What is the purpose of Goodreads “to read shelf”? > Likes and Comments

I have books on more than 58,000 “to read shelves”. I have only sold a dozen books in the last 6 months. Do “to read shelves” actually represent intent or only bragging rights? “My dad is bigger than your dad”. “So what I have more books on my to read shelf than you do”.
Maybe somebody can explain the point to me. On the “to read shelf” never to come off. What is the point?

Robert wrote: "I have books on more than 58,000 “to read shelves”. I have only sold a dozen books in the last 6 months. Do “to read shelves” actually represent intent or only bragging rights? “My dad is bigger than your dad”. “So what I have more books on my to read shelf than you do”.
Maybe somebody can explain the point to me. On the “to read shelf” never to come off. What is the point?"

I'm not sure why you're spamming this comment on multiple groups AND in a blog post, but it reeks of entitlement. That is not welcome here. This folder may ALLOW author posts, but this group is for READERS, and as a reader - this kind of post would make me never want to read your work.

The fact that your books are on people's radar at all should be considered a good thing. Nobody owes you a purchase, or a read, rating, or review. The To-Read shelf is used by Goodreads members however they want using whatever organizational system that works for them.

Robert wrote: "I have books on more than 58,000 “to read shelves”. I have only sold a dozen books in the last 6 months. Do “to read shelves” actually represent intent or only bragging rights? “My dad is bigger th..."
I enter a lot of GR giveaways. If you enter, the book is automatically added to your tbr shelf. If you leave it there, you will be notified of subsequent giveaways.

Becky, Thanks for your response to the above post. I know it's difficult for independent authors to even get published. But as a reader I do not want to be told what to read or be criticized for my reasons to have a lot of titles on my TBR shelf.
I can't speak for other GR members but one of the main reasons I add books is because I want to have choices especially when I'm choosing upcoming reads for Challenges in the Goodreads groups I belong to.
And most importantly, if a reader is not reading required school reading they should be reading what appeals to them. And no reader should be criticized for their reading choices or their reviews - good, bad or in-between.

Edited to add that many readers have only limited funds in their budget to purchase books. So many of us use our local library, Hoopla and Libby which are free resources for reading.

Sorry if I upset anyone with this and thanks for the responses. I genuinely couldn't understand why a number of people read free issue of my books and put other of my books on their to read shelf but never read them. Comments above give some explanation

Usually books on my Want to Read shelf are in the more or less immediate event horizon; most often books chosen by my groups, or that I've borrowed from the library. In some cases I keep them if a particular edition has been hard to find in the GR database (e.g. no ISBN, &c.).

Trivia: I like to organise the shelf by colour, but I'm not sure other members can see that.

Robert wrote: "Sorry if I upset anyone with this and thanks for the responses. I genuinely couldn't understand why a number of people read free issue of my books and put other of my books on their to read shelf but never read them. Comments above give some explanation"

"Upset" isn't the word I would use. We have clear rules in this group for authors and what they are allowed to post, and this post has its toes right on the line. We do not allow discussions about marketing/sales or statistics, and we don't allow review requests.

Goodreads is a reader-centric social media site, and readers generally dislike being seen and treated as fish in a barrel for authors to make money off of.

No one told me the rules and I certainly wasn't expecting your sort of response to what was a genuine question if somewhat badly worded. As an independant published author it seems impossible to get people to read your books. Those that have read free copies seem to enjoy the stories. I would simply like more folk to enjoy my work. As to making money - I have spent 1000times the amount 0f money I have made from my books.

Robert wrote: "No one told me the rules and I certainly wasn't expecting your sort of response to what was a genuine question if somewhat badly worded. As an independant published author it seems impossible to get people to read your books. Those that have read free copies seem to enjoy the stories. I would simply like more folk to enjoy my work. As to making money - I have spent 1000times the amount 0f money I have made from my books."

Robert, you have been a member of this group for 7 years. The rules are clearly posted in multiple places, AND you are notified to read them in a popup with your first post - THIS post. Did you expect a certified letter explaining them?

I'm out of patience, so I'm closing this thread. Please don't post anything like this again or you'll be removed from the group. If you want people to read your books, write good books that people will talk about and recommend to their friends. Hire a marketing team. ENGAGE with readers. Read and review and talk about books with others. There are many ways that you can make people interested in your books. This kind of post is not one of them.

Have a good day.