Lists

36 Bookish Affirmations for Your Reading Journal

Sarah S. Davis

Staff Writer

Sarah S. Davis holds a BA in English from the University of Pennsylvania, a Master's of Library Science from Clarion University, and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Sarah has also written for Electric Literature, Kirkus Reviews, Audible, Psych Central, and more. Sarah is the founder of Broke By Books blog and runs a tarot reading business, Divination Vibration. Twitter: @missbookgoddess Instagram: @Sarahbookgoddess

Affirmations are great ways to build self-confidence and self-love. These mini mantras help us identify with our best self. What’s an affirmation? It’s a short sentence in positive language that celebrates and accepts who we are. Whether you pen your affirmations in your journal or in a notes app, affirmations are a healthy way to grow into a place of self-acceptance, gratitude, and pride.

Wondering where to start with affirmations? Why not try to approach building affirmations through the lens of your passion for reading?

Intro to This List of Bookish Affirmations

In this article, I’ve listed 36 bookish affirmations to add to your daily self-care routine. These affirmations are customized to readers and the reading experience. They help you relate to who you are as a reader and a lover of literature. As anyone reading this article likely knows, being a reader is probably a big part of how you view yourself and your relationship to your identity. Use these affirmations to connect with that side of you.

How to Use These Bookish Affirmations

These affirmations are great to add to your journal, especially a reading journal or reading log. Or you could write them on your bookmarks. Consider reciting them when you start a new book or pass a big milestone, like completing a personal reading challenge.

Affirmations are especially helpful when you get stuck as a reader. We all know the reading experience has highs and lows. Enter affirmations. If you’ve been on a streak of reading books that you didn’t enjoy, the affirmations can remind you of the enjoyment you get out of books. In a book slump? These bookish affirmations can help you get back on your feet and reading again, slaying the slump by reconnecting with the joy you get out of books. Lacking motivation to finish a reading challenge? These affirmations could help.

Organized into several categories, this list of literary affirmations reflects the spectrum of reading experiences. I hope you’ll find yourself in some of these and use them to maximize your bookish life.

Gratitude Affirmations

I am grateful for my passion and love for books.

I am grateful for my literacy.

I am grateful for being part of a community of readers.

I am grateful for having access to books and reading materials.

I am grateful to have many options to read the way that’s best for me.

I am grateful for libraries.

I am grateful for bookstores.

I am grateful for the bookish role models who nurtured my love of reading.

I am grateful for finishing books I loved but almost abandoned.

I am grateful for books I loved but otherwise would not have read.

I am grateful for book recommendations that led me to my favorite books.

I am grateful for the books that have gotten me through tough times.

Pride Affirmations

I am proud of my intellectual curiosity.

I am proud of myself for seeking out new perspectives and voices.

I am proud of myself for prioritizing diverse reading.

I am proud of my eagerness to explore many genres and topics.

I am proud of my ability to set and complete personal reading goals.

I am proud of expanding my worldview through reading challenges.

I am proud of myself for engaging with books on a deep emotional level.

Mindset Affirmations

The amount of books I do or do read does not determine my self-worth.

Through reading, I challenge myself to understand different perspectives and lived experiences.

Through reading, I expand my mind and learn new things about the world.

Through reading, I encounter opportunities to adjust my personal opinions.

I do not judge others for what they read.

I unapologetically read whatever I want, even so-called “guilty pleasures.”

Self-Confidence and Self-Esteem Affirmations

I read because books saved my life.

There is no book that I cannot read.

I am a fearless reader who knows no bounds.

I can articulate thoughtful literary analysis with book reviews.

I give good book recommendations.

I am a positive bookish role model for young readers.

My opinions and reactions to my reading are valid and necessary.

Positive Affirmations for Reading Success

I read for wonder.

I read for joy.

I read to live.

I read to breathe.


Which of these affirmations do you see yourself in? Which ones do you connect to the most?