A bibliophile’s life is always haunted by the question, ‘How to organise the huge stack of books I own?’
I feel you! I recently moved to a new apartment – and that gave me an excuse to pursue my favourite procrastination activity – organising my stack of books in the bookcase.
On my old shelves, these books were organised by height and size. I kept things simple, and I wanted nothing more than a neat appearance from a distance.
I remember setting it up in the alphabetical order once, but the appearance started bothering me a day later. It didn’t work for me. So I put it back in order of height and size.
Now, four years on, I am weighing my options. I have a bigger space and it’s more vibrant too, which means I can try a different approach.
So, I thought let me share my ideas with all you book lovers out there who are in a similar fix…
Separate the Hardcovers and Paperbacks
This is probably the easiest hack for organising your books on a shelf. Divide your paperbacks and the hardcovers in two groups.
If you’re adding a hardcover stack in row A, put the paperback in row B. Follow the same pattern till you’re done putting them all on the shelf.
Now this may not work for you if you don’t have enough copies of each of the cover type, so let’s move on to our next option:
Organize by Height and Size
As I mentioned earlier, this one is my typical style. I like this approach because books of a similar genre tend to run in similar size & height. Of course, there are variations but you can always set them up accordingly.
Most people opt for this style because it’s a no-brainer and it looks very neat from a distance.
Arrange Your Books by Colour
When it comes to the organization by colour, there are plenty of interesting and trending options that you can try. You can arrange your books into a colour-coded pattern. If you’re an uber-nerd, you may even cover your books with wrapping paper so each section is clear.
I know, it’s not a very practical approach and it can be really daunting if you’ve not tried it before. But it looks super cool – at least on Instagram!
Organize Books by Genre or Subject
This one’s my new favourite. I’ve not yet shelved my books by genres. But as someone who is very familiar with what I’ve in my bookcase, this option seems quite intuitive.
To me, organization by genre offers the right amount of organizational clarity too. This way, I can also find titles according to my mood.
Organizing Books Alphabetically
Alphabetical order is the obvious, conventional style, but it is also the friendliest one too. It’s a perfect idea for readers who want an uncomplicated and streamlined approach to organizing their books.
There are two ways to organizing books alphabetically:
- By Title
- By Author’s name
Whichever you choose. It’s your bookshelf so you can opt for the library-esque route. You can also be a rebel and alphabetize by author’s last name.
Organise By The Desire to Read
This is simple. The ones you’re most likely to read in the future, keep it ahead and the ones you are not going to read soon, push them at the back.
In short, create your TBR pile and organise them in the same order you’re planning to get through it.
Do you know a better way of organizing your book collection? Tell me, what did I miss?
