical look and shake-up. If you've been doing something the same way for a long time, it's worth taking a look to see how it can be freshened up. You might take a second look and think, "No, this feels good," or "Yes, I could use a little change."
When I started sharing my reading life online in 2018, I began thinking about it much more. But I didn't think about what it would look like five, ten, or fifteen years down the line.
As we age and grow, our tastes inevitably change. This is a funny lesson I keep running into in small doses as I get older. I have a deeper understanding of who I am and feel confident standing in that. So, it's easier to tune in to my intuition when considering what I like in books, clothes, movies, etc. It's no longer a question of "who do I want to be?" but "who am I?" when it comes to my tastes around these things. It's one of my favorite things about being in my mid-30s.Â
When I celebrated my birthday last month, I was thinking about the year ahead and what I wanted out of it. Of course, my reading life was included in this. I've enjoyed my reading life over the years but wanted a bit more of a challenge or direction.Â
For me, the days of organic book discovery are long gone.