Winter's Respite 2024 - The 24-Hour Readathon starts now!

Here we go! I'll be posting updates and checking in over on our Discord server. Just look for the "Winter's Respite" channel in the left menu. Here's the invite link, if you haven't already joined: https://discord.gg/e6uAmXtGqA

I'll also stop by Instagram and our Goodreads and Facebook groups to check in with those who don't join us on Discord. 

This is a first for Seasons of Reading. I'm excited! Happy Reading!

Winter's Respite 24- Hour Readathon - The date is set!

The votes are in! By a slim margin, Saturday, February 17, 2024 is the date for our 24-Hour readathon. We will start at 10:00 am eastern time. Find out what time that is in your time zone by using the time zone converter in the sidebar menu (just click the link). 

I was thinking our Discord would be a good place to post updates so if you haven't joined, just visit this invite link: https://discord.gg/e6uAmXtGqA

If you would rather not join us on Discord, feel free to post updates on Instagram, and/or in our Facebook group or Goodreads group.

Any questions? Leave a comment or contact me via the link in the menu. 

I'm excited! Our first 24-hour readathon within a readathon! 

Winter's Respite 2024 - Starting line

Time to begin!

If you have any questions about how things work, check out the guidelines in the sidebar menu or the sign up post, or you can always leave me a comment (or send me a message via the contact form). The linky below is the same one as the sign up linky. If you do a starting line/goal post, just add your link again, but be sure to put "goal post" beside your name, i.e. Michelle @ True Book Addict (goals or reading goals).

I'm offering the charity donation prize (see below) and I will be giving away another prize. I will post the second prize I'm offering on the mid-event check-in page. 

I will post a mid-event check in post at the halfway point. Our hashtag for the readathon across social media is #WintersRespite. Stop by our Facebook group, Goodreads group and check out our Instagram. We also have a Seasons of Reading Facebook page. If you haven't already, stop by and give us a like. Thanks! (You can also access all our socials via the links in the sidebar menu.) We have a Discord too. If you would like to stop by and chat anytime during the readathon, here’s the invite link: https://discord.gg/e6uAmXtGqA

Win a $15 donation to a social justice charity of your choice!

I will make a $15 donation to the winner's choice of a social justice organization, such as the Ukraine relief, ACLU, Boys and Girls Club, Human Rights Campaign, GLAAD, Amnesty International, It Gets Better, The Trevor Project, Planned Parenthood, or another social justice organization of your choice (food banks, homeless shelters, animal rights/rescue/shelters would also apply), perhaps your local chapter or a local organization. This giveaway is open internationally. Note: I will not donate to any organization that does not believe all are equal, regardless of gender, race or sexual orientation.

Charity giveaway (Google form): https://forms.gle/84yUz89G4A7aT7Et5

I will award both prizes after the end of the readathon.

New addition starting this year. We will have one 24-hour readathon during the month long readathon. This will work much like Dewey's 24-hour Readathon (if you're familiar). It will be on a Saturday, but will start at 10:00 am eastern time instead of 8:00 am (you start according to your time zone...there's a time zone converter link in the blog menu) and will go for a full 24 hour period. You can participate as much or as little as you like. Leave your vote for which Saturday in the comments below. I'm not including this coming Saturday since it's only a couple of days away.

Saturday, February 10

Saturday, February 17

Saturday, February 24

Here's the linky again. Happy Reading!

Mister Linky's Magical Widgets -- Easy-Linky widget will appear right here!
This preview will disappear when the widget is displayed on your site.
If this widget does not appear, click here to display it.

Winter's Respite 2024 - Sign up time!

Sign up is here! Time for a month of reading to decompress from the holiday season. Nothing better than some comfort reading.

We start at 12:00 am on February 1 and end at 11:59 pm on February 29 (we get an extra day this year!). Times are set for the eastern time zone so adjust your times accordingly (you can use the link to the time zone converter in the sidebar menu). Of course, like most readathons, the books read must be novels or novellas, adult or young adult are fine, and you can read children's books (as long as you do read some novels too). Note: Non-Fiction is also okay! You DO NOT have to participate the entire month. Join in when you can, start in the middle, end early...whatever works best for your schedule. As with all of my readathons, it will be an event of relaxed reading during which we can personally challenge ourselves and whittle away those ever looming TBR piles/shelves/libraries.

Guidelines for the readathon can be found HERE or you can access in the sidebar menu. Any information you need about the readathon can be found there. Please do be sure to check the guidelines to make sure you're following along correctly. There are specific rules regarding signing up and wrapping up, especially in regards to the giveaway. We no longer use a wrap-up linky and we are now just using the Google form for wrap-ups (since I require your wrap-up link there anyway). That way you don't have to do two steps at the end of the readathon. The wrap-up Google form will be on the wrap-up post instead of the prize page. I will have a yes/no so you can let me know if you're opting out of winning a prize. (If you want to visit people who participated, you can do so via the sign-up/starting line linky. I will have a link to it on the wrap-up post).

Prizes...

• Every readathon, I offer a charity donation prize (to a social justice charity) to one winner. This prize is awarded at the beginning of the readathon. Details on how it works are on the guidelines page. I will also be offering another small prize. 
• There will be a mid-event check-in post. If do not receive prize donations, I will share the additional prize I'm giving away on that post.

I alluded to something new coming this year and here it is! We are going to have a 24-hour readathon one time during each month long readathon! The 24-hour readathon will be on a Saturday during the readathon month. On the starting line post, I will put the call out for votes on which Saturday it will be. (Not sure if it will be a poll or just have you put your answer in the comments.) If you've done Dewey's 24-hour readathon, this will work similarly time-wise, though the start time will be 10:00 am eastern, U.S. time. 

Our social media hashtag is #WintersRespite

We have our Facebook group and our Facebook Page, and don't forget our Goodreads group, our Instagram, and our Discord (invite link: https://discord.gg/e6uAmXtGqA)
All social media links are also in the sidebar.

Grab the button and spread the word! Grab the code in sidebar or download the image at the top of this post.

Any questions at all? Leave me a comment, or send me a message via the contact me link in the sidebar menu.

Mister Linky's Magical Widgets -- Easy-Linky widget will appear right here!
This preview will disappear when the widget is displayed on your site.
If this widget does not appear, click here to display it.

2023 Yuletide Spirit Reading Challenge and Readathon - Wrap-up

Happy New Year! I hope you enjoyed your holiday reading. I managed to read two Christmas books. Plus, I finished a couple others I was reading.

The winner of the charity donation giveaway was Marla, who was first to post a review in our linky over at Yuletide Spirit. Her chosen charity was The Trevor Project.

 
Stay tuned for the Winter's Respite Readathon coming up next month. You might notice something new for 2024 on the button. Full details when I post sign-ups within the next week or so.

How did you do on the reading challenge/readathon? Share your wrap up link in the linky below. It's the same linky as the sign-up so just add "wrap-up" when you enter your name, like so "Michelle@truebookaddict-Wrap-up" (you don't have to put a blog name, you can just put your name).

Mister Linky's Magical Widgets -- Easy-Linky widget will appear right here!
This preview will disappear when the widget is displayed on your site.
If this widget does not appear, click here to display it.

Winter's Respite button graphic - Image by Steve from Pixabay

2023 Yuletide Spirit Reading Challenge and Readathon - Holiday reading time!

I'm late with the kick off!! Sorry about that. So, we actually started yesterday. I do realize you've (probably) already started, but let's make this official. 

Remember...

Dates: November 20, 2023 through December 31, 2023

Three ways to participate:

Challenge - Pick a level
Readathon - read as much (or as little) as you want
Participate in both!

Everything else you need to know can be found in the sign-up post here.

Hashtag across social media: #YuletideSpirit

  
THE PRIZE: The first person to post a review (must be from a book started on or after November 20) in the review linky at Yuletide Spirit will win a $15 charitable donation to human rights organization of their choice, such as the Ukraine Relief, ACLU, Boys and Girls Club, Human Rights Campaign, GLAAD, Amnesty International, It Gets Better, Planned Parenthood, or another human rights organization of your choice (food banks, homeless shelters would also apply), perhaps your local chapter or a local organization. This giveaway is open internationally. Note: I will not donate to any organization that does not believe that all are equal, regardless of gender, race or sexual orientation.

HAVE FUN!!!

The linky below is the same one as the sign up linky. If you do a starting line/goal post, just add your link again, but be sure to put "goal post" beside your name, i.e. Michelle/True Book Addict (goal post). Note: If you're just signing up, you can do it here on this post. It's the same linky.

Mister Linky's Magical Widgets -- Easy-Linky widget will appear right here!
This preview will disappear when the widget is displayed on your site.
If this widget does not appear, click here to display it.

2023 Yuletide Spirit Reading Challenge and Readathon

Once again, the holidays are upon us! Time to sign up for the Yuletide Spirit Reading Challenge and Readathon co-event!

Dates:  Monday, November 20 through Sunday, December 31

(I'm changing up the end date because I don't know about you, but I'm ready to be finished with holiday reading on January 1st.)

Three ways to participate:

1. Challenge - Pick a level
2. Readathon - read as much (or as little) as you want
3. Participate in both!

Regarding the reading of Christmas books, for the readathon, you do not have to read only Christmas books. I am always reading regular genres along with Christmas books during the season. Please do try to read at least one though. 🎄

For the reading challenge, these must be Christmas novels, books about Christmas lore, a book of Christmas short stories or poems, books about Christmas crafts, children's books (we even have a level for them!), etc.

Reading Challenge Levels:
--Candy Cane: read 1 book
--Mistletoe: read 2-4 books
--Christmas Tree: read 5 or 6 books, or more (this is the fanatic level!)

Additional levels:

--Fa La La La Films: watch a bunch or a few Christmas movies...it's up to you!
--Visions of Sugar Plums: read books with your children this season and share what you read

*the additional levels are optional, you still must complete one of the main reading levels above

I will have a review linky posted as a page at the Yuletide Spirit site the day the challenge starts. You will find it in the menu at the top of the blog.

Sign up in the linky below. This linky will be the same one on this site and over at Yuletide Spirit. No need to sign up both places (though you can leave a comment here and over there if you are indeed participating in both). For this readathon in particular, we will do a wrap-up linky, in keeping with the regular process for the reading challenge.

THE PRIZE: The first person to post a review (must be from a book started on or after November 20) in the review linky will win a $15 charitable donation to human rights organization of their choice, such as a Ukraine relief charity, ACLU, Boys and Girls Club, Human Rights Campaign, GLAAD, Amnesty International, It Gets Better, Planned Parenthood, or another human rights organization of your choice (food banks, homeless shelters would also apply), perhaps your local chapter or a local organization. Animal rights or rescue organizations are another option. This giveaway is open internationally. Note: I will not donate to any organization that does not believe that all are equal, regardless of gender, race or sexual orientation.

Final notes:
You can participate even if you don't have a blog. Just link up with your Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram (and just post your updates from whichever venue you choose) AND don't forget our Facebook group, Facebook Page, our Goodreads group, and our Instagram...and our Discord. Yuletide Spirit also has a Facebook page.

Event hashtag: #YuletideSpirit You can also use #readathon

Mister Linky's Magical Widgets -- Easy-Linky widget will appear right here!
This preview will disappear when the widget is displayed on your site.
If this widget does not appear, click here to display it.