Lately, my life has been quite busy. What with baby coming and moving into new digs and all of the things, I haven’t been reading as much lately and I haven’t been blogging as much.
Remember when I took that hiatus last year? I took time off to decide whether or not I wanted to blog again and what it would look like if I did, etc.
Things have come full circle.
I do miss reading, but I know that fire will come back.
I do not miss blogging. Not even a little bit.
Let me make this clear - I ADORE reading other people’s blogs and Top Ten lists and discussion posts and reviews and all of that. Truly, I do. Even if I don’t comment, I’m reading and loving it and it’s keeping me so very happy.
As I’m reading Jane Eyre and Bitterblue, both of which I am LOVING, I have absolutely no desire to write a review or discussion post or anything about either of them. Do I want to talk to friends about them? Sure! When I’m done, will I want to share my very brief thoughts? Kinda! Do I want to finish those, start a new book, and feel no pressure to write a review or something insightful? YES. SO MUCH YES.
So as I’m feeling these feels and wondering these wonders, I decided to make a quiz for myself to look at in two weeks and use that as the ultimate decision maker. I’m open to your suggestions, insight, thoughts and whatever else you have to share with me so please do!
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Lisa’s To Blog or Not To Blog Quiz
To be taken 2 weeks from today
1. You’ve finished at least one or the other of your current books (Jane Eyre and Bitterblue). Did you have any desire to write a review or share your thoughts in any way?
2. Did you have trouble deciding on the next book to read because you want to read a finished copy of something instead of an ARC you have on the shelf?
3. Have you felt the itch to blog something not meme related or a .jpeg/.gif in the last two weeks?
4. Do you want to stay involved in the Book Blogger community?
5. Do you want to continue blogging about books at Lisa is Busy Nerding?
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I know that the awesome duo over at Makeshift Bookmark (Jen & Carla) have recently thrown in the blogging towel in favor of a tumblr and I gotta be real - that idea appeals to me a WHOLE HELLUVA LOT. Do any of you know of other blogs that do that? As a reader, how much do you like that idea and format? I'm obviously going to do what I want to do ultimately, but I'm curious to hear your thoughts regardless.
Thanks for listening and for your feedback and support. As always!
oxo
I know exactly how you feel. I have been struggling with this for awhile now and have decided to call it quits for awhile. I will still read and chat about books but I'm done reviewing them. Your life is going to be very full soon and you deserve to enjoy every minute of it. Good luck to you and I'm just an email or text away when you want to talk Jane Eyre. Love ya!!
ReplyDeleteYou have no idea how much this resonates with me right now. I WANT to still be a part of this community and talk about books with amazing people and turning others on to good books but I'm struggling to WANT to spend this much time on it. I know I control the time I spend on the blog but we all know even if we are doing the bare minimum that it takes a lot of time. And it doesn't help that I am a perfectionist at heart so two sides of me are in a deep,daily battle. The one side is the side that is my chill side that doesn't give an eff if I miss a post and is the one that wrote all the logical posts like my blogging manifesto and about how you can blog however you want to (meaning NOT EVERY DAY). The other side of me is all PANIC PANIC PANIC..you must write a review. It's exhausting.
ReplyDeleteAnd besides..I have other ideas right now that don't FIT my blog anymore. And I mean, logically, I know I can do whatever I want with it and add whatever I want...but I don't know that I see myself just smooshing it into my blog. It needs its own place I feel. SO IDK. I don't think I'm completely at the SAME place as you but I'm with ya to some degree. Some days I'm like OMG I LOVE THIS and other days I'm like PLEASE NEVER WRITE A REVIEW AGAIN.
I sound crazy. I know.
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ReplyDeleteI know Kate from Verb Vixen reviews books on tumblr :) http://www.verbvixen.tumblr.com
ReplyDeleteLisa, I think it's good you're being honest with yourself. And you know, whatever you end up doing, make sure it's what's good for YOU. Don't pressure yourself to keep blogging if you really don't want to. And if you want to blog at Tumblr, or just talk books on Twitter/GoodReads/etc with people, then that's cool too! It should always, always be about fun, this blogging, and being a book nerd. ;) *hugs tight*
ReplyDeleteMolli | Once Upon a Prologue
OH, Lisa. You're seriously just preaching to the choir. As you know, I took a blog break last year, too. And I'm pretty sure my break was even longer! I loved your comeback post where you talked about what blogging was going to look like for you, and I echoed really similar thoughts in my return post. One of the biggest being that I was going to blog when/how I wanted to blog. And I still love that idea (in theory) but it's really hard for me to execute in practice. I put so much pressure on myself to DO IT ALL. Read books, have a post for every week day, read a bazillion blogs because I love the people behind them and the content on them, and leave meaningful comments. And, you know, work a full-time job, spend time with my husband and have a life in the real world. It's just so MUCH at times! Like Jamie, I'm a perfectionist. So I think I get bogged down in that feeling like if I'm going to do it, I want to do it "right." Even though there isn't really a right way - I still sometimes feel like there is a "right" way to run a book blog. The last two weeks, I haven't read any blogs, replied to emails and only recently finished a few books. It's just like I was dragging my feet to do anything book or blog-related.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I'm clearly right there with you on the blah blogging feelings. I CAN tell you that wherever you end up - continuing to blog, taking a break, moving to Tumblr or quitting altogether - I'll be excited to continue to chat, talk books and celebrate that little baby. Bookish conversations can happen even without blogging :)
Personally, I will support whatever you decide to do, whether that's to continue blogging, to move on over to Tumblr or to stop blogging completely and just tweet/Goodreads all your thoughts. Just throwing that out there!
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I FEEL YOU. I encounter many moments where I feel like I'm tired of blogging or reading books for review or just want to throw in the towel. I also like being in control and I'm definitely a perfectionist so that doesn't help either. But I think, for me, it helps that I don't let it take over my life (life > blogging all the time!) and just choose to let things go when I don't feel like blogging/reading or the like. I also love the fact that I don't feel obligated to post about books, and have started to branch out to other things (like personal posts).
Hopefully, you figure things out! Whatever you decide, I still look forward to our Twitter conversations :)
This is me completely. Especially since blogging has gotten in the way of some of my other goals in life lately, one of which is to become a published author. I am actually currently going through the steps to evolve my blog into more of a "books in general" site rather than a "review-focused" site. Sure, I will still post book reviews, ramblings and other promotional stuff when I feel like it. But my new site will likely be more of my documented journey to getting published. That way I can post whatever I want, however I want, *when*ever I want. No deadlines, no constraints. It's a freeing feeling knowing that I am finally making up my mind and making things happen.
ReplyDeleteLisa, Lisa! Before I left for vacation I was talking about this with someone you probably know. We were wondering how long our book blogging lives would last. It's true I love to write and it's what I want to do with my career, so when I'm working on a review or something for the Disney blog, I think of it as one step closer to SOMETHING. Logically, I know it might never happen and I really want to be writing a book instead but hey everything little bit helps?
ReplyDeleteI think the drama over the past few weeks/months has been so frustrated and left me really sad. More than anything I come to this community to bond with people who are passionate about characters and willing to share a little bit of themselves when they review. I have made friends that I hope will be life long and that means more to me than getting a review up there. Sure I struggle with it. I'm glad I went away and cleaned my Google Reader and all that because I came back and I do feel refreshed. I also feel like I have to focus on things I've been putting off: finding a way to move forward in my personal life and also working on all the other things I want to do.
I've noticed that when I have these big changes going on in my life, and I'm going through a transition or even a self-conscious period, I do turn to the online world. I did this in middle school, when I moved in with my fiance the first time, and again when we moved together and he started school. It does make me feel less lonely and having my own schedule and things to do gives me a purpose that I don't find in my 9-5 life.
With the baby and moving, I can see where you are coming from with this. It's nice to have a platform to express and chat and I would love to see you writing about that too. I don't necessarily love Tumblr. In my experience, it has only been a pain (I used it in the past) so maybe you can just start another blogger thing and talk about nerdy things? aka everything? And not feel pressure to write all the time and just when you want to? You can even through a review/book thoughts when you want to.
Does my comment really mean anything? I would be sad if you were gone but I totally get it. I feel soemtimes like blogging is like being a professional sports player or something. It's not forever. And if it is you are probably getting paid? I wouldn't give up the friends I've made or the experiences I've had from it, but I just don't know the answer to any of this. I do probably think about giving up my Disney blog more than RBR because I have Magan to work on it with... but when I really think about it, it feels like my heart is breaking.
In the end, you have to do what is right for you. You can't do something like this if it makes you unhappy or you are just uninspired to do it.
Okay. I will leave now. I have monopolized the conversation. GOOD LUCK. xo (Please post some nursery pics. I have a severe obsession with decor.)
I think a lot of us understand exactly what you're feeling, Lisa, and I commend your ability to take that needed step away to evaluate what's right for you and your life. I've been there and done that too. I had a lifestyle blog before this one and after a year of doing it, I took a much needed break. At the end of that break, I realized that style blog wasn't right for me so I created Foil the Plot. In doing so, I gave myself strict rules about blogging again: I would post whenever I felt like it and I wouldn't let blogging (or the lack thereof) consume me. It's not a race or a competition. I'm doing this because I want to, because I enjoy it. At the end of the day, you shouldn't feel pressured like this is your job because it's not. It's supposed to be fun and when it stops being fun, there really isn't a point anymore. It's a hard realization to make, but a totally necessary one.
ReplyDeleteYou have the power to make your own rules and blog what you want, when you want, however often you want. We're here because we've gotten to know you and have become your peers, you friends and no matter what you decide, we're all going to support that choice. I do hope to see you around the bookish community because you've rocked my socks off, Lisa! Good luck!
I know we've talked privately about this, but I wanted to share my thoughts again in your blog post about it, too...
ReplyDeleteIn the end, do what makes YOU happy. If and when I start to second guess my want to remain blogging, I know it's time to say goodbye. If my heart isn't in it, then why keep at it, ya know? I do this because I love the friends I've made and enjoy talking books with people that may have never read the thing if it wasn't for my review (and vice verse). If I feel pressure, stress, anxiety about it.. then I know it's meant for me to move on. Those are just my thoughts on how to determine when you're done being a book blogger, for me personally.
I don't use tumblr, so I don't know much about it. But I know others do and they seem to be happy with it. I would hate to see you bow out completely, so finding a place to share your amazingness (and by that I mean to talk about anything & everything you want) would be awesome! Your world is about to change in such an exciting way. The worries over continuing a book blog will take back seat, I promise. I just want to see you HAPPY and making HAPPY decisions! Love you, xoxo.
Lisa, you sound super busy right now so don't feel guilty about not finding the time to blog, or not feeling like it.
ReplyDelete"Do I want to finish those, start a new book, and feel no pressure to write a review or something insightful? YES. " - this really hit me, I've been feeling like this on and off but it's tricky when it's a book received for review so I feel obligated.
I've never understood the point of tumblr, but you should do whatever suits you, via whatever medium you prefer!
Enjoy your time off!
p.s I have just started Jane Eyre via audio book!
I feel like you need a giant hug! Not in a you're sad way, but in a I totally support you way!
ReplyDeleteWe all say "oh, everyone goes through moments where they don't want to blog" and I think it makes us feel better in those moments when we abhor blogging. And while I'm like everyone else who has commented and would hate to not see your fun blog posts, I totally commend you for taking time to evaluate whether you want to continue blogging.
I haven't used Tumblr that much, whether for myself or just looking at them, but hey... if you decide to use it, I'll totally follow you!
In conclusion, follow your heart. Maybe you just blog about books that you WANT to read (ie not only ARCs). Talk about nerdy things you love. Give updates on the baby and motherhood. Just post pictures from your daily life. Whatever it is you want to do, even if it's dropping the blog completely and just keeping in touch by Twitter.
And to sum up, I'll share my favorite quote "Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life." :)