Happy first day of fall, everyone! Is it feeling fall-like in your area? It was 80 degrees here yesterday, but I have a waffle-weave pullover or two just waiting for crisp-air delightfulness to show up. I’m sure it won’t be long.

In the meantime, we can start to celebrate fall by diving into the reading lists we’ve made for ourselves! If you need a quick refresher course on what Fall Into Reading 2008 is all about, here you go:

• Set some reading goals for fall, make a list of the books you’d like to read this season, and post it on your blog. [Note: If you don't have a blog, but would still like to participate, feel free to leave your list in a comment on this post.]

• You can choose any books you’d like, and as many (or as few) as you’d like. The point is simply to make some goals and enjoy the process of reading toward them. Read for pleasure, for inspiration, for education — whatever appeals to you this fall. The “rules” are flexible; do what works for you!

• Leave a link on the Mr. Linky below to your personal Fall Into Reading 2008 post. (Please do not put your name on the Mr. Linky before you have your post done, and please link directly to your Fall Into Reading post. If you don’t, your entry will be deleted. Read this post for more information.)

• Check out the lists of other participants. That can be almost as fun as the reading itself!

• If you like to write book reviews, go for it. I’ll put up a post later this week where you can link to your Fall Into Reading 2008 reviews, so we can keep them all in one place.

• Write a wrap-up post in December, letting us all know how you did, whether or not your reached your goals, which books you loved (or hated), etc.

Don’t forget – there’s also a prize available. One participant, chosen at random, will receive a $10 gift certificate from Amazon.com — to support your love of reading, of course! To be eligible for this prize, you’ll have to post a list on your blog of the books you’d like to read this fall (the cut-off for posting your list and adding your link here is this Wednesday, September 24th, at midnight) and then post your results at the end of the challenge (the challenge ends December 20th). That’s it!

[Note: Although there are cut-offs in order to be in the drawing for the prize, there is no cutoff for joining in the challenge. So spread the word, and sign up whenever you're ready!]

Don’t forget: I’ll also be holding weekly book giveaways here on Thursdays. You don’t even have to be participating in Fall Into Reading 2008 to sign up for those giveaways.

I’ve put a Mr. Linky below. Please enter your name and the link to your specific reading challenge post. People will want to stop by to see what you’re reading, and posting a link directly to your list will make it much easier for them to do so. (If you’re not sure how to do this, just email me; I’d be glad to help!)

Also, in your reading challenge post, please include a link back to this post so that others can check out all the participants.

Are you ready to read? I sure am. Happy fall reading, everybody!

Powered by… Mister Linky’s Magical Widgets.

I have just a few administrative notes about Fall Into Reading 2008 (which starts on Monday!).

1. DO get your blog post written. Include the list of books you plan/hope to read this fall, and include a link back here, to Callapidder Days (preferably to the Fall Into Reading post that goes up Monday, but a general link to Callapidder Days is just fine). The Mr. Linky will go up Monday morning (I’m thinking somewhere between 6:30 and 7:00 AM, EST), and will remain open throughout the fall.

2. DO NOT add your name to the Mr. Linky before you have put up your post. If I click on your name/link and do not see your post and reading list, or if it takes me to a post that says, “I’m going to join Fall Into Reading but I don’t have my list yet. But I’ll do it soon.” or something like that… I’m sorry, but I will have to delete your entry from the Mr. Linky. Not because I’m mean, but because it’s simply not fair to the other participants who have already prepared their lists and blog posts. Of course, once you have your post/list up, you are more than welcome to come back and submit your name again.

3. DO use the Mr. Linky to link directly to your Fall Into Reading post, not just the main address (front page) of your blog. When you see the Mr. Linky here on Thursday, you’ll see a space where you can type your name (or the name of your blog, or whatever you’d like) and a space under it for your URL, or website address. In that space, you’ll need to put a “permalink” to your Fall Into Reading post.

For example, instead of something like:

http://myniftyblog.blogspot.com

You’d want something like this:

http://myniftyblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/fall-into-reading.html

I completely made those addresses up, but you get the idea. Blogging Basics 101 has an article on how to find the “permalink” to a particular post HERE.

Once again, your link will be deleted if it does not go to a specific post (the one with your reading list). And again, I’m not being picky about this to be mean, but rather as a courtesy to all involved. People will be checking out everyone’s lists throughout the fall, and we want to make it as easy as possible for them to find your list. That means submitting a link to your specific post, rather than a general link to your blog.

If you have tried and tried, and read the post at Blogging Basics 101, and are still having trouble figuring out your permalink, please feel free to email me (there’s a link in my sidebar). I would be glad to help you and to get you signed up on the Mr. Linky with the correct link. Depending on the volume of email, it might take me a little while to get back to you, but I definitely will. I want you to be part of Fall Into Reading!

4. DO get ready to read around. One of the best parts of these reading challenges is the opportunity to visit the blogs of other readers, to find out what everyone else is reading this fall, to discover new authors or books, or just find kindred spirit readers who like the same stuff you do. Leave comments when you can — it adds to the fun!

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Okay, now that all those nit-picky details are out of the way, you can get back to making your list. And I need to get back to making mine!

Update: Fall Into Reading 2008 has begun! Visit the official launch post to see all the participants and add your name to the list!

Though the leaves are not yet changing color, and though it was in the 80′s here just a few days ago, it is — nevertheless — time to decide on some reading goals for the (3rd annual!) Fall Into Reading challenge!

For those of you who are new to this whole Callapidder Days reading challenge thing, or for those who just need a quick refresher, let me elaborate on what it’s all about.

Who: Fall Into Reading 2008 is a fun challenge that is open to anyone and everyone! As long as you can read, you can participate! (It’s best if you have a blog, but if you don’t, feel free to participate via comments as we go along.) We’ve had people from around the world, and readers as young as ten participate in these reading challenges, so don’t hesitate to join right in.

What: Fall Into Reading 2008 is a casual, low-pressure challenge that revolves around — you guessed it — reading. My goal is simply to provide you with motivation to read, and to provide an opportunity for all of us to set goals when it comes to our personal (or family) reading.

As a participant, all you’ll have to do is make a list of books you want to read this fall and post that list on your blog. They can be books you intend to read on your own, books you want to read with your kids/family, Bible study books you’re working through, or a combination of any of those things.

Bottom line of the challenge: We’ll share our goals with each other, and then share our experience and results when the challenge is over.

When: I’m sure this will come as no surprise. Fall Into Reading 2008 will take place throughout the fall of 2008. Shocking. The official dates are September 22nd through December 20th.

Where: Here, and on particpants’ blogs all over the blogosphere. I’ll put up a Mr. Linky on September 22nd where everyone can submit a link to their own Fall Into Reading 2008 blog post. All I ask is that you share your goals (your list of books) in your post, and that you include a link back to the post here that contains the Mr. Linky. On December 21st, I’ll put up another Mr. Linky where you can submit a link to a wrap-up post on your blog, telling everyone how you did on your goals.

Why: Because I love reading, and many of you love reading, and it’s wonderful to share our love of reading with each other. Fall is the perfect time to curl up with a good book, and it’s very cool to know that there are bloggers and blog-readers everywhere doing the same thing.

Besides, it’s through challenges like these that I often (finally!) read and finish some non-fiction books. A little motivation and a little accountability go a long way for me — and can for you too!

How: The start of Fall Into Reading 2008 is exactly two weeks away, so start thinking about your goals now. Keep a list. Make a pile. Visit the library. Talk to friends. Check under your bed and behind your nightstand for those books you intended to read (or finish) but never did. I’m sure it won’t take long for you to get an idea of what you want to read this fall. Work on your post and then come back here on September 22nd, ready to submit your link!

Some other notes:

*I’m not picky. If you think you’ll only have time to read two books this fall, that’s okay by me. If you change your list halfway through October, that’s okay too. It’s the reading and sharing that count, so don’t worry about getting “yelled at” — just join us!

*Spread the word. Be sure to let your blog readers know about Fall Into Reading 2008 so that they, too, can be part of the reading craziness. Feel free to grab the button from this post or from my sidebar and use it on your blog. I’ll include a code at the bottom of the post that you should be able to easily copy and paste into your sidebar.

*Visit the past. You might want to check out past reading challenges, either to get some ideas for books you want to add to your own list, or to see how participants wrote their posts. Here’s a link to last year’s Fall Into Reading kick-off day post. The rest can be found by exploring my left sidebar.

*A prize! Naturally, there will be a prize. I’ll award a $10 Amazon.com gift certificate to one Fall Into Reading 2008 participant, chosen at random. To be eligible, you’ll need to: post your initial Fall Into Reading 2008 post with goals (and add it to the Mr. Linky here) by midnight on September 24th AND post a wrap-up post at the end of the challenge (and add it to the wrap-up Mr. Linky that will be here) by midnight on December 23rd.

*Book giveaways! Bethany House Publishers will be sponsoring weekly book giveaways throughout the Fall Into Reading challenge. I’ll be giving away one book per week, beginning Thursday, September 25th. You don’t even have to be an official Fall Into Reading 2008 participant to be eligible for these giveaways. Just stop by and leave a comment to enter the drawings.

Well, you better get started on your list. Mine is in progress, but I still have some tweaking to do. See you back here on the first day of fall!

Oh, and here’s the button code. Thanks for spreading the word!

As much as I love fall, I honestly can’t believe it’ll be here in less than a month! But it’s true…it’s coming. And quickly.

Of course, that means Fall Into Reading 2008 is coming quickly too. Fall and the reading challenge will begin September 22, 2008.

Check back here September 8th for all the challenge details. In the meantime, here’s this year’s button.

And here’s the code for a 150×150 button that you can put in your sidebar if you’d like to help me spread the word.