I’m not a very fast reader. I really admire people like this guy, who can not only manage to take in hundreds of books a year, but also seem to remember a little something about them. I tend to consume and inadvertently forget. I was asked today what I’m currently reading, followed up by a comment that this person plans to read a book a week in 2013. I love the thought, but know better than to add that to my resolution list. I mean, as much as I loved Deborah Harkness’s A Discovery of Witches, its sequel, Shadow of Night, has been gathering digital dust on my Kindle for months! (Sorry, y’all, it just isn’t grabbing me and I’m about 40% through it. I should’ve been grabbed by now.)

I’ll also add that it’s tough for me to divorce myself from whatever I’m currently writing and lose myself in someone else’s work. Maybe I could try Chris Brogan’s Three Book Diet. My friend and site designer Rob is giving it a whirl. Then again, as much as the thought of a book a week frightens me, so does limiting myself to only three for the year!

But let’s say I did throw caution to the wind and chose three books to dive into. I suppose they’d be the three currently at the top of my long list to read. (Believe me, my shelves – both physical and electronic – are chock full of titles I’ve yet to begin.) So here you go, my 2013 reading list…

1. The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling. Despite coming late to the party, I’m a Harry Potter nut. I didn’t get on board until all the books were released, so I was able to read them from beginning to end over the course of one summer. This next outing by Rowling is getting mixed reviews, but I wonder, is that from folks who can’t disengage themselves from Harry and the gang enough to judge this book on its own merit? If you’ve read it, feel free to chime in. I’ve started the book, but am not far enough in yet to really have an opinion on it. Buy it here.

2. Where You Are by J.H. Trumble. I love this author, with whom I share an agent. Her debut, Don’t Let Me Go, is worth a read if you haven’t. So I’ve been excited about this one for awhile. When I read its description, though, I was a little thrown. It shares some themes with the book I’m currently writing, and I don’t want this story to inform my own. For that reason, I’ll probably backburner it for a little while. I read the first chapter and can already tell you it’ll be worth your time. Buy it here.

3. On Writing by Stephen King. This one is over a decade old now, but I only recently got my hands on a copy while browsing the clearance table at a local bookstore. While his genre isn’t one I follow with much interest (in fact, I’ve only read one or two of his books), there’s no discounting King’s impact and influence. I’m looking forward to this one. Buy it here.

There you have it, I guess. My Three-Book Diet for 2013. Like all resolutions, this one is made with the express intent to be broken. I do hope to wipe away some of that aforementioned dust and finally read all the other things I’ve let pile up, including trudging through the rest of Shadow of Night. Then again, I’m sure other books will reveal themselves to me, and my list will continue to grow faster than it’s shortened.

Oh what a problem to have, huh? So, what’s on your 2013 reading list?