I'm a massive failure on NetGalley, and honestly, that's because the titles I read there are not the ones I crave. I don't have access to those, and building my way up to those is something I'm not ready for any more. College shocked me with the complexity and the length of readings I had to do, and being the overachiever that I am, I read every one of them and wrote notes too. By the time I got around to leisurely reading, my brain was fried and my vision was blurry. It was probably also around 2am.
I had a goal to read 100 books this year. It's an arrestingly pedestrian amount compared to the 300 I did during high school that one year, but I'm extremely behind on account of reading too little during university. So, now that I'm enjoying my summer break, I'm looking to get back in the reading game (in which I'm like 25 books behind on my challenge!). I can read a book extremely quickly, but, as I've matured too, I've realized that I want to read books I'll love.
I think I'm going to retire being a reviewer and go back to being a reader. You may have noticed that my last few reviews are less technical. I've tried to emphasize creative writing and really write my opinion as honestly as I can. That's because I don't really want to judge books. I don't want to write about their merits or failures. I just want to write about books I enjoy.
When you're reviewing books that haven't come out, it's really like stabbing in the dark. Let's be very honest: judging a book by its cover or even synopsis does not always work, and it's a little bit tiring to continuously read books that aren't 'my type'. You read the book, not knowing what to expect, and you formulate an opinion. I've reviewed books I knew nothing about that I loved. I've also read a whole bunch of 'meh' books because I was excited that people were offering me stuff to review.
I don't want to do that. I don't want to spend my time arbitrarily deciding what is good or not. I want to read good things. I want to enjoy them. That means that unless I get my hands on an author I know I'll love (a Maggie Stiefvater, or Holly Black type book) or a series, or even a book I feel extremely excited for, I'm extremely comfortable letting it go. I'm okay with letting other brave readers try the pages and I love reading others' reviews before deciding if it's right for me. (As an aside, I might be one of the few bloggers that enjoys commenting on reviews the most.)
This way, I've been reading phenomenal books. I'm excited about everything I read and I'm always looking for hidden gems: books that are not publicized widely, but are dearly loved by the majority of readers. I always change my reading philosophy, so I can't definitively say that this is the best philosophy for me, but I'm in a point in my life where I feel this works.
omg 300 books??? you make me feel like an underachiever haha but i do agree you with about arcs. the idea of getting to read a book early and to be in contact with publishers is super cool to me but honestly i tried netgalley for a little bit and while it was cool just not for me at all. i hated having to look into my stats to write a bio, i hated the feeling i got whenever i was rejected, i hated the guilt of losing interest in a book but still feeling obliged to read it. i still have like maybe 3 i just never read and probably will never get to. arcs just aren't fun for me. i dont like feeling obliged to read something and then review it. there were moments when it worked out bc i had requested a book from a trusted author or a book that i KNEW i would love but more often than not, there were the flops and then the feeling of oh crap i still have to write a review for this and worry about sending it to the publisher and when should i publish this? a month in advance or two weeks before? it was honestly a very very stressful situation for me and it just gives me mad admiration when i see all those bloggers who can juggle arcs on top of everything else they have. i would go crazy out of my mind as it would just add so much unnecessary stress. so yeah i'll leave the arcs to everyone else...
ReplyDeleteLol, that was sophomore year of high school when I was extremely bored with the world :p I think I burned myself out so much that I've barely gotten a third of the way there since.
DeleteAnd I know what you mean about Netgalley. I just felt extremely stressed out, and it felt like a chore. I refuse to make reading a chore. There's enough stress in life, and I've never wanted to make blogigng stressful for myself. I totally agree with you that it's unnecessary. Also, sending reviews straight to the publisher kind of terrifies me. I don't mind sharing my thoughts, but I felt the need to quadruple check everything, and it just wasn't worth it when I wouldn't necessarily get the titles I really wanted...
Basically, I agree with everything you said and love your comment :)
-P.E.
Bravo. This was so well written and I understand where you're coming from completely. I actually do want to be one of those people on the frontlines wading through the crud to find the good stuff, but it is exhausting and I am lucky to be done with schooling (for the time being). Because you have so much on your plate and less time to read for leisure, you should maximize that time, for sure. That being said, I hope to see more reviews from you in the future, even if they are less technical. I wouldn't mind! There are many types of reviews, and it'll be exciting to see what style you grow into. :D
ReplyDeleteHaha, you may not get a lot of reviews from me but you'll see lots of long reviews. :P That's kind of my style, much to my co-blogger/editor's chagrin :p
DeleteAnd thank you! I will definitely continue reading and reviewing because, even though I don't want to make this blog into something that stresses me out, I genuinely do love reading books and sharing my thoughts on them. I just really want to read great books.
Thanks for your comment Ellen!
-P.E.