Erin (Paperback stash) *is juggle-reading* wrote: "I've run a book blog for over eight years now, and back then, pre-Goodreads popularity, when a fellow blogger or I would get a new book, we'd always use the 'TBR pile' to indicate we owned it and it was waiting to be read...I've seen debates over the years in the feedback forum, of which I usually have weighed in, that it was strange they never by default created a third exclusive shelf for 'wishlist'. Goodreads seems to think when starting the site throwing all the books people want to read (and own) and want to read..."
I hear you. Not just an issue for the giveaways, but goodreads really tries to funnel so much to the to-read shelf and make it of such huge importance when doing their own marketing to authors and other book industry persons. And base so many ads, recommendations, and other site features on our shelf names without asking us to categorize as things like wishlist, genre, positive, negative, neutral, cataloging -- it's ridiculous.
I cannot imagine, for example, an author being upset that I did not increase their to-read statistics when I put their book on my "buy next" shelf or "to read have bought."
I also know it's not just goodreads; so many sites (including ones that have a reputation that if you get your book advertised by them you get sales and discovery) grab some statistic or other and run with it like an author's number of followers, number of to-read shelvings on the book, average rating on the book (a laughable number of April 2015 new releases of still unknown books by completely unknown authors have dozens of 5-star ratings from folk who apparently either got an ARC and reviewed same day as release or were able to read it the same day it released) ...
I must admit it's rather funny hearing about the new sponsored book ads on the feed (I don't think it's rolled out sitewide yet) showing up because a friend/followed shelved the book -- on shelves like "to read when hell freezes over" or "not with a gun to my head" type of names.
The "To Read" shelf on goodreads is not always what goodreads or others think it is to the reader who is using it. I'm still flummoxed why they didn't create a default "Want to Read" shelf when they changed the wording on the ugly green button. Granted, it didn't take long to realize that when you clicked "want to read" it went to your "to read" shelf" but still annoying.
I hear you. Not just an issue for the giveaways, but goodreads really tries to funnel so much to the to-read shelf and make it of such huge importance when doing their own marketing to authors and other book industry persons. And base so many ads, recommendations, and other site features on our shelf names without asking us to categorize as things like wishlist, genre, positive, negative, neutral, cataloging -- it's ridiculous.
I cannot imagine, for example, an author being upset that I did not increase their to-read statistics when I put their book on my "buy next" shelf or "to read have bought."
I also know it's not just goodreads; so many sites (including ones that have a reputation that if you get your book advertised by them you get sales and discovery) grab some statistic or other and run with it like an author's number of followers, number of to-read shelvings on the book, average rating on the book (a laughable number of April 2015 new releases of still unknown books by completely unknown authors have dozens of 5-star ratings from folk who apparently either got an ARC and reviewed same day as release or were able to read it the same day it released) ...
I must admit it's rather funny hearing about the new sponsored book ads on the feed (I don't think it's rolled out sitewide yet) showing up because a friend/followed shelved the book -- on shelves like "to read when hell freezes over" or "not with a gun to my head" type of names.
The "To Read" shelf on goodreads is not always what goodreads or others think it is to the reader who is using it. I'm still flummoxed why they didn't create a default "Want to Read" shelf when they changed the wording on the ugly green button. Granted, it didn't take long to realize that when you clicked "want to read" it went to your "to read" shelf" but still annoying.