Thursday, August 29, 2013

A Confession: What I really mean when I say I don't have time to blog

I was hesitant to actually admit what I'm about to say and post it, but given my spotty appearances in this corner of the internet, it's been on my mind quite a bit. So I've decided to just bite the bullet and fess up. Here goes nothing...

Many bloggers struggle with finding the time to post quality content on a regular basis (or semi-regular basis -- let's face it, that's the best I'll ever do!). Inevitably, life happens and there are times when we drift away from the blogosphere. This has obviously happened to me a lot this summer and I'm OK with that. BUT, if I am 100% honest, when I say I haven't had time to blog, what I REALLY mean is that I haven't had time to keep up with my Feedly (previously Google -- you get the gist) reader and comment on other blogs.

You see, even when life is really busy, I usually can still find time to jot down my thoughts on what I've read. I like writing out reviews as a way of processing and evaluating books I have finished. I've gotten so used to doing this, I would probably still do it even if not a single other person would ever read them. Sometimes I have no time to read at all, but that's not really what I'm talking about here -- no matter what is happening in life, I typically have a book I'm plugging away at, even if it's at a slower pace than normal. There will always be a book to write about, I have no doubt about that.

So the real *problem* is the majority people who actually read this blog are also bloggers (whose blogs I thoroughly enjoy, mind you). I just feel guilty hitting 'publish' when I know I won't have time to return comments or catch up with other bloggers' latest posts. Don't get me wrong, I love interacting with other book-lovers and I am so grateful some of you have found your way here, but sometimes somthing's got to give. Someone please tell me I am not the only one who feels this way!

14 comments:

  1. I understand that the lack of time (and energy) to make the kind of commitment you think is needed can make you feel bad, but try not to stress over it. People say that blogging shouldn't be a chore, but I also think that reading others' blogs shouldn't be a chore! When I am away for several days, my reader gets properly cluttered up so it takes me a lot of time to go through everything; as a result, I reorganise my reader regularly and check all the time whether I have really time to give to each and every blog in the reader. I definitely don't have time to comment on *all* blogs and posts that go to my feed, and I'm okay with that.

    I'd still rather see you posting, and not commenting on my blog, for example, than not see you posting at all :)

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    1. Thanks for the support Riv! I don't want blog reading to be a chore either and that is a good point -- I love reading all the great stuff you and the other bloggers I follow post. I guess the hard part is knowing I'm part of this book-loving community and at times feeling like if I'm not fully participating, I just should take a break altogether. But maybe it's time to let go of the guilt and just do the best I can!

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  2. I agree with Riv. I do sometimes feel pangs of guilt, but I don't let it stop me from posting, I just do what I can when I can.

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    1. I definitely think I need to remember this Charleen -- that is all any of us can do -- the best we can with the time we do have.

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  3. I am not so guilty about hitting publish when I haven't commented on other blogs. Until now. Honestly, I never thought about it much. I just feel guilty about not visiting and commenting on other blogs altogether (weather I publish a post or not). I do feel guilty about not publishing quality post over quantity. I am soooo guilty of that one.

    Don't worry about not commenting on other blogs. They should be blogging for the love of blogging not for comments. They will understand!

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    1. I have to agree with you about quality over quantity Alysia -- I can be tempting sometimes, but since so many of us follow so many blogs, I'd like to think I'm doing my readers a favor by only posting stuff I really believe in and not just "filler." I'd hope you guys would rather see one thoughtful post a week than 4 or 5 ones just to fill space. I know I do appreciate that as a reader of other blogs!

      And you are also right about blogging for the love of it (which I'd like to think I do!) -- I think I've just seen one too many people say that as a rule they will stop following someone if they don't "return the favor" -- I'm not the kind of person to keep score, but I guess I'm just afraid that other people might! It's good to hear all this support and I think we are all a lot more understanding of each other's limits than we sometimes realize.

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  4. Christine you are not alone I promise! I love when you respond to comments and visit my blog but I don't care how often you do it, whenever you want to is fine by me! ;) ***I love reading your posts whether you comment or not, I hope that helps take away some of your guilt and keeps you posting reviews if that is what you want to do.

    Recently I started a new job and went on vacation. I came home and had over 700 posts to read. I can tell you right now I didn't read them all. I read the handful of blogs that I love the most and the others unless they looked really interesting I just deleted. I still posted a review today. I felt a little guilty for deleting so many posts but in the end it was what I wanted to do with the time I had.

    Okay I hope that made sense. Sending you hugs!

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    1. OMG 700?!?! I thought my backlog was big, but it's not quite that big (yet!) I definitely am more picky about which blogs I read when I get so backed up like that -- I'm sure I'm not the only one who finally finds the time and reads/comments on a month of posts at a time...

      I will definitely post more if I can let go of this guilty feeling though, so there will be more posts from me going forward -- thanks for the support & hugs :)

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  5. I honestly have a hard time catching up on commenting too and it usually falls to the back burner unfortunately so I completely understand. But life happens and I think the majority of us understand. :)

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    1. That is so good to hear Bonnie & makes me feel so much better about the whole situation. I think I sometimes forget that we all struggle with these same things -- I know I would understand if someone else were saying the same thing, but we're all harder on ourselves than each other, aren't we?

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  6. I understand that completely. Writing and publishing a post takes a lot less time than reading others' posts and commenting. In your case you've been blogging about your move and so forth so we know you're busy, and offline life has to come first :)

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    1. Thanks Charlie! All the kind words have been so heartening to hear -- I still feel a little bit bad, but it's nice to know you guys understand :)

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  7. I have been experiencing a dose of serious blogger guilt since school started and I've been buried under work with no time to blog. I, like you, miss the interaction with other bloggers and book lovers. I miss reading your thoughts too, but I totally understand how much life gets in the way. Hope to see you back again soon!

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    1. Glad I'm not the only one! Feels like I'm getting there -- best thing for me to do is re-evaluate and figure out a better balance, though that is easier said than done!

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I'd love to hear what you think :)