Bout of Books 12... No Goal Linky?

Hello darling #boutofbooks-ers!

We're trying something different for this Bout of Books, so if you absolutely hate it, it may not stick around.

That said.

We, your estimable hosts, are pretty jazzed about this. "This" being Bout of Books 12 will not have a goals linky.

Why? That's a very good question, and I'm so glad you asked!

Every Bout of Books, we watch our readers become discouraged as they "fail" (because, as you know, we flail, not fail) goals they set for themselves. Because we man the @boutofbooks handle and spend more time than we care to track keeping an eye on the #boutofbooks hashtag, we're flooded with the negativity.

Removing the goal linky is our way of attempting to combat the negativity and "failing" updates. Bout of Books has always been about reading, meeting people, and having fun. As long as you achieve one of these, even if it's for a minute, we think you should consider your Bout of Books a success.

While we're not providing you a space to link your goals, we're not telling you to stop setting goals. We're also not telling you what goals to set. If you want to set goals, set them! You just can't link them here.

Additionally, questions regarding goals remain one of the top FAQ we have. By eliminating a goal linky, we're hoping to lessen the burden on us as hosts -- and get rid of the confusion between sign up and goals. There will only be the sign up. (And daily links, naturally.)

Because the truth is, we just want you to read. We don't care if you want to read 15 pages or 47 books. We don't care if you want to continue a book you started before the read-a-thon or if you can count audiobooks toward the read-a-thon. We don't care if you read from a read-a-thon book list you created or you go off your list.

We want you to read, in whatever format makes the most sense for you. We want you to read books you want to read. We want you to have fun and meet people and be happy that you get to be part of such an amazing community.

You don't need a goal linky for that, #boutofbooks-ers. You just need yourself and a love for reading.

ETA: No goal linky does not mean you can't set goals. If you'd like to set goals, do so, then share on Twitter using the hashtag #boutofbooks. Ask others to share their goals, too -- you might find you make stronger connections.

Bout of Books 12 Schedule

It's COMING!

Psst. Tell your friends:

Challenges/Giveaways

Monday 1/5
Bookshelf Scavenger Hunt -- Caught Read Handed
New Year's Resolutions -- The Book That...


Tuesday 1/6
Top 10 Recommendations -- Trees of Reverie


Wednesday 1/7
Character Coupling -- Writing My Own Fairy Tale


Thursday 1/8
The Synopsis Challenge -- LuLo Fangirl


Friday 1/9
Describe Your Book in Pictures -- The Book Monsters


Saturday 1/10
Literary Quote Challenge -- Gone with the Words
Rewrite the Story -- A Daydreamer's Thoughts


Sunday 1/11
My (dysfunctional) Book Family -- Auggie Talk
#insixwords Challenge -- Falling Down the Book Hole



Twitter Chats
(chats last approximately one hour)
TZC = Time Zone Conversion

Monday: 1pm CST (TZC)
Wednesday: 8pm CST (TZC)
Saturday: 10am CST (TZC)

Bout of Books 12 SIGN-UP!

Are you ready to SIGN UP?

THIS IS WHERE YOU SIGN UP.

Here's what you have to do:

1. Post on your site, Twitter, Google+, Goodreads, YouTube or Facebook account and declare your intentions to join us. It's EASY. We ask you share info to help spread the word. Please link back to us so others can find us here.

If you're posting on your blog, grab the official blurb (below) and our button (in the sidebar) and create a post. (Need an example? Check out Kelly's Bout of Books 12 post!)

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 5th and runs through Sunday, January 11th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 12 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

Want to post on Twitter? We've written a tweet for you. [Sorry, sign up is closed!]

2. Add the direct link to your sign up post to the linky in this post. You have until Tuesday January 6th at 11:59pm CST to sign up. (If the linky is closed, you're too late.)

3. On January 5th, READ!

Official Sign Up

Remember: you must post a DIRECT LINK to your sign up post. 

If you're only participating on Twitter/YouTube, link up your "I'm participating in Bout of Books!" tweet/video, NOT your Twitter/YouTube profile.

No direct link = no Grand Prize

A direct link is...

http://yoururl.com/your-sign-up-post
http://twitter.com/YOURHANDLE/status/thenumberofyourstatus
etc.







Comments have been closed to reduce link placement confusion. If you need help, check our FAQ. If your question isn't answered, email us or tweet us @boutofbooks.

Call for Bout of Books 12 Experts

We need YOU.

Bout of Books has attracted more participants every time we've held it. And as it grows, we're limited as to how many people we can reach and interact with.

That's where Bout of Books experts come in.

What makes a person a Bout of Books expert, you ask?

• You've participated in AT LEAST four Bout of Books prior to Bout of Books 12
• You love Bout of Books and want to make sure everyone knows how awesome it is
• You're willing to commit some of your free time to helping us
• You love connecting with fellow book lovers and cheering them on

If you're chosen as an expert, you get to visit #boutofbooks-ers' blogs and comment on their posts--tell them how awesome they are and how well they're doing. WHO DOESN'T LOVE SPREADING LOVE?!?!?

We will be closing this form on December 28th. If you're interested in helping us, make sure you get on our list before then!

Want to help spread the Bout of Books love?

Call For Bout of Books 12 Challenge Hosts

Bout of Books 12 is January 5th through January 11th

Like us on Facebook

and follow us on Twitter

to join the social media fun.

We need YOUR help. This post is ONLY for people who want to host a challenge.

Challenges information

• Bloggers host challenges on their own blogs. (If you do not have a blog, you may host it here.)
• Challenges run for 24 hours and run from midnight CST to midnight CST.
• There will be a limit of two challenges per day.
• Challenge sign up will close December 14th at 11:59pm CST.

Things to keep in mind:

Preference will be given to challenges that are NOT genre specific. You will be turned down or asked to change your challenge so it's not genre specific. We want to include EVERYONE. For an idea on what we look at, visit Kelly's post on this topic: The Challenge of Challenges

Preference is given to international giveaways OR no giveaways. We're a worldwide read-a-thon.

You must have a challenge idea at the time of filling out the form to be considered. If you don't have an idea, check out what some past participants said about what they'd like to see.

Chat tomorrow!

Join us tomorrow on the Twitter chat!

Reminder Reminder Reminder

Tomorrow, Saturday, November 15th at 1pm CST (time zone conversion), we're going to have a Get Your Fix #boutofbooks chat.

Come see what other book lovers are reading!

Talk books, books, and more books!

Join us for all the #boutofbooks fun you can handle!

Tomorrow! November 15th! 1pm CST (time zone conversion)!

Don't forget the Get Your Fix Bout of Books chat!

This is your friendly reminder that you can get your Bout of Books fill this upcoming Saturday, November 15th.

On Saturday, November 15th at 1pm CST (time zone conversion), we're going to have a Get Your Fix #boutofbooks chat.

What will we be doing, you ask?

Chatting.

Chatting about bookish topics.

You LIKE chatting about bookish topics, right?

So join us on November 15th.
At 1pm CST (TZC).
On Twitter.

(Don't worry. We'll post a reminder about the chat the day before so you don't forget.)

Need a Bout of Books fix before January?

Get your Bout of Books fill on November 15th.

On Saturday, November 15th at 1pm CST (time zone conversion), we're going to have Get Your Fix #boutofbooks chat.

What will we be doing, you ask?

Chatting.

Chatting about bookish topics.

You LIKE chatting about bookish topics, right?

So join us on November 15th.
At 1pm CST (TZC).
On Twitter.

(Don't worry. We'll post a reminder about the chat so you don't forget.)

Bout of Books 11 Grand Prize Winner!

Bout of Books 11 has ended but the fun doesn't stop until the Grand Prize Winner is announced!

And the Winner is...

Mishma @ As the Pages Turn

Mishma's winning entry came from tweeting about the grand prize.

Congratulations, Mishma!

Keep your eye on your inbox, you'll be receiving an email from Bout of Books soon!

We would like to thank everybody who signed up and participated in the read-a-thon. We're always striving to make this event the best it can be and we couldn't do that without your enthusiastic participation.

Please note that the challenge hosts are responsible for notifying winners and announcing prizes on their own blogs for the mini-challenges.

For those that are interested in helping out for the next Bout of Books, we post a call for help roughly a month prior to the start of the read-a-thon - which will be around December 8th for Bout of Books 12. Keep an eye on this blog for that announcement.

Once again, thank you to everyone who helped make Bout of Books 11 a success! We appreciate that you love books and how vocal you are about sharing it!

-Kelly and Amanda

Bout of Books 11 Wrap-Up

Congratulations!
You have survived Bout of Books 11!

In this post, we invite you to link up to your overall progress for Bout of Books. You don't have to create a wrap-up post--it can be your goals post with day 7's progress.

Whatever works for you, works for us.

Here are important informational nuggets you probably want to know:

Bout of Books 12 will be from January 5th to 11th.

The Grand Prize winner will be announced TOMORROW.

Challenge hosts are responsible for announcing their own winners.

We'll have a #boutofbooks chat between now and January. 

(Watch this space for details.)

Following this blog is the BEST way to stay up to date on EVERYTHING.

Since we can't reach out to everyone personally to remind them about upcoming events (though wouldn't that be awesome?), we do our best to keep this blog updated with the most current information. That means you're responsible for following us if you want to receive the latest news.

Thank you for making this event fabulous!

Bout of Books 11 Day 7

The end is in sight.
Keep reading!

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Challenges

5 Books -- Falling Down the Book Hole

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the sixth day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post.

Bout of Books 11 Day 6

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

9:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
10am CDT (TZC) Twitter Chat with @BookBender
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Challenges

Spell It Out -- Kimberly Faye Reads

Twitter Chat Information

TZC = Time Zone Conversion
There is a Twitter chat today at 10am CDT (TZC)
The chat will be hosted by @BookBender
@boutofbooks is on standby

The chat will last one hour. You do NOT have to follow the host. If the host gets stuck in Twitter jail, she will take over the @boutofbooks handle.

We will use the Q1/A1 system. The host ask the question using Q1, Q2, and so on. You respond using A1, A2. EASY!

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the fifth day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post.

Bout of Books 11 Day 5

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Challenges

Recreate a Book Cover -- Spines and Covers
Book Chain -- Christian Bookshelf Reviews

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the fourth day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post.

Bout of Books 11 Day 4

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Challenges

Like This, Try This -- Writing My Own Fairy Tale

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the third day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post.

Bout of Books 11 Day 3

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks
 8pm CDT (TZC) Twitter Chat with @soulswallo

Challenges

Create a Sentence -- Book Reviews from Christian Gal

Twitter Chat Information

TZC = Time Zone Conversion
There is a Twitter chat today at 8pm CDT (TZC)
The chat will be hosted by @soulswallo
@boutofbooks is on standby

The chat will last one hour. You do NOT have to follow the host. If the host gets stuck in Twitter jail, she will take over the @boutofbooks handle.
 

We will use the Q1/A1 system. The host ask the question using Q1, Q2, and so on. You respond using A1, A2. EASY

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the second day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post.

Bout of Books 11 Day 2

Today is the LAST DAY to GET SIGNED UP.
Are YOU signed up PROPERLY?
Only properly signed up participants
ARE ELIGIBLE FOR PRIZES.
_________________________

Congratulations!

You survived the first day of the read-a-thon!

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Please note: the form for the sign up will stay open through TODAY.
It closes Wednesday at midnight (TZC)

Challenges

One True Pairing -- Infinite Ink
Book Spine Poetry -- My Little Pocketbooks

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the first day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post.

Bout of Books 11 Day 1

Welcome to Bout of Books 11!

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
1pm CDT (TZC) Twitter Chat with @BookBender
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Please note: the form for the sign up will stay open through TODAY and TOMORROW.

It closes Wednesday at midnight (TZC)

Challenges

Book Scavenger Hunt -- The Book Monsters
Playlist -- LuLo FanGirl

Introduce Yourself to Your Fellow #boutofbooks-ers (information below)

To kick off the read-a-thon, we're doing something a little different. We're hosting an informal challenge. Take a picture of yourself with your reading pile, your reading companions, the Bout of Books tagline (Are you ready to get your read on?), or anything else that will let us get to know YOU! Upload it to any social media site with the #boutofbooks hashtag and CONNECT with other readers!
ARE YOU READY TO GET YOUR READ ON?

Twitter Chat Information

TZC = Time Zone Conversion
There is a Twitter chat today at 1pm CDT (TZC)
The chat will be hosted by @BookBender
@boutofbooks is on standby

The chat will last one hour. You do NOT have to follow the host. If the host gets stuck in Twitter jail, she will take over the @boutofbooks handle.
 

We will use the Q1/A1 system. The host ask the question using Q1, Q2, and so on. You respond using A1, A2. EASY

Updates

Remember: this linky is for linking up your goals. If you've already done that, you don't have to add your link again.

Bout of Books 11 Goals

Welcome to Bout of Books 11!

Please note:

THIS IS NOT THE SIGN UP POST.

The sign up post is here.

This is for your goals.

SHARE YOUR GOALS HERE!

In this post, you can link to wherever you have your goals posted. To be considered for a prize in any of our challenges, you must have a post about your goals and be actively tracking your progress.

Here is more information you should know:

• This linky will also be available during the first day of the read-a-thon, so if you don't have your goals set yet there is no rush.
• If you're not sure what information to include, check out our template on the help page. 
• Please make sure this is a DIRECT link to your goal post.

If you have questions about your goals or how to track progress, visit our FAQ page. If you can't find the answers on the Help page, tweet us!

Bout of Books 11 Schedule

It's COMING!

Psst. Tell your friends:

Challenges/Giveaways

Monday 8/18
Book Scavenger Hunt -- The Book Monsters
Playlist -- LuLo FanGirl

Tuesday 8/19
One True Pairing -- Infinite Ink
Book Spine Poetry -- My Little Pocketbooks

Wednesday 8/20
Create a Sentence -- Book Reviews from Christian Gal

Thursday 8/21
Like This, Try This -- Writing My Own Fairy Tale

Friday 8/22
Recreate a Book Cover -- Spines and Covers
Book Chain -- Christian Bookshelf Reviews

Saturday 8/23
Spell It Out -- Kimberly Faye Reads

Sunday 8/24
5 Books -- Falling Down the Book Hole


Twitter Chats
(chats last approximately one hour)
TZC = Time Zone Conversion

Monday: 1pm CST (TZC)
Wednesday: 8pm CST (TZC)
Saturday: 10am CST (TZC)

Bout of Books 11 SIGN-UP!

Are you ready to SIGN UP?

THIS IS WHERE YOU SIGN UP.

Here's what you have to do:

1. Post on your site, Twitter, Google+, Goodreads, YouTube or Facebook account and declare your intentions to join us. It's EASY. We ask you share info to help spread the word. Please link back to us so others can find us here.

If you're posting on your blog, grab the official blurb (below) and our button (in the sidebar) and create a post. (Need an example? Check out Kelly's Bout of Books 11 post!)

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 18th and runs through Sunday, August 24th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 11 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

2. Add your link to the linky in this post. You have until Tuesday August 19th at 11:59pm CDT to sign up. (If the linky is closed, you're too late.)

3. On August 18th, READ!

Official Sign Up

Remember: you must post a DIRECT LINK to your sign up post. 

If you're only participating on Twitter/YouTube, link up your "I'm participating in Bout of Books!" tweet/video, NOT your Twitter/YouTube profile.

No direct link = no Grand Prize

A direct link is...

http://yoururl.com/your-sign-up-post
http://twitter.com/YOURHANDLE/status/thenumberofyourstatus
etc.

Call for Bout of Books 11 Experts

We need YOU.

Bout of Books has attracted more participants every time we've held it. And as it grows, we're limited as to how many people we can reach and interact with.

That's where Bout of Books experts come in.

What makes a person a Bout of Books expert, you ask?

• You've participated in three Bout of Books prior to Bout of Books 11
• You love Bout of Books and want to make sure everyone knows how awesome it is
• You're willing to commit some of your free time to helping us
• You love connecting with fellow book lovers and cheering them on

If you're chosen as an expert, you get to visit #boutofbooks-ers' blogs and comment on their posts--tell them how awesome they are and how well they're doing. WHO DOESN'T LOVE SPREADING LOVE?!?!?

We will be closing this form on August 3rd. If you're interested in helping us, make sure you get on our list before then!

Want to help spread the Bout of Books love?

Call for Bout of Books 11 Challenge Hosts

Bout of Books 11 is August 18th through August 24th

Like us on Facebook

and follow us on Twitter

to join the social media fun.

We need YOUR help. This post is ONLY for people who want to host a challenge.

Challenges information

• Bloggers host challenges on their own blogs. (If you do not have a blog, you may host it here.)
• Challenges run for 24 hours and run from midnight CDT to midnight CDT.
• There will be a limit of two challenges per day.
• Challenge sign up will close July 28th at 11:59pm CDT.

Things to keep in mind:

Preference will be given to challenges that are NOT genre specific. You will be turned down or asked to change your challenge so it's not genre specific. We want to include EVERYONE. For an idea on what we look at, visit Kelly's post on this topic: The Challenge of Challenges

Preference is given to international giveaways OR no giveaways. We're a worldwide read-a-thon.

You must have a challenge idea at the time of filling out the form to be considered. If you don't have an idea, check out what some past participants said about what they'd like to see.

#boutofbooks Google+ on-air chat tomorrow!

Join us tomorrow on the Google+ on-air chat!

Reminder Reminder Reminder

Tomorrow, Monday, July 21st at 8:30pm CDT (time zone conversion), we're going to have a Google+ #boutofbooks on-air chat.
 Ask us your questions!

Chat about books!

Learn the secrets of the tentacles!

Tomorrow! July 21st!

At 8:30pm CDT (TZC)! On Google+!

Don't forget the Google+ #boutofbooks on-air chat!

This is your friendly reminder that you can ask your Bout of Books questions in ONE WEEK on July 21st.

On Monday, July 21st at 8:30pm CDT (time zone conversion), we're going to have a Google+ #boutofbooks on-air chat.

What will we be doing, you ask?

Chatting.

Chatting about bookish topics.

You LIKE chatting about bookish topics, right?

So join us on July 21st.
At 8:30pm CDT (TZC).
On Google+.

(Don't worry. We'll post a reminder about the chat the day before so you don't forget.)

Google+ #boutofbooks on-air chat!

Ask your Bout of Books questions on July 21st.

On Monday, July 21st at 8:30pm CDT (time zone conversion), we're going to have a Google+ #boutofbooks on-air chat.

What will we be doing, you ask?

Chatting.

Chatting about bookish topics.

You LIKE chatting about bookish topics, right?

So join us on July 21st.
At 8:30pm CDT (TZC).
On Google+.

(Don't worry. We'll post a reminder about the chat so you don't forget.)

Bout of Books 10 Grand Prize Winner!

Bout of Books 10 has ended but the fun doesn't stop until the Grand Prize Winner is announced!

And the Winner is...

Beth @ booksbybeth

Beth's winning entry came from being a Bout of Books 10 participant.

Congratulations, Beth!

Keep your eye on your inbox, you'll be receiving an email from Bout of Books soon!

We would like to thank everybody who signed up and participated in the read-a-thon. We're always striving to make this event the best it can be and we couldn't do that without your enthusiastic participation.

Please note that the challenge hosts are responsible for notifying winners and announcing prizes on their own blogs for the mini-challenges.

For those that are interested in helping out for the next Bout of Books, we post a call for help roughly a month prior to the start of the read-a-thon - which will be around July 21st for Bout of Books 11. Keep an eye on this blog for that announcement.

Once again, thank you to everyone who helped make Bout of Books 10 a success! We appreciate that you love books and that you're willing to shout it to the stars!

-Kelly and Amanda

Bout of Books 10 Wrap-up

Congratulations!
You have survived Bout of Books 10!

In this post, we invite you to link up to your overall progress for Bout of Books. You don't have to create a wrap-up post--it can be your goals post with day 7's progress.

Whatever works for you, works for us.

Here are important informational nuggets you probably want to know:

Bout of Books 11 will be from August 18th to 24th.

The Grand Prize winner will be announced TOMORROW.

Challenge hosts are responsible for announcing their own winners.

We'll have a #boutofbooks chat between now and August. 

(Watch this space for details.)

Following this blog is the BEST way to stay up to date on EVERYTHING.

Since we can't reach out to everyone personally to remind them about upcoming events (though wouldn't that be awesome?), we do our best to keep this blog updated with the most current information. That means you're responsible for following us if you want to receive the latest news.

Thank you for making this event fabulous!

Bout of Books 10 Day 7

The end is in sight.
Keep reading!

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Challenges

Retitle Your Current Read -- Oh Magic Hour

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the sixth day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post.

Bout of Books 10 Day 6

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

9:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
10am CDT (TZC) Twitter Chat with @BookBender
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Challenges

Tweet about an author you think deserves a little more love. Squeeze in why. Hashtag with #showauthorlove and #boutofbooks so everyone can see. If you don't have Twitter, comment on this post with your answer.

For full challenge information, visit Doing Dewey.

Twitter Chat Information

TZC = Time Zone Conversion
There is a Twitter chat today at 10am CDT (TZC)
The chat will be hosted by @BookBender
@boutofbooks is on standby

The chat will last one hour. You do NOT have to follow the host. If the host gets stuck in Twitter jail, she will take over the @boutofbooks handle.

We will use the Q1/A1 system. The host ask the question using Q1, Q2, and so on. You respond using A1, A2. EASY!

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the fifth day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post. 

Bout of Books 10 Day 5

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Challenges

Cover Scavenger Hunt -- Book Monsters
Rainbow Book Challenge -- Neon Yeti Reads

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the fourth day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post. 

Bout of Books 10 Day 4

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Challenges

Spell It Out Challenge -- kimberlyfaye reads

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the third day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post.

Bout of Books 10 Day 3

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks
 8pm CDT (TZC) Twitter Chat with @soulswallo

Challenges

Book Pairings -- My Overstuffed Shelves

Twitter Chat Information

TZC = Time Zone Conversion
There is a Twitter chat today at 8pm CDT (TZC)
The chat will be hosted by @soulswallo
@boutofbooks is on standby

The chat will last one hour. You do NOT have to follow the host. If the host gets stuck in Twitter jail, she will take over the @boutofbooks handle.
 

We will use the Q1/A1 system. The host ask the question using Q1, Q2, and so on. You respond using A1, A2. EASY

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the second day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post. 

Bout of Books 10 Day 2

Today is the LAST DAY to GET SIGNED UP.
Are YOU signed up PROPERLY?
Only properly signed up participants
ARE ELIGIBLE FOR PRIZES.
_________________________

Congratulations!

You survived the first day of the read-a-thon!

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
11:00am CDT LIVE chat with @BookBender and @soulswallo
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Please note: the form for the sign up will stay open through TODAY.
It closes Wednesday at midnight (TZC)

Challenges

Bookish Battle Royal -- My Life in Books
Books You're Looking Forward To -- River City Reading

Updates

The way these updates work is that you post your progress for the previous day (today's link should be to your progress for the first day of the read-a-thon). Please include a DIRECT LINK to your update post.

Bout of Books 10 Day 1

Welcome to Bout of Books 10!

Here is the schedule of events for today:

TZC = Time Zone Conversion

10:30am CDT (TZC) Morning Announcements with @boutofbooks
1pm CDT (TZC) Twitter Chat with @BookBender
7:30pm CDT (TZC) Evening Announcements with @boutofbooks

Please note: the form for the sign up will stay open through TODAY and TOMORROW.

It closes Wednesday at midnight (TZC)

Challenges

If you like X, try Y -- The Book Barbies
Introduce Yourself to Your Fellow #boutofbooks-ers (information below)

To kick off the read-a-thon, we're doing something a little different. We're hosting an informal challenge. Take a picture of yourself with your reading pile, your reading companions, the Bout of Books tagline (Are you ready to get your read on?), or anything else that will let us get to know YOU! Upload it to any social media site with the #boutofbooks hashtag and CONNECT with other readers!
ARE YOU READY TO GET YOUR READ ON?

Twitter Chat Information

TZC = Time Zone Conversion
There is a Twitter chat today at 1pm CDT (TZC)
The chat will be hosted by @BookBender
@boutofbooks is on standby

The chat will last one hour. You do NOT have to follow the host. If the host gets stuck in Twitter jail, she will take over the @boutofbooks handle.
 

We will use the Q1/A1 system. The host ask the question using Q1, Q2, and so on. You respond using A1, A2. EASY

Updates

Remember: this linky is for linking up your goals. If you've already done that, you don't have to add your link again.

Bout of Books 10 Goals

Welcome to Bout of Books 10!

Please note:

THIS IS NOT THE SIGN UP POST.

The sign up post is here.

This is for your goals.

SHARE YOUR GOALS HERE!

In this post, you can link to wherever you have your goals posted. To be considered for a prize in any of our challenges, you must have a post about your goals and be actively tracking your progress.

Here is more information you should know:

• This linky will also be available during the first day of the read-a-thon, so if you don't have your goals set yet there is no rush.
• If you're not sure what information to include, check out our template on the help page. 
• Please make sure this is a DIRECT link to your goal post.

If you have questions about your goals or how to track progress, visit our FAQ page. If you can't find the answers on the Help page, tweet us!

Bout of Books 10 Schedule!

It's COMING!

Challenges/Giveaways

Monday 5/12
If you like X, try Y -- The Book Barbies

Tuesday 5/13
Bookish Battle Royal -- My Life in Books
Books You're Looking Forward To -- River City Reading

Wednesday 5/14
Book Pairings -- My Overstuffed Shelves

Thursday 5/15
Spell It Out Challenge -- kimberlyfaye reads

Friday 5/16
Cover Scavenger Hunt -- Book Monsters
Rainbow Book Challenge -- Neon Yeti Reads

Saturday 5/17
Show an Author Some Love -- Doing Dewey

Sunday 5/18
Retitle Your Current Read -- Oh Magic Hour


Twitter Chats
(chats last approximately one hour)
TZC = Time Zone Conversion

Monday: 1pm CST (TZC)
Wednesday: 8pm CST (TZC)
Saturday: 10am CST (TZC)

Bout of Books 10 SIGN-UP!

Are you ready to SIGN UP?

THIS IS WHERE YOU SIGN UP.

Here's what you have to do:

1. Post on your site, Twitter, Google+, Goodreads, YouTube or Facebook account and declare your intentions to join us. It's EASY. We ask you share info to help spread the word. Please link back to us so others can find us here.

If you're posting on your blog, grab the official blurb (below) and our button (in the sidebar) and create a post. (Need an example? Check out Kelly's Bout of Books 10 post!)

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 12th and runs through Sunday, May 18th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 10 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

2. Add your link to the linky in this post. You have until Tuesday May 13th at 11:59pm CDT to sign up. (If the linky is closed, you're too late.)

3. On May 12th, READ!

Official Sign Up

Remember: you must post a DIRECT LINK to your sign up post. 

If you're only participating on Twitter/YouTube, link up your "I'm participating in Bout of Books!" tweet/video, NOT your Twitter/YouTube profile.

No direct link = no Grand Prize

A direct link is...

http://yoururl.com/your-sign-up-post
http://twitter.com/YOURHANDLE/status/thenumberofyourstatus
etc.

Call for Bout of Books 10 Experts

We need YOU.

Bout of Books has attracted more participants every time we've held it. And as it grows, we're limited as to how many people we can reach and interact with.

That's where Bout of Books experts come in.

What makes a person a Bout of Books expert, you ask?

• You've participated in three Bout of Books prior to Bout of Books 10
• You love Bout of Books and want to make sure everyone knows how awesome it is
• You're willing to commit some of your free time to helping us
• You love connecting with fellow book lovers and cheering them on

If you're chosen as an expert, you get to visit #boutofbooks-ers' blogs and comment on their posts--tell them how awesome they are and how well they're doing. WHO DOESN'T LOVE SPREADING LOVE?!?!?

We will be closing this form on April 27nd. If you're interested in helping us, make sure you get on our list before then!

Call for Bout of Books 10 Challenge Hosts

Bout of Books 10 is May 12th through May 18th

Like us on Facebook

and follow us on Twitter

to join the social media fun.

We need YOUR help. This post is ONLY for people who want to host a challenge.

Challenges information

• Bloggers host challenges on their own blogs. (If you do not have a blog, you may host it here.)
• Challenges run for 24 hours and run from midnight CDT to midnight CDT.
• There will be a limit of two challenges per day.
• Challenge sign up will close April 22nd at 11:59pm CDT.

Things to keep in mind:

Preference will be given to challenges that are NOT genre specific. You will be turned down or asked to change your challenge so it's not genre specific. We want to include EVERYONE. For an idea on what we look at, visit Kelly's post on this topic: The Challenge of Challenges

Preference is given to international giveaways OR no giveaways. We're a worldwide read-a-thon.

You must have a challenge idea at the time of filling out the form to be considered. If you don't have an idea, check out what some past participants said about what they'd like to see.

Chat tomorrow!

Join us tomorrow on the Twitter chat!

Reminder Reminder Reminder

Tomorrow, Monday, March 24th at 1pm CDT (time zone conversion), we're going to have Get Your Fix #boutofbooks chat.

Come see what other book lovers are reading!

Come watch @BookBender end up in Twitter jail!

Join us for all the #boutofbooks fun you can handle!

Tomorrow! March 24th! 1pm CDT (time zone conversion)!

Don't forget the Get Your Fix Bout of Books chat!

This is your friendly reminder that you can get your Bout of Books fill in ONE week on March 24th.

In one week, on Monday, March 24th at 1pm CDT (time zone conversion), we're going to have Get Your Fix #boutofbooks chat.

What will we be doing, you ask?

Chatting.

Chatting about bookish topics.

You LIKE chatting about bookish topics, right?

So join us on March 24th.
At 1pm CDT (TZC).
On Twitter.

(Don't worry. We'll post a reminder about the chat the day before so you don't forget.)

Need a Bout of Books fix before May?

Get your Bout of Books fill on March 24th.

On Monday, March 24th at 1pm CDT (time zone conversion), we're going to have Get Your Fix #boutofbooks chat.

What will we be doing, you ask?

Chatting.

Chatting about bookish topics.

You LIKE chatting about bookish topics, right?

So join us on March 24th.
At 1pm CDT (TZC).
On Twitter.

(Don't worry. We'll post a reminder about the chat so you don't forget.)