budget reading – allonsythornraxx

Hey guys, today I’m coming at you with a new How To post! I haven’t written one of these posts since late last year so I think another one is definitely in order. Today, I’ll be giving you guys some pointers on How To: Read on A Budget! I’m definitely not a pro, but today I’ll be sharing some of my bookish wallet wisdom with you all!

You can read my latest How To posts where I talked about How To: Get The Most Out of Your Audible Purchase & How To: Plan For A Readathon!

Let me know what you would like me to talk about next!

SOME QUICK ADVICE

Firstly, if you’re looking at trying to save some money, and saving your wallet some pain. You should look at getting a library card. I know that not everyone is fond of libraries, but I’m going, to be honest here, I think that’s dumb. You can have access to Overdrive of Libby if you’re fond of ebooks or audiobooks. Or, you can borrow a whole month’s worth of books for free physically. And, personally, I think it’s totally worth it.

But, if you’re not fond of borrowing your books, you should subscribe to online bookstores like Bookdepository or Wordery. And you should also subscribe to your local bookstores like Dymocks, QBD or Barnes and Noble. This way, you will know whenever they’re planning on having a sale. Personally, I prefer to only buy books if they’re on sale, not because I don’t want to support the author or because I don’t care enough about the book, but because I’m not a millionaire and this is the only way I can manage to purchase books.

There are also other options like buying used books on Depop or #Booksfortrade (Twitter). You also might be able to find a Book Swap in your local shopping centre or something along those lines.

A STEP BY STEP

Go through your bookshelves and access which books you do an don’t want, do a little unhaul. This way, you’ll be much more excited about the books you haven’t read on your shelves. I find this is a really great way to make it so you aren’t focusing on the new books coming in, but more so on the books you already have.

If you work on your shelves and the books you already own, then you also won’t feel too bad when you eventually attain some new books.

Next up, you should stop going to bookstores. I know, I know, I’m a heathen etc etc. We all love going to bookstores but, let’s be real, they can be too tempting at times. Just walking past a bookstores makes my wallet twitch so why tempt fate?

Don’t put yourself on a book buying ban, but do try to give yourself a book buying limit. Give yourself a money limit per month, or a particular number of books you’ll allow yourself to buy each month. I recommend a money limit, but you do you.

I mentioned this before, but I’ll mention it again. For this step, I recommend going to the library. I don’t know why you’re on a budget and either way it’s none of my buisness. But, a library is a great place to use free wifi, heating/air-con and a great place to have free access to materials like free books, DVDs or magazines etc.

On this note, there are also amazing resources such as free classics in the public domain.

My last step is just to mind your spending. It’s super plain and painfully obvious, but I think it’s the best advice I can give. You should avoid any crazy spending. Try your hardest to avoid using your own money, use gift cards or money you are gifted on a birthday or Christmas etc. Avoid buying books full prince and instead wait a couple months after release or pre-order, I find that a book usually increases in price during the month of release. Or, just make a wishlist and send it to your friends and family when you know you have a birthday coming up.