I was reading a post by J.A. Konrath today where he stated if a writer hasn’t read at least 100 novels then they don’t have enough of a handle on their own craft to write a novel (paraphrased). Well, okay. I hear you, Konrath. I would agree, though I argue that 100 is probably just a nice round number you pulled out of thin air. The point is, writers must be readers. Anyone who has read manuals on writing have been hit over the head again and again about this.  So I’m taking him up on his challenge.

Starting tomorrow, I’m going to start My Hundred Novel Challenge! Here’s the gist of it. I will read 100 novels in 2013. These will all be fiction, all be in relatively my genre (though hopefully not completely). I don’t think I will make a list, though I might start out with a list, as there are several already that I can think of I want to start of with right away. I will not be utilizing audiobooks for this challenge, as the purpose for me is to see the actual words, punctuation, etc (which is what I have the most difficult time with in my own writing), but I will be using a digital reader that highlights each word as it reads out loud to me. This is, of course, the ONLY way I would ever have a chance to do this kind of a challenge. Much like my writing process, reading is slow and methodical. I cannot read for any length of time without growing insanely tired, bored, and wanting more varied and lazied stimulation (like tv). Most of my reading (real books) are in short spurts, like just a few pages, here and there. Some books take me weeks or even months. I’ve been working on Battlefield Earth for almost all of 2012 and it’s an audiobook (very boring)!

So, after each book I finish, I will post a quick review of that book on this site under 2012 – Hundred Novel Challenge. Now I have to go pick my first title.