I surely can’t be the only one.
Photo by Julia Freeman-Woolpert • stock.xchng
I own more books than shelves to put them on.
I bought two copies of the same book because I forgot I already had a copy.
I buy books because I think I might read them someday.
I’ve mostly managed to break the habit of justifying my purchases through self-talk like “I need it to research a book I’m writing. Well, that I’m going to write. Someday.” Mostly, but not entirely.
The consequences of this addiction are slightly mitigated by e-books, which at least eliminate the shelving problem. But Amazon is an enabler. Not only does it make buying books crazy easy with that 1-Click shopping button, but it also feeds my habit with freebies.
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For example, yesterday I downloaded a free book with a wonderful title: A Practical View of the Prevailing Religious System of Professed Christians, in the Middle and Higher Classes in this Country, Contrasted with Real Christianity. The book is by William Wilberforce, so it should be good. (I find it funny but kind of sad that he wrote this book over 200 years ago, yet the title still resonates with me.)
Do I already have more books than time to read? Yes. Do I already have dozens of freebies on my iPad that I haven’t read yet? Yes. Am I going to download several more as soon as I finish posting this? You betcha.
Please tell me I’m not the only one.
The New Authors Fellowship 
You’re not alone. What makes it worse is that my husband and I are both teachers, so on top of books for personal reading, we’re constantly collecting things for various classes. We’ve tried various ways of breaking this habit, because we’re on a tight budget. First, it was a rule to never pay full price for a book. Well, bargain stores like Ollie’s and Big Lots get around that rule neatly. Last time I was in Ollie’s my husband and I spent nearly $50 in books–and that’s bargain books, so think at least 8-9. Now we just only go into Big Lots or Ollie’s once or twice a year. Then it was only get books out of the library. Well, with our busy schedules, the fines rack up quickly because we forget to return them. So much for saving money there. Then I got an eReader, which is now packed with free books from Project Gutenberg. Books that I don’t read, because I’m too busy writing or lesson planning.
I heard that, Janeen!