tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post8237534283997472994..comments2023-06-10T22:42:19.087+10:00Comments on Australasian Christian Writers: Taking the ChallengeUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-3438754064683236722016-01-24T21:53:57.297+11:002016-01-24T21:53:57.297+11:00Thanks Narelle. That does sound like an interestin...Thanks Narelle. That does sound like an interesting challenge. Jeanette O'Haganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11057798704247611224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-10648537846967963582016-01-23T21:29:51.839+11:002016-01-23T21:29:51.839+11:00Hi Jeanette, great post! My current reading challe...Hi Jeanette, great post! My current reading challenge invloves judging published books in a writing contest. I'm reading genres I don't usually read and I agree, it's good to stretch ourselves by reading more widely :) Narellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07665380446283721576noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-40919210767477225412016-01-21T23:41:48.056+11:002016-01-21T23:41:48.056+11:00Whoops - I did mean Psalms :)Whoops - I did mean Psalms :)Jeanette O'Haganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11057798704247611224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-64197290904857126882016-01-21T23:41:16.150+11:002016-01-21T23:41:16.150+11:00Hi Beth - Reading the Pslams in connection with th...Hi Beth - Reading the Pslams in connection with their historical biblical context would be interesting. All the best with your reading challenges this year. Jeanette O'Haganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11057798704247611224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-74038503649401784492016-01-21T21:43:59.581+11:002016-01-21T21:43:59.581+11:00They sound like some interesting reading challenge...They sound like some interesting reading challenges. Last year I read my Bible in a year using a chronological plan. It was especially interesting to read the Psalms along with the passages in Exodus and 1 & 2 Samuel that they relate to. I'm also doing the Goodreads challenge (plus a few others).Bethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08319783522813289404noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-55012535514524244962016-01-20T19:13:25.772+11:002016-01-20T19:13:25.772+11:00Here's the link to the Mt Readmore Challenge o...Here's the link to the Mt Readmore Challenge on Goodreads:<br />https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/17903531Iolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17199141868703826943noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-73496724725452848492016-01-20T18:30:20.664+11:002016-01-20T18:30:20.664+11:00I've enjoyed your 12 year old's contributi...I've enjoyed your 12 year old's contributions Melissa - an articulate and thoughtful young man though I can see how it's hard to read a book fro High School when you are just starting that level of schooling. Jeanette O'Haganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11057798704247611224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-66028793055535007862016-01-20T18:28:25.770+11:002016-01-20T18:28:25.770+11:00Thanks Dale - Wow, that'a great total. I don&#...Thanks Dale - Wow, that'a great total. I don't think I could read that many and still write my stories & give feedback on to crit friends on their unpublished WIPs. I look forward to seeing your reviews on the books you read :)Jeanette O'Haganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11057798704247611224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-65929391318894527812016-01-20T12:26:29.220+11:002016-01-20T12:26:29.220+11:00I've done the Goodreads challenge the last few...I've done the Goodreads challenge the last few years and I'm joining the PopSugar challenge this year too. My 12 year old has decided he wants to do the Popsugar challenge too, but we've had to modify it a bit (he is just starting high school this year, so finding a book he hasn't read since high school is a bit hard ;) )Melissa Gijsbershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15027810729828362064noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-62263332546698219442016-01-20T11:06:45.102+11:002016-01-20T11:06:45.102+11:00I loved reading about your challenges Jeanette. I&...I loved reading about your challenges Jeanette. I've challenged myself to read 160 books with Goodreads this year. Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14217918666756258037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-10997015871025881612016-01-20T09:34:52.283+11:002016-01-20T09:34:52.283+11:00Hi Ian - I like the Popsugar challenge because it ...Hi Ian - I like the Popsugar challenge because it is flexible, with only a few of the categories very specific. I think it will give the motivation to read quite a few books in my TBR pile this year :)<br /><br />I like your Bible reading challenges linked to a season (Lent - or I guess Advent). Like Iola, I'm amazed at your dedication in reading the whole Bible during the 40 days of Lent - though it would be a bit like reading War and Peace in size - it is so packed with insight and life applications. Yet reading in a short period like that would bring our the overarching biblical story - God's plan to rescue a fallen humanity. <br /><br />And I agree, a Down Under readers challenge would be awesome. Jeanette O'Haganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11057798704247611224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-70708003027570269662016-01-20T09:24:21.510+11:002016-01-20T09:24:21.510+11:00I like working to a plan or deadline, I've fou...I like working to a plan or deadline, I've found - though the big bonus with the current challenge is interacting with other readers. Iola's Goodreads Challenges are definitely impressive and leave me in total awe. My totals don't even come close. But each to their own. The point is not to compete but to stretch oneself and to enjoy :)Jeanette O'Haganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11057798704247611224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-37414109139117650042016-01-20T09:16:22.213+11:002016-01-20T09:16:22.213+11:00Hi Iola. The Mt TBR challenge sounds like a great ...Hi Iola. The Mt TBR challenge sounds like a great idea - I could easily find a year's reading there (especially if I include the free downloads on my Kindle). Are you doing this with anyone else or is this a challenge you have set yourself? Thanks for the link to the Chronological plan - and what a good idea to use different version each year. At one point, several years back, I was reading the New Testament in Greek - to revise my knowledge of Greek and keep the readings fresh. Jeanette O'Haganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11057798704247611224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-16847263891963420592016-01-20T08:23:03.312+11:002016-01-20T08:23:03.312+11:00You read the whole Bible during Lent? Wow. That...You read the whole Bible during Lent? Wow. That's a huge commitment, and a huge achievement. Iolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17199141868703826943noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-8656201427394246552016-01-20T08:18:38.727+11:002016-01-20T08:18:38.727+11:00Jenny, love this post. I like the idea of the read...Jenny, love this post. I like the idea of the reading challenges for the variety they can provide as you've so outlined. However, there are so many books from my fave authors, not to mention my bloated TBR pile, that make me resistant to doing some of the ones you've mentioned.<br /><br />So, in the meantime, I now spread my reading wings, with more contemporary and historical (& Biblical) fiction. My eyes have been opened having restricted myself to "read in your (writing) genre" which I did for years. So the thrillers and specfics are filling up my TBR as I discover the joys of reading other genres.<br /><br />Bible reading challenges. I tend to do short ones linked to a season. So, e.g., with Lent this year I'll read through Luke and Acts using a version I don't usually use. A few years ago for Lent I read the entire Bible through. Gee, I was exhausted by the end of it. <br /><br />Maybe one day we should all do a reading challenge, a Down Under readers one. That might be fun.<br /><br />Great post, Jenny.Ian Ahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00192687613923596829noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-73923127309498282602016-01-20T08:07:55.927+11:002016-01-20T08:07:55.927+11:00Well, all I can say is, I am in awe of those chall...Well, all I can say is, I am in awe of those challenges you have completed and are currently taking on, Jeanette! Also Iola, judging by your comments above. Well done to you both! These days, I just like to make my own way in my own time through my 'to read' list of books and also the Bible, but I can see how a challenge could be a good motivation to keep going. Jo-Anne Berthelsenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09775045057529728396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-515660504291275491.post-67415137859220804182016-01-20T07:00:23.231+11:002016-01-20T07:00:23.231+11:00I also love the reading challenges. I've parti...I also love the reading challenges. I've participated in the Goodreads challenge for the last four or five years, and am signed up again this year. I did the PopSugar challenge last year, but didn't complete it (I left all the categories I wasn't interested in until the end, and then ran out of motivation).<br /><br />Instead, this year, I'm also doing a Mt TBR challenge, in an attempt to get through some of the books on my to-read mountain (hence the name of the challenge). I'm going for Everest - 75 unread books that I owned before 1 January 2016. It's embarrassing to think I own that many - in my defence, many of them are ebooks. <br /><br />I've done the Bible in a Year challenge for the last two years, once with the New King James version, and once with the New International version. This year I'm using the Holman Christian Standard Bible - I find using a different version of the Bible highlights different things, and keeps the challenge from becoming same-old. <br /><br />I'm doing the Chronological plan from http://oneyearbibleonline.com/ - the beauty of this is you can start at any day in the year, as the website will calculate the daily readings based on when you want to start. Iolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17199141868703826943noreply@blogger.com