I do. I think of it as a to-be-read list for the digital age. But more on that in a moment.
I’m not sure I’ve read a book or watched a TV series this week. I simply haven’t been in the right mood. At all. So I’ve spent most of my off time catching up on my YouTube watchlist. Which had gotten seriously out of control, let me tell ya. Other than that, I spent some time doing some mental housecleaning.
What is my want-to-finish list?
First of all, let me be clear that I’m not talking about stuff I’m working on for the website. Or even things I might get side-tracked into on the spur of the moment. You know, the odd comfort re-read or re-watch. Or that spur of the moment thing you read or watch because you’re bored.
Or watching reaction videos on YouTube which made up the bulk of my watchlist this week. Okay, I have a thing for reaction videos I admit.
Anyway, the thing is that keeping track of what I want-to-finish in terms of books, videos and even games used to be a very simple process. Well, by that I mean I had a basket or maybe a shelf of to-be-read paperbacks in my room. Then there were series I was regularly watching on TV. Nowadays, I have three or more different apps on my phone with books in them in one format or the other. Don’t even ask me how many streaming services I’m watching different stuff on, especially since I got Roku. Because I’m not sure I could tell you. Just saying. And I play games on at least three different and completely separate platforms.
This isn’t simply information overload. It’s more a matter of…
Where was I doing what?
Yeah, it got to the point where I knew I needed a list of what I’d started. And really want-to-finish. Just so things didn’t fall down that old memory hole. At the very least, I needed a way to remember where they all were. That seems to be the biggest issue. I’ll start a series, take a break and completely forget where to look for it.
Now I know that this sounds like an issue for a database but it isn’t. Don’t get me wrong, a database is great for an entire collection. Of whatever. But a lot of these I’m simply “experiencing” currently. I have no idea if they will ultimately make it into my private collection, physically or otherwise. So I knew I wanted something simple but still adaptable. And accessible from my phone.
What was my solution?
Now I could go old-school and simply use a paper notebook but I think I’ve found a better solution in WorkFlowy. It’s online and has apps. There is some cost if you do a lot of stuff but I simply want to make a short list. (At least I hope this list stays short.) WorkFlowy is a fairly straight forward and simple outlining program but there’s room to add notes and lots of other stuff. There’s even a way to mark something as completed. I love the two different clickable hashtag types the most, however. I use @ for things that don’t change at all, or at least not often, like where and what. That leaves # for more changeable stuff. Like whether a series is complete and therefore “old” or still going and adding “new” stuff. WorkFlowy is amazingly simple but does exactly what I need to keep track of the things I still want to finish.
Eventually.
Anyway, here is my current want-to-finish list with some comments about my progress. Or lack thereof.
Books
- War of the Realms by Lee Watts (2019-06-11) @Kindle @books @series #new: Independently published Christian science fiction that I’m checking out because I meet the author in person recently.
- The Honey Badger Chronicles by Shelly Laurenston (2018-04-01) @Gbooks @books @series #new: Favorite author and series with new book coming out in August so, yeah, it goes on the list for a reread binge.
- The Narnia Code by Michael Ward (2010-11-01) @Gbooks @books @single: I got about halfway through this one and got distracted. The insight into the Narnia books is phenomenal so it definitely stays on my list.
- Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan (1990-01-15) @Audible @paperback @books @series #old: I got to book six and was defeated by an extremely long prologue. Seriously long. Technically I’ve read as far as I need to for the new TV series coming out later this year. My son keeps nagging me to continue though. One day I will.
- The Greatest Mysteries of Earl Derr Biggers (1913) @Gbooks @books @series #old: I finished all the Charlie Chan stories but still have to go back and read the five non-Chan books in this collection.
- The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle (1892-10) @Audible @books @anthology #old: My son asked me recently if there was anything I’d like to listen to on Audible that he didn’t already have. I kind of jokingly said I’d like to listen to the Sherlock Holmes books read in a British accent. Well, surprise, there are actually several versions free with his Audible account. Who knew?
TV series
- Star Wars: The Bad Batch (2021-05-04) @DisneyPlus @TV @series #new: My son insisted on me watching this with him and I have to admit that I’m hooked. So much so that most of those reaction videos I just watched on YouTube were about this series.
- The Dragon Prince (2018-07-14) @Netflix @TV @series #new: I watched the first season of this one but never got back to it and I’m trying again. The main attraction is that has the same storytelling feel as Avatar: The Last Air-bender because it’s by the same people, I think. Some of the same voice actors too.
- Bureau of Magical Things (2018-07-08) @Netflix @TV @series #new: To be honest, I’ve only watched the first few episodes of this one and am still deciding whether it’s even going to stay on the list.
- The Expanse (2015-11-23) @Prime @TV @series #new: Another one that I watched the first season of and completely lost track of. (See why I need this list?) Anyway, I’ve heard so many raves about it recently that I thought I’d give it another chance.
- Murdoch Mysteries (2008-01-24) @Hulu @TV @series #new: One of these days I am going to catch up to wherever this series has gotten to. I seem to get to where they were married and lose interest. Every time. Not because they got married but because of some other character stuff that is going on.
- SeaQuest DSV (1993-07-12) @Roku @TV @series #old: This one is pure nostalgia. I’m almost finished with it and have enjoyed it a lot more than I remembered the first time around.
Games
- Zelda Skyward Sword (2011-11-18) @Wii @games @single — This is the only game right now because I will not be defeated. Even if I have to start all over because I have no idea where I stopped.