Our staff share their literary resolutions for the new year.

‘My literary resolution is to finish reading my way through the masters of the short story of which I have dipped in and out of over the last few years. I am coming for you Anton Chekhov, Katherine Mansfield and D.H. Lawrence.’

– Marie Matteson, buyer at Readings Carton

‘This isn’t strictly a resolution, but as I’m a 2018 judge for the Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction, I’ll be reading lots of Australian literature over the following months. The prize considers first or second published works of fiction and I’ve been enjoying discovering emerging Australian writers I might have otherwise missed.

Next year, I also plan to read and recommend more work from young authors. Two of my absolute favourite books this year (Conversations with Friends and Pulse Points) are by writers under 30, and I feel like they haven’t been read as widely as they should be due to this fact. I worry that readers with preconceptions about works from young writers are missing out on some really great books, and so I hope to rectify this.’

– Ellen Cregan, bookseller at Readings Doncaster

‘2017 was a pretty challenging year for me personally, and my reading suffered accordingly. With so much uncertainty going on In Real Life I wanted to know exactly what I’d signed up for in my leisure time, so I read a lot from my guilty pleasure genre (romance) and revisited old favourites instead of making much of a dent in my TBR piles. In 2018, I’m determined to finish all the unread books on the teetering pile next to my bed, and also challenge myself to read a bit outside my comfort zone. I’m going to try to read more non-fiction, more contemporary literature and definitely more short stories. I’m also giving myself permission to not finish books – and to not feel guilty about it!’

– Lian Hingee, digital marketing manager

‘In 2018, I hope to read a few more books for older children and teens. Since the beautiful Kids shop has opened next door to Carlton, I don’t pick them up as readily. My daughter is at an age where I happily bring home picture books and early readers for us to share together, but I’ve been missing out on the fresh ideas and adventures (as well as great covers) that come with middle fiction and young adult titles.’

– Fiona Hardy, bookseller at Readings Carton

‘I had quite a few reading slumps this year, which meant I didn’t read nearly as many books as I wanted to. Or, I should say: I didn’t finish as many books as I wanted to. I half-read a lot of books. There is a big pile of books with bookmarks in them towering beside my bed, and many of them are very good books that I wished I had finished. So in 2018, I vow to commit more fully to the books I am reading. I vow to read – and finish reading – more books in 2018 than I did in 2017. I vow to get less distracted by every shiny new release that crosses my desk (and every exciting new TV show).

I also vow to pick up a book every time I find myself reading some inane article on the internet, mindlessly scrolling through Twitter, or falling into a Buzzfeed quiz rabbit hole. 2018 is all about less screen time, and more page time.’

– Nina Kenwood, marketing manager