Winter Reading Challenge

My friend Karlene is doing a Winter Reading Challenge. Here are the details:



Who: The 07/08 Winter Reading Challenge is for anyone who needs a little incentive to read.



What: A winter reading challenge for everyone. Set your goals and track your progress. No goal is too small; no ambition too great.



When: December 22, 2007 through March 19, 2008



Where: The blogosphere. Post your winter reading list on your blog then link to that specific post page using the Mr. Linky.

Why: What? We need a reason?

How (aka the detailed details):

1. Make a list of books you’d like to read during the winter. Check your bookshelves and nightstands for unread (or unfinished) books. Go to the library. Browse your local bookstore or amazon.com. Check book lists from other reading challenges. Ask your friends and neighbors for suggestions. Encourage them to join as well. Start a group where you all read the same books. That’s cool too.

2. Set your goal. There are 12 weeks of winter. If your goal is to read one book this winter, that’s great. If your goal is to read 12 books, or even 24 books, that’s great, too.*Once again, I’d like to suggest that we stretch a little. If you normally read fiction, put at least one non-fiction on your list (and vice versa). Or try a genre you don’t usually read. (I may have to read another romance.) Or try a new author chosen totally at random. But most importantly, make your list FUN so you'll want to read!

3. Write your blog post defining your list. If you have all your books nearby, you could stack them up, take a photo and post it. If you’ve really got time on your hands, provide a link to amazon.com for each of your titles. Totally up to you.

4. Come back here and sign up through Mr. Linky. Let’s support each other in this fun winter reading challenge. Visit the blogs of other participants and POST COMMENTS! We all love comments.(I promise I will visit the site of every participant and post a comment on your book list post, your book review post(s), your recap post, and at least one other post, unrelated to the Winter Reading Challenge.)

5. Feel free to post the Winter Reading Challenge image in your sidebar and/or in your post. Please link the image back to this post.

6. Regularly (as totally defined by you) update your posted reading list on your original blog post. Change the color of the text or cross through them as you finish each book. Also, feel free to change your list as desired. If you start reading a book and decide you don't like it, take it off your list. If you hear about a great book, add it to your list. If you decide your list is too long, shorten it. Remember, this is supposed to be fun—not a chore.

7. Almost Entirely Optional: Post reviews of the books you read on your blog. Use the Mr. Linky on Winter Reading Challenge Review page to link back to your reviews. (This is entirely optional, but required if you want to win the Grand Prize.)

8. At the end of the challenge, write a recap post telling us about your experiences in pursuing your reading goals. I’ll have a list of questions for you to consider answering and another Mr. Linky to be posted the last week of winter (sometime around March 13th).

9. And yes, there will be PRIZES. There will be intermittent prizes throughout the challenge. I'm trying to work out some donated books. If you're an author and would like to donate a prize (and ship it to the winner) let me know. (If I don't get the donations, some of the prizes will be gently read copies from my personal library that I'm trimming down.) There will also be a grand prize consisting of a $10 Gift Card to either Barnes and Noble or Borders (winner's choice).Grand Prize Eligibility Requirements:

Join the Winter Reading Challenge by posting your reading list on your blog and signing up using the Mr. Linky below by midnight (MST) on Saturday, December 29th, 2007.
Post at least one book review and use the Mr Linky here to share it with us.
Post a recap of your Winter Reading Challenge experience on your blog and link through the recap Mr. Linky by midnight (MST) on Wednesday, March 26th, 2008 (one week after the challenge ends). (Recap page will be posted in March.)Note: You can join the Winter Reading Challenge at any time; deadlines are only for prize eligibility.Okay, that’s it. Let’s get reading!