Thursday Thoughts: A Confession

Happy Thursday! So in a bit of a continuation of last Thursday's post, I have a confession to make... It's been six books since my last review (LOL).

Yes, I have read six books and not written a review for one here. I did write a review and post it on Goodreads for a New Adult book that was so explicit I'd never review it here, so I guess in some ways I don't count that one. But I've read five other books that I would normally post a review for here on the blog and I can't seem to find the inclination to get a single one written. I've got one that I started days ago and it's still sitting in draft. And most of the reviews would actually be pretty positive with at least one being a resounding five stars! If I don't hurry up and write them, I'll likely forget about anything I wanted to say, sigh... (I've never been a note-taker while reading -- I'm always amazed at those of you who keep extensive notes for your reviews. I tend to write my reviews off the emotions I feel after reading a book.)

These days it seems like so many book blogs have become more about posting memes than reviews. Oh, I don't mean EVERY book blog, and I still see quite a few reviews out there, but as I was going through Feedly the other day, it seemed like the overwhelming majority of posts were cover reveals, books people were waiting on, teasers, etc. And I'll admit, I generally only go read reviews of books I might already be interested in reading. I find it so difficult to keep up with all of the blogs out there. I have a small handful that I visit regularly and the rest I tend to visit haphazardly at best.

Does anyone else out there find that keeping up with blogs is, well, time-consuming? I want to be friendly and social and have others read my own blog, but frankly, with a full-time job (even if it is from home) and a little one running around, it's a challenge to devote much time to blog hopping and commenting (and sometimes the blog itself). One of my blogging buddies has been gravitating towards Goodreads for more of the social aspect of book reviewing, but so far I haven't felt that calling. (Hmmm, maybe I'm actually just anti-social? Haha...) When it comes to Goodreads, I've actually felt more of a calling to just post reviews there. But then where does that leave the blog?

As many times as I run into these reviewing/blogging burnouts, I am still unwilling to give up this blog. I think part of me likes the idea of having my own little piece of web property out here, while the other half just feels like I've already invested so much time and effort here, it would be a shame to give it all up.

Yes, I think we all write our blogs in part for ourselves -- certainly that is the case initially since most of us start out with no following. But as time goes on, I think most of us are posting in the hopes that we are attracting readers and growing our blogs. And while it's fun, at times it does feel like a job... And I guess I just haven't figured out what I need to do differently so it doesn't feel so much like a job sometimes, haha.

So really, I'm not sure where I'm going with this rambling post. I guess I just want to reassure those of you who do keep up with me that I'm doing my best not to disappear again, despite the slacking off of posting going on here... (I mean, this week I didn't even participate in Teaser Tuesdays, sheesh!) I'm hoping to re-energize myself and come up with some new ideas, whether it's types of posts or the way I write my reviews. In the meantime, I'll try to be good about participating in the memes I love and maybe just musing here on Thursdays while I work on getting my blogging mojo back.

If you made it through all of that, here's a virtual cookie and a thank you! :-) Hope everyone (well, those of you who are in the U.S.) enjoys the upcoming holiday weekend!