2021 in Review & 2022 Resolutions: Yearly Wrap-Up

It’s hard to believe, but 2022 is already here and we are in the midst of it. Meaning it’s time to reflect on the past year and see which of my resolutions I managed to accomplish. 😳

Overall, I think I did pretty well? 2021 was one rollercoaster of a year for me – A LOT went down! Firstly, I finally finished my graduate degree, and with that my career in higher-level education. Secondly, I started my actual career. You know, working in my field, in my dream job no less. So it’s been a bit of a busy time! But in the best of ways, I have to say. 😌

I’m very grateful for how well things turned out for me in 2021. And also really damn proud of myself? I accomplished a lot. 💪

When it came to the blog, there were quite a number of notable changes too! Mainly, that I completely and utterly redesigned it?!?! I started this past year out as The Inharmonious Heroine – and rang in the new year as Literary Liza. Which I love. Not gonna lie, it’s been a few months and I am still very much digging the new blog brand. 🥰

The other big change is that I wound up posting a lot less in the latter part of the year… Something I’m not as pleased about. 😔 A year in and I finally felt myself hitting that blogger burnout I’ve heard so much about. Nevertheless, I still managed to post a little, and hey, I still made it to OVER A YEAR of blogging?!?!

I never wound up publishing my one-year blogiversary post I’ve had drafted for a good long while, but who knows, there’s always my two-year blogiversary to look forward to. 😏 I’m definitely not going anywhere! There is much more from Literary Liza to come~

My 2021 Reading Goals:

1. Read 50 75 books in 2021.

2021 marked my second year of both setting and meeting my yearly reading challenge! 🎉

2. Start requesting ARCs from actual publishers!

Okay, so I definitely did not accomplish this goal. In fact, I got so far behind on my ARC reviews that I ended up having to put my foot down once and for all and cut myself off from requesting any new ones. 😅 On the plus side though, I seem to have forged a few connections with some publishers I’ve already reviewed a number of books for… and so even without me requesting any new releases, a few have found their way onto my kindle library! 😍 Now to just get around to reading all of them…

3. Up my bookstagram game 📸

I did and didn’t do this? My participation on bookstagram was very all over the place this year. Some months I posted a lot, while during others… well, I went on an unintended hiatus. Y’all, it is hard to be consistently active on so many different platforms! But at the very least I did do the one thing I said I wanted to do on my 2021 resolutions post: add some props to my photos. 🤷🏻‍♀️

4. Participate in a readathon!

I did this! ✨ I participated in the F/F February readathon, and had so much fun reading loads of sapphic novels that month! 🤩 If you want to see how I did, you can check out my readathon wrap-up here.

5. Organize (and follow-through on) a buddy read.

In 2021 I did not only one, but TWO buddy reads successfully! Overachieve, much? 💁🏻‍♀️ I wound up reading both Legendborn by Tracy Deonn with Ali from In the Lost & Found and Crier’s War by Nina Varela with Mayu from Bookshelf Life. I had so much fun both times and would definitely do it again! 💖

My New Years Resolutions:

I only have 2 reading resolutions for this year (as I’m trying to keep them realistic and achievable, and because I know this is what *I* need, even if it isn’t flashy):

1. Read 50 books.

Back at it again, I hope to read at least 50 books this year. I’ve been LOVING all the time I’ve been able to spend reading and immersing myself in so many different stories these past two years. And even after reading so many books – or at least what feels like a lot to me! – there are still so. many. more. stories out there I want to experience for myself! So I’m definitely looking forward to another year of reading them.

I also want to be more intentional about the books I choose to read. I’ve set my goal at 50 books (which over the past two years I’ve managed to double consistently), because I want to make sure I’m picking up books because I feel a connection with their substance – not just because reading them will bring me closer to hitting a higher overall book-count. 2022 will be a year of picking up books that may take me longer to get through but will mean more to me in the end than just an additional number to add to my tally. I hope to read fewer books this year, but find more meaning out of them. 😌

2. Write 2 book reviews a month.

This past year was a rocky one for book reviews. 🙈 I started off the year doing really well! But in the summer when I had to put my book blog on the back burner to focus on my thesis… I sort of got out of sync with writing reviews… and spent the rest of the year struggling to post as many as I would have liked. Now I feel super behind on reviewing my ARCs, and my Netgalley ratio has definitely suffered. 💀 This year I’m hoping to get myself back on the wagon and posting reviews slightly more frequently. Wish me luck!

What about you? Did you achieve all your 2021 reading goals?

What are you hoping to accomplish in 2022?

Let me know!