Does book blogging ever feel like a competition to you?
- Who has the highest page views?
- Who gets the most books in their mail?
- Who gets the most comments?
- Who leaves the most comments?
- Who has the most twitter followers? Facebook fans? Repins?
Y’all, book blogging is exhausting.
Especially if you are the slightest bit neurotic like I am. I’m about to admit some not too pretty things about myself. I hope you all don’t hate my guts afterwards. I often build up blogging to be a competition in my mind. It’s the dumbest thing, and I know it’s totally WRONG but I can’t help it.
I admit to:
- Not visiting a blog because I was all omg we are competing for page views.
- Seeing someone I’d never heard of with 2,000 Facebook fans and thinking, oh they probably required it for a contest.
- Being catty with others on the twitters.
- Reading book after book after book after book because I am too afraid of going one day without content and my page views dropping.
You guys, this stuff is not easy to admit, but the funny thing is, when you say things out loud or in my case, in the Add New Post box, you realize exactly how ridiculous you sound.
It’s funny how sometimes when you take a step back and just breathe, you are able to put things into perspective.
Epiphanies That Occur When Taking Said Deep Breath:
1. Just because I visit another blog and give them hits does not mean that it takes away from my page views. This whole stay in your shell, people might be more popular attitude is utterly WHACK! Also? It’s false logic, self. Rather, I need to remind myself that hey, I am making FRIENDS and I should not be jealous of those friends.
2. This is not high school. The amount of facebook likes a blog may have does not determine a blog’s worth. You know, if people want to require the liking in their contests, fine GO FOR IT. Hell, if you can get people to click the like button just to win free books, you are obviously awesome at social media and have something I could learn from rather than be catty or jealous.
3. Twitter is NOT the girl’s bathroom or the cafeteria table. I have been working very hard on my occasional attitude problem and being positive and NOT gripping constantly. I’ve got a long way to go, but I AM trying. Plus, I think that stuff tends to turn people off.
4. The pressure fricken sucks. It gets to me a lot. I tend to box those feelings up and stuff them away, because ugh, who wants to look weak after having book blogging induced high blood pressure? Not me. However, because this is my safe place, I will come clean and admit I feel that pressure constantly. It is why I always have an audio going in the car instead of music, even when I am in a music mood. It is why I am constantly reading at night after work instead of say, winding down with an episode of The Office or one of the many movies in my netflix queue. I mean, yes it is fun to have a high books read count and a high amount of reviews, but at the same time, it gets so exhausting. And on top of that maintain twitter, facebook, pinterest and my SEO. Make sure to leave at least 30 or so comments a day. It is a wonder I have not had a nervous breakdown. I have a wonderful blog partner, Allison, who really helps as far as writing reviews and participating in community activities. I think it’s time to let that pressure ease up.
Book Blogging is NOT a competition, I think I need to remind myself of that a little more often.
A few questions for you, in closing:
- Do you ever feel the need to churn out content constantly?
- Do you feel intense pressure in relation to our shared hobby?
- Have you ever found yourself thinking catty things or being petty out of jealousy?
- Do you ever feel like blogging is a competition? What do you do to snap your self out of it? Are you able to snap yourself out of that attitude.
I didn’t even know that I was supposed to update Netgalley with my stats :O I have been blogging for just over three months, and I blog a review when I finish a book, that’s it. Some weeks, there will be three or more reviews, others, maybe one; or none at all.
To get to know other bloggers I participate in a Friday meme, but I do that just as much to find new blogs that write about books in a way I like as to gain more followers myself.
Maybe it’s different because I’m not fresh out of high school? I don’t know. I started a blog because I followed several bloggers, and I love that it’s possible to personalize the pages, with my favorite colors as well as doing some other things that are not easy to do on Goodreads
I still think your post is both interesting and important, though. We really are all on the same side here – the one where we love books and reading!
Ha ha, I’m 25, so not exactly fresh out of high school either.
I just wanted to comment that really quick. I will be back to formulate a longer response comment, I promise!
Lexxie, your laid back style is quite wonderful. I like that you are chill about how many reviews you post and when.
How cool that you use a Friday meme to get to know more people! Lately, I rely on twitter and then Top Ten Tuesday — I tend to follow blogs that put a lot of personality into their posts.
I still carry battle scars from high school even though it’s been 7 years since I was in high school. It’s cool how unique and individual you can be with your blog.
Thanks for the kind words about my post, as bloggers we are in this together.
Thanks for the longer response
I think maybe I’m slightly clueless 
It’s just that when I started to blog, I wanted to do something pretty for myself. I just love reading, and blogging is more personal than Goodreads and other places.
I think it is important to chat about the fact that it does feel like a competition for some bloggers, though. I hope you’ll be able to feel a little more relaxed about it all – it must be hard if you get stressed out about the blog, and not only have fun reading and chatting about it.
It’s been a lot longer since I was in high-school, and I’m not in the US, either, I think schools are a lot smaller here, I remember my friends and I were always amazed at the Beverly Hills shenanigans going on. It seemed like a completely different world for us (and I’m quite sure it felt that way for a lot of people in the US as well).
Your blog is beautiful, and you have a lot of interesting stuff going on here. I’m sure a lot of people would continue to follow you even if you decided one day to take things slower.
Have a fantastic weekend!
Lexxie,
You definitely aren’t clueless.
You have a really healthy attitude about blogging and I love that.
I also love how personal blogging is, right down to the header and theme, but more than that a lot of people get personal on their blogs and I think that is awesome.
I also think that it’s good to talk things out when they bother us. For me, talking about this definitely has relaxed me and I feel like I’ve finally given myself permission since I eased up.
Yeah, I’m a bit out of high school but still feel it’s scars from time to time. And I think that there’s definitely some cultural differences.
Thank you so much for your kind compliments.
Yeah, I definitely feel the pressure, but then I remember that I don’t have THAT BIG of an audience anyway, and my chances of becoming a big blog are like…zero, so I should just enjoy what I’m doing. Easier said than done sometimes, but I’m getting there.
Hey, you could become a big blog. I think your reviews are fantastic Meghan, and you know how much I love your unpopular opinion series.
It’s all about having fun, and I think no matter the size the pressure is still there.
You’ll get there.
Goodness I haven’t done an unpopular opinion in forever D: That’s really sweet of you to say <33
I hear you, April. I haven’t felt the pressure exactly but I have felt envious of those with tons of followers (but who funnily enough have lesser page views than mine…it doesn’t make sense?) but I think at the end of the day, it all boils down to how much I read books. I refuse to give up on that and become more engaged with blogging than I recently am which is plenty. I admit I am one of those who reads more than she comments but I comment when I am moved to and not because I want those people to come and comment on my blog. I tried doing that the first few days but it didn’t work so I gave up on trying to induce visitors with anything other than my content.
I did just start grad school so I’m going to be even more absent than usual. But life, it happens only once, eh? Anyway, you have an awesome blog and props to you for being honest about your own self. I think that takes a courage not many people have.
I used to really get that follower envy but not so much anymore. I also think that sometimes a lot of people who follow end up being one-visit followers in that they show up for a hop of a giveaway or social nature and never come back.
You are right about it boiling down to how much you read because if you aren’t reading books then what exactly is your content going to be?
I comment to maintain relationships and to network but also because I like being social.
Also grad school is mad hard, so congrats to you for getting in and best of luck balancing grad school and blogging.
Thanks for the compliment at the end, I am what I am, ya know?
Great post. I admit that for a while I was all worried about followers and having a post everyday and all that stuff, but then I relaxed. I blog because I enjoy it, and if I pressure myself I won’t feel like it’s something I want to do, I will feel like I have to. I see tons of blogs that are only a few months old with over 1,000 followers and it used to bother me, but now I don’t care. I have been doing it a year and just now got 500 and I couldn’t be more excited!! I know that people are coming to my blog. People comment, we interact, that’s what makes me happy.
I think the follower mentality/pressures is huge in the blogging community and we get different sorts of advice about blogging everyday and gaining followers which does cause worry. I think you’re really rational to be able to relax and remind yourself you are blogging because it’s fun, not because it feels like a job.
The interaction and the building of relationships is definitely the best part of book blogging, I know I am thrilled every time I get into a good conversation with someone either on the blog or on twitter.
I always feel that pressure, it’s why my blogging has been so spotty this year as opposed to last year. I just get where it all builds up, and then I stop. I take time off from blogging to do a few others things I enjoy for a little while, like recently I’ve been getting into Asian dramas and manga again. And now I’m refreshed and back to blogging with the thought in mind that I’m doing this for fun. And remembering to read what I want to read.
And yes, I too felt the need to post something every single day even though I wasn’t reading nearly fast enough to do so. Now I just let a day or two go sometimes without posting anything, because I don’t have anything of interest to say yet. It’s hard to let these pressures go, but we’ll all get there eventually!
Chelsey, I think we are very similar in that we both let the pressure just build and build. I haven’t stopped though. It’s smart to take time for other interests and hobbies because it truly can be a little bit like a re-starter, if that makes sense.
Sidebar: Isn’t manga awesome? I used to be really into Sailor Moon and Mars and Peach Girl but haven’t really made any sort of time to read manga lately.
It’s fantastic that you are easing up on yourself and letting the pressures go. I am trying to slowly get to that point as well. It definitely is a hard process!
Thanks for commenting
I thought you were awesome before this post, but now I think you are like 10 times more awesome! I commend you for saying things pretty much ALL of us think, and for being so honest about it!
-Uh, yes the page view thing has irritated me before. Blogs who are like a year and a half younger than mine have like 80,000+ more page views. And you know what, it took me a LONG time to get okay with that. And if I’m being honest I still get bothered by it from time to time but whatevs, I’m human.
-The constant pressure to read really got to me at times. There were moments (weeks actually) where I did not feel like reading AT ALL. And I forced myself to read through those moments and ended up disliking those books a considerable amount less than a lot of other people. I am not saying it was just because I was pressured (maybe the book was suck-tastic and no one else noticed) but that may have had something to do with it.
-Also the pressure to blog is something I am really, really, really trying to work through. For instance, this past week I had absolutely no desire to blog about anything…so I didn’t blog at all. And okay, I am not exactly happy with that and I do worry that people will not like my blog anymore (and I am sure next week I will be working double time to make up for it) but I am trying to tell myself it’s no biggie.
Like I said earlier, YAY for you saying all of this! I agree with every last sentence and I am so happy it was put out there. It is so nice to know I am not the only person thinking these things and yes, deep breaths do help A LOT when it comes to putting bloggish things into perspective.
<3 <3 <3
Katelyn,
1. Thank you so much for expanding my awesome levels. Being candid can be hard sometimes, but I think it’s worth it for the support you get and for letting other people know they are not alone.
2. I get so jealous with page views and sometimes, I think we just have to let it go because it does make things a little toxic you know. But at the same time, it is fine to be human and to experience those emotions.
3. That reading pressure is the worst, especially because it’s not fair to those books, because when you do resent the book because you feel forced to read it, it’s like you aren’t giving it a fair shake. This definitely happens with my reading all of the time.
4. The pressure to blog, ugh. I have that all the time, as you know from reading the post. I think that we are harder on ourselves, than other people are on us. I have friends who take breaks all the time and sometimes go a week or more without posting. Yet, when it comes to me taking a break, I tell myself no, people will dislike me if I do that, yet I know it’s false logic. If I’m cool with my friends taking breaks, then other people should be cool with me taking breaks.
5. Deep breaths are very therapeutic, yo. You are absolutely not alone. If you ever need to talk, feel free to tweet or email me.
Hah hah, awesome post, April. The pressure totally gets to me, both on the blog and GoodReads. I have to hide sometimes because answering comments and keeping up with what’s going on is just too much sometimes. Content-wise, it helps somewhat to have contributing writers, but that doesn’t help so much with the overall responsibility.
As for competition, the only time I ever think catty things about other blogs is when I’m not the biggest fan of their content, hah. But that’s my dirty secret, so shhhhh.
Wendy, I imagine your pressure is really great as in huge because you are a very popular reviewer and have been at the center of some maelstroms unfortunately. It’s probably a lot to have on your shoulders.
I think with all that goes on in the community, it gets to be so exhausting especially with the vitriol that crops up.
Contributing writers and co-bloggers are great, I think though that for me, Allison helps with the overall responsibility because she takes an active role. She participates in community activities and memes and is very outgoing on twitter and whatnot.
LOL, your secret is safe with me and everyone reading this post
Oh I know, it’s not a competition…but being someone who loves competitive games, it’s hard not to play blogging that way too! It adds a certain frenetic zest, I find….though I mostly compete against my own previous months of stats, which makes it somewhat more peaceful!
Charlotte, I like your version of competition in that it’s quite peaceful. I like competing against my previous stat months too, although personally it does bring me some anxiety from time to time. To each their own!
I had to book blog for class, and when I got page hits I was like “Heck yeah!!” Then I saw some catty comments on Twitter that may or may not have been about my blog but I took them personally and I was totally deflated. Especially because someone I look up to in the community had said it. I had originally planned to continue blogging after the class ended but I never did. I read for fun (or more so to stay sane), and I always think I should write book reviews, restart my blog, but I just can’t shake that “I’m being totally ripped apart! They’re all judging me!!” feeling. Who knows, maybe I’d be an awesome blogger and those comments deprived the community of my talents (psh). Maybe it did so for others, too! All because of one twitter post.
Just sayin’.
Oh, Rose. I think that it is awful that you felt deflated and stopped blogging. I hope the comment wasn’t from me. I’ve been trying to avoid being catty in public for awhile now, but if it was me, I am sorry. You don’t deserve to be ostracized from the community.
I think that you should give book blogging another shake. Not everyone in the community is awful and when you don’t like someone, the best advice I have is to ignore them and not be upset or take it to heart. I know a lot of people in the community don’t like me and I am fine with that. Not everyone can like you, nor will you like everyone.
Anyways, if you’d like to talk a little bit more about this or would like some encouragement to keep blogging, please email or tweet me, I’d be happy to talk with you a little more in depth.
Amen, sister friend.
You know this shit got to me.
After a 3 month deep breath, I’m feeling much better.
Kudos to you for naming your feels.
<3333
It does wear on one after a while.
I think 3 months is a nice recovery period.
I gotta put my issues and feelings out there, I guess. :-)
FYI I missed you sooooo bad so so bad while you were gone!
I’ve been in the blogging world (and teach a course in blogging at a college in my city) for a long time (despite being newish to the book blogging sphere) and this tension pervades all the sectors I’ve been involved with. (I used to manage several corporate blogs and my boss regularly would ream me out because X blog had more comments than ours, or more Facebook likes, or whatever. It was awful.) I completely burned out on my old blog that was quite popular because it was very pressure-cookerish in terms of feeling like I always needed to always create content.
What I will say is that I’ve learned my lesson and with my book/reading blog, I set out with the mindset that I’d focus on having fun with it, and not worry about my stats or popularity or whatever. It helps that I have several other contributors, and they make it more fun.
What helps even more is that I don’t worry about whether or not I’ll get okayed for ARCs (I actually have a mildy snotty notation in my NG bio about how we focus on quality not quantity), so I don’t let reviewing the newest books worry me–I read what I want to read and try to mix it up enough that it’s interesting for our readers.
I learned the hard way that external forces can be really take away your blogging joy, so that’s my philosophy–and it’s the advice I always give to new/aspiring bloggers. My belief is that readers can feel when bloggers are passionate about something and it hooks them, so anything that threatens the pure enjoyment of blogging is bad news in the long run.
It’s good to know that the tension isn’t restricted to book bloggers, but I kind of wish we’d be able to rise above. I like the comparison you make to it being a pressure cooker with the need to create good content ALL THE TIME.
I wonder if coming in with a goal or a certain mission or mindset helps you to stay in perspective with blogging. Like, I started my blog to have fun and meet people, but it’s kind of warped to do well with my stats, not that that is awful, but when it interferes with fun that’s not good. I think that having contributors really does enhance the blogging experience.
Hahahah your netgalley notation cracks me up, but it’s smart to focus on books that you know you will like it. I also like that you try to mix up your reading. I like blogs that do that too, that review more than the newest books.
“My belief is that readers can feel when bloggers are passionate about something and it hooks them, so anything that threatens the pure enjoyment of blogging is bad news in the long run.” — this is solid.
I think most of us agree that blogging shouldn’t be a competition, and yet somehow we let it be! It’s crazy. I sometimes find myself being jealous of other peoples stats, and I have to remind myself that I’ve only been blogging for three months and can’t be expected to have thousands of followers.
Leaving comments? I always leave comments when I have something to say! My absolute favorite part of blogging so far has been recieving meaningful thoughts from others and I love to pass that on to as many people as I can. Besides, leaving comments can get people to visit YOUR blog!
Ah, the race for the most content. I’ve tried to separate myself from that. I actually only post a couple times a week, with a review frequency of one every two weeks. I try to go for quality over quantity and if that means my blog doesn’t get millions of views, then that’s fine with me.
I think we really do let it become a competition and it’s totally a mental thing, hah it’s not like we win anything. I do find myself getting jealous of other stats as well.
I like leaving comments when I have something to say as well and some blogs just totally inspire you to comment on each post.
“My absolute favorite part of blogging so far has been recieving meaningful thoughts from others and I love to pass that on to as many people as I can.” – You’ve definitely nailed probably my favorite aspect of book blogging.
It’s smart that you’re trying to get away from the race for most content. Truly, our content suffers if it’s not coming from the heart but from a race for quantity.
Thanks for commenting, Emily.
I definitely have felt competitive but I’ve tried really hard to keep blogging fun for me! I started blogging because I read a lot and wanted to keep track of what I read, not to get loads of pageviews, comments, ARCs, etc. I wrote my mission statement for my blog and I try to refer back to that when I get stressed or feel overwhelmed to remind me of what my goals are (for example: gaining tons of followers is not on there and should not be my focus!)
My biggest problem though is competition with myself. I read over 400 books last year (due to last semester of college plus 2 months of unemployment) so it was easy to generate content; now I’m working 40 hours a week plus participating in other stuff and that all takes time away from reading, which makes me feel guilty as I’m “only” on track for 300 books. That guilt of reading less is the biggest thing I’m working on right now.
I remember your mission statement about how your blog is no frills and I love that. I think it’s good to have a focus to look back on and to keep as a touchstone for when you are overwhelmed.
400 books is quite simply, amazing. I think that you should ease up on yourself, because 40 hours of employment definitely takes a lot of time away from reading, so it’s perfectly fine to not read as many books. I think you’ll get there someday, being more relaxed about your book number goal.
You know, when I first started six months ago, I was obsessive about it. I am thirty and felt..crushed that teenagers were doing better at this than me. I would get upset if I got turned down for a book when I saw everyone else getting so many. But then I thought about it. It is supposed to be fun. I got so stressed because I signed up for too many tour groups and never get to read what I want anymore. I started quitting the high pressure ones. I started one of my own and put the fun back into blogging.
Isn’t it interesting how we set ourselves up with all these expectations? Like we look around the community and see people who are so successful or getting a metric ton of books in the mail and think — oh I should be doing that and then just stress out.
I am glad you’ve found a path where you are able to put the fun in blogging,
Here’s to your next six months being full of awesome and fun times.
I felt pressure at one point, early on, in my book blogging, but then I was able to convince myself that this is my hobby for fun and I have enough other things to be stressed about in life (grad school, ahhh!) so I listen to music in the car and watch tv when I want to. And honestly, I am amazed at how much time you must put in to blogging to get all of that done, I don’t think I have that much time in my day! Maybe I sleep too much
Ahhhhh GRAD SCHOOL! I am so scared about grad school.
You have a really good attitude about blogging Anya, in that you allow yourself music and TV and don’t make all of your free time about books. I think that’s healthy.
I do put a lot of time into blogging, but I can be very hyper focused sometimes which helps.
Also? SLEEPING IS THE BEST.
I so need to read this. A lot. I just get all “I don’t read all the books like everyone else does!” And then I feel super silly because I’m still reading more than a lot of other people. YES. When I feel worn out over reading a ton of books (on my own accord, not always out of silent competition) I sit down and marathon a show on Netflix. And I clean my room. That’s something that also gets neglected when I read too much. My aunt commented a few weeks ago that I could be a great candidate for Hoarders. OKAY it’s not THAT bad, but I definitely need to learn balancing and budgeting my time. Thanks for the great post!
Girl, I totally get those feelings too. Especially the I need to read all the books, because I’m always feeling so far behind, like everyone I know has read all the September books and I’m still on August books, ha ha.
I love doing Netflix marathons, that’s usually how Tony and I wind down.
Also! Cleaning. But I tend to do that with an audiobook so that likely does not count.
Also, LOL Hoarders, we bloggers totally do hoard the books sometimes.
I just had one of those pressure moments yesterday. It always happens on Sunday when I see what people get in their “mailbox”. My page views dropped this year and I was so sad but my hubby pulled me out and made me realize that I LOVE books and blogging and I love doing this. Who cares if no one sees my blog or leaves comments? I WANT to do this so I’ll keep at it even if I’m talking to myself cause it’s what I WANT.
I just wish I wanted to talk to more people. It’s not that I don’t want to, just that I either don’t know what to say or don’t have time
Marie, your husband sounds like a solid guy. I think we all have those moments on haul days, especially when it seems like everyone got a package and you didn’t.
It sucks when page views drop, but I am sure they’ll go back up. You’ve got a great attitude about doing it because you want to and out of love.
It’s okay to feel shy or to not have time. I feel like that sometimes to, or I’ll want to comment on a post but won’t have anything that sounds very witty or smart to say.
My blog isn’t huge but I feel the need to satisfy my readers, to keep up a nice pageview count and to always read the latest YA novels. I have recently taken a step back and informed the publishers I’ve worked with that I no longer will be accepting ARCs. That took a huge burden of my shoulders, the books I cannot get to fast enough gives me tremendous amounts of guilt. I want to focus on my own TBR pile, all the books I have bought because I wanted to read them. Not care if they’re not hot at the moment. I needed to find back to my blogging roots and just relax. I want to be able to say that book blogging and life can go hand in hand without one thing eating up more time then it should.
Does this give any meaning?
In short, I do agree with your excellent post and I still love your blog!
I think it’s really cool that you aren’t accepting ARCs any more. They definitely do add a lot of pressure on our shoulders as bloggers, I think. I also think they tend to bring a lot of guilt even if they are fun to get.
I feel you on wanting to go back to your blogging roots and be able to relax. I love the idea of reading purchased books and more than just the latest hyped book.
You totally make sense with your comment.
Thanks so much for dropping by, Mari.
I think it’s a pretty brave thing to admit all these things, so kudos to you! That’s the unfortunate thing about blogging/social media–it opens you up to a fierce world where you’re almost bombarded with competition. Before I started my book blog, I was in the style blogging community and every day I’d beat myself up because I spent more time comparing myself to the more successful style bloggers. I ended up losing a sense of self and suddenly, blogging wasn’t so fun anymore. I took a few months off for some serious self-reflection and learned a lot in the process. I learned that style blogging wasn’t a true passion of mine and I learned to let go of the need to constantly compare myself to others. You have to stay true to YOU, first and foremost. Believe me, when you’re not blogging for the right reasons it shows. So again, I say you’re on the right path and us readers are here for you no matter what. Keep on rocking it, lady!
Thank you, Nikki. I’d like to think I’m brave as it’s hard to admit to your failings.
I agree with you that social media does heighten the competition sort of feeling, although I also think that social media can help foster some really great friendships and also bring about discovery of other new blogs.
It sucks when you lost a sense of yourself because of pressure and because you might not be fully passionate about something.
I still need to learn not to compare myself to others. It’s a long road, but I’ll get there.
Thank you so, so much for your kind words.
Great post! You’ve obviously struck a nerve! I’ve never been in the running for most page views or followers, so I don’t feel the competitiveness at this point. But I am starting to feel overwhelmed and to realize that I need to cut back on what I’m requesting/accepting for review before it’s not fun anymore. I need to allow time for visiting other blogs, too, because I feel that’s important. I confess to enjoying reading snarky comments on Twitter, but I’m still a little shocked by them, because I think of us as all one big happy book blogging family!
Laurie,
I think this is a topic that affects a lot of bloggers. To some degree, I think a lot of us do feel that competition in one form or another, even if it’s with ourselves.
It’s a smart strategy to cut back on obligation books and read books that are just plain fun.
Also? I LOVE visiting other blogs, it is important and not only that but it helps to foster those friendships.
Yeah, sometimes I like snarky comments but then I try to think about what it’s like to be on the end of them. And I admit, it’s taken me a LONG time to think like that.
OHMYGOOSH! That picture just totally made my day
Past that, this is a great post. It’s awesome of you to admit all that because I’m sure we all feel at least some of those things occasionally. I often get really jealous of what people get in the mail. When that happens I just fly past IMM posts without even looking to keep my green rage monster in check.
And I totally worry about getting posts up so I can get pageviews, but then I just remind myself “hey, this is a fun thing that you do for you so if you miss a day or two of posts then so be it.”
Corgis FTW!
See, I don’t get as jealous as I used to over IMM. I try to think about how awesome my purchased books and review pile is and that each book is an extra responsibility.
Also? Yeah, I need to remind myself that it’s okay to miss a day of posting as well.
I definitely have a problem with the need to churn out constant content. I feel like if I stop, any progress I’ve made in getting my blog out there will be lost. I knew I was going to be away for a month from September – October, so over the summer, I read double time. I pumped out book after book so I could schedule like 18 reviews over the month I’d be MIA.
I really could use with stepping back and taking a breather. But on the bright side, I wasn’t stressed or anything. In fact, I really enjoyed spending an entire summer reading non-stop. I read some amazing books and I loved it! If I do keep up this behaviour I’m sure it will bite me eventually. But for now, I’m okay with it. XD
I only just saw this post but it’s never too late to comment, right?
Your four questions at the end there, I mentally answered “yes” to them all. The funny – or really stupid – thing is, I’m not even trying to make my blog one of the big guns. I’m quite happy just doing my thing, at my own pace, when I have the time and energy and motivation for it. It’s supposed to be a hobby, a personal pleasure, right?
But every time I visit one of those blogs that is oh so popular and all, I feel the pressure, like I need to be as good as them (and in what sense? who says I’m not already?!). And the ones I feel like we’re all trying so bloody hard to please are the publishers, because of ARCs. I don’t even request ARCs! But it adds to the competitiveness, and it makes me feel small and slighted and unloved to not be as popular as some other blogs. I don’t get catty or snarky about it though, I’m just not that kind of person (was on the receiving end far too often when I was a kid). And I know that I reap what I sow: if I don’t have the time to visit, read and comment on other blogs as often as I’d like, why should I expect people to visit me?
Aside from the competitiveness and feeling like no one likes my blog, the other one that gets me is the blogroll. I love seeing my blog on someone’s roll, and I live in dread of seeing my blog removed from someone’s blog roll – like when someone was subscribing and then stopped (you notice by the number dropping – have to stop looking at that number but it’s like a compulsion!).
It’s the ugly, petty side of book blogging isn’t it. But we’re only human. Talking about it openly really is like taking a breath and letting it go, isn’t it. (and it’s always nice to know it’s not just you!)
I’m a newer blogger so it doesn’t really feel like much of a competition yet as i know i am far away from being equal to some of the more established blogs. Not against other people anyway. So far i am only really being competative with myself eg. wanting my page views to keep improving and every review being better than the last.
I can be quite competative but im going to try my hardest not to do that with blogging. After all i started blogging for fun and to share a love of books (as i think we all did) and i don’t want my natural competativeness to ruin that.
Oh man, that need to have a post every day? That’s me. The other day I caught myself thinking “I’ll just get up early and write a post,” and then I was like “wait, WHAT?!” So I did write the post, but it was when I had time for it that day. I just, WHY do we do this to ourselves, April? Why do we get into this Hunger Games-mode competition bull, when it’s just supposed to be about loving books and telling the world about that? *shakes head*
I’m trying to work on my issues, like NOT taking it all so seriously, and letting my personality shine through more in my blogging. I want my blog to be a fun place, not a stick-up-her-rhymes-with-pass. I think if we all just got back to basics and stopped worrying SO MUCH about stats and stuff, it’d be a better place.
Great post! I’m glad to know that I’m not alone in this. My main thing is how do some bloggers gain all this popularity with not-so-great content?
And the whole part about blogging being exhausting. A-Freaking-Men. I thought that having contributors would have made my life a tad bit easier but I can’t say that it has. I still feel this tremendous amount of pressure.
Also, why are some bloggers so clique-y and snobby? Just because you’re getting more ARCs than me that automatically makes you better than me? It really doesn’t make any sense to me.
I seem to be asking you a lot of questions! Sorry about that! I liked your post and THE CORGIS ARE ADORABLE.