Dewey’s 24 Hour Read-a-Thon: Preparations!

Dewey’s 24 Hour Read-a-Thon is imminent, occurring this Saturday, October 22. The very first read-a-thon I ever participated in, Dewey’s got me back to a rabid love of reading when I participated last April. It’s where I first experienced the book blogosphere, and it’s great fun for all involved. Basically, the goal of the read-a-thon is to try and read as much as you can in 24 hours. If you can make the whole 24 hours, fantastic! If not, that’s okay too. There are also hourly challenges to participate in, and lots of social media participation involved. Sign-ups can be found here. There’s also a Facebook group, a Twitter account, a Litsy account, and a Goodreads group to hook up to. Now that you have the gist, let’s discuss the preparations I’m undertaking this week (and you should think about some of these things too, if you’re participating!)

Last year, I made it 20 hours, decided to take a nap, but didn’t wake back up in time to finish out. This year, my goal is to make it at least 21. Perhaps with a more well-timed nap.

So, if you’re reading for your whole Saturday, which is a really nice idea, you also want to make sure you take care of as many other potential needs ahead of time as possible. Here are some areas I’m covering ahead of time:

Meal Prep/Snacks

Trying to read for 24 hours doesn’t leave a lot of time for cooking. There are lots of great ideas and recipes on the Goodreads group for this area. This year, I’m sticking with getting up early and making breakfast pre my Dewey’s 7 a.m. start time (or maybe I’ll make it the evening before). I’m planning on either a meaty omelette or eggs and bacon and veggies. There may also be green tea involved. I’ll have snacks on hand, trying to stick to fruits & veggies & cheese, but I do have a bag of Chex Mix stashed away exclusively for Read-a-Thon. My plan for lunch & dinner is to just start a big pot of chili in the crockpot in the morning and eat it as needed. Any cooking the day of the Read-a-thon is of course occupied by an audiobook! I may also treat myself to a pint of Halo Top ice cream, because it’s my favorite and they just added new flavors! Another thing I think I’ll try to have on hand is different fruits to infuse my water with (pre-cut of course)!

What will you be eating during Read-a-Thon? Got any good recipes or snack ideas to share?

Reading Spots

When you’re reading for so long, I find it’s quite impossible to sit in the same exact spot or position all day. Movement is key, especially when you’re getting sleepy. I personally still like to be in my apartment, because it gives me more things to use in challenge pictures. However, I want to have an idea of different spots I could go to and read when I get bored/need a change of pace. There’s also the possibility that I’ll meet up with other local readers so we can all read somewhere together. Yay for introvert & book nerd hanging out!

So, without further ado, here’s my list of possible reading spots for Saturday:

• My bed
• My futon
• Walking around my neighborhood (audiobook time!)
• Coffee shops (audiobook in car, of course!)
• Outside on a blanket or a bench
• The nearest library branch (it has some really nice spots & chairs!)

I’m also open to new ideas! Let me know in the comments if you have a really awesome reading spot!

Other Random Non-Book Prep Things

• Clean my apartment so I can relax without worrying how dirty it is!
• Pick out a selection of comfy clothes to wear on the day of (bonus points when my outfit includes my bookish t-shirts, socks, & jewelry)!
• Make my blog post templates ahead of time for easy updates. I’m planning on having 1 big update post for books read & such, but I may do separate threads for the challenges, especially since some take place on other social media platforms. Thoughts??
• Get a good night’s sleep the night before!!
• Have a contingency plan for naps…though it’s so hard to stop reading!
• Charge my Kindle!
• Plan out social media breaks (so that maybe I don’t get so sucked in that it hurts my reading time!)

What else do you do to prepare for Read-a-Thon?

So I bet you’re reading this and thinking I’ve neglected a very important part of Read-a-Thon prep…but I assure you I haven’t. I just saved the best for last! So…here goes…

Book Pile!!!

I’m not going to call my book pile a TBR, simply because it has to be flexible. For Read-a-Thon last time, I noticed it helped to have a good mix of book types, including quick and easy novels, graphic novels, middle grade novels, and audiobooks. I have a mess of books on my Kindle also, and a ton of print books from the library…not to mention the books that I bought at the Southern Festival of Books last weekend. So…here are some photos of my physical book pile. Though I reserve the right to make changes throughout the day on Saturday.

I also have Leah Remini’s memoir about Scientology on audio and I’m hoping . My Netgalleys on my Kindle include The Fairy’s Assistant, Timekeeper, and The Famished Road.