With Conflux now well and truly over, I’ve been preparing for the next event on my calendar: Dewey’s 24-hour read-a-thon. I mentioned this event in my September signal boosts, but wanted to give it a bit more attention now that it is drawing closer. The read-a-thon is one of the few things that keeps Mt TBR in check (my willpower being as weak as it is when it comes to books). It runs twice a year, in April and October. The next one takes place this weekend and will be starting around 11 PM on Saturday 18 October for most of the east coast of Australia (10pm for Queensland).
I won’t be participating for the full 24 hours. The organisers always emphasise the event is intended to be fun and are happy for people to participate in whatever way works best. Since I don’t function well without sleep, I’ll be snoozing away the first seven or eight hours. I also have a family commitment in the morning, but the rest of my time will be devoted to reading as much as possible. And maybe hanging out on Twitter, where I’ll be updating regularly using the the hashtags #Dewey and #readathon.
You can see my mini Mt TBR in the photo at the top of the post. I don’t expect to get through all of it but I hope to make a bit of a dent. At the top of the pile (you might be able to make out my Kindle up there) is an electronic copy of Phantazein edited by Tehani Wessely. I’m already partway through it, so will concentrate on finishing it first. Next on the list is Sea Hearts by Margo Lanagan (known as The Brides of Rollrock Island in other parts of the world). This ordinarily wouldn’t make it onto my read-a-thon pile, as I find Margo’s work to be very emotionally draining. However, the book is due back at the library soon.
After that, I shall see how I’m faring. If I’m not completely traumatised by the end of Sea Hearts, I’ve got an e-book of a related short story called Flower and Weed. Otherwise, I have plenty of back issues of Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine to catch up on. I’m way behind and I find ASIM perfect for read-a-thons because the stories are short and varied. The further into the day I get, the more I need that.
Read-a-thoners love to discuss their snacks but I never really prepare any. My one requirement is to make sure there’s plenty of tea on hand… which is not that difficult around here. I tend to gravitate more towards green tea than black during a read-a-thon unless I’m in dire need of some caffeine.
If you need to tame your own Mt TBR or are looking to connect with a great community of book bloggers, it’s not too late to join! You can sign up, follow on Twitter, join the Goodreads group or any combination of the three. The read-a-thon website will be running warm-up posts containing great advice for beginners all the way up until the event. If you’ve already signed up, I’d love you to leave me a comment about what you’ll be reading.
Wow, that’s a lot of reading. I’m thinking you might have to sacrifice that sleeping time…
I don’t expect to get through it all. At best, I’ll probably manage the rest of Phantazein, Sea Hearts and maybe an issue of ASIM.
Are you reading anything good at the moment?
I’m in too – lovely to spot another Aussie who’ll be doing the 11pm start tonight 🙂
It was rather lovely to have another Aussie to chat with on Twitter. Will you be joining in again in April?