Hey y’all ๐ It’s been a while. I know that I’ve been posting sporadically or not at all over the last three months. I’m sorry for that. Today I’m here to tell you why. I have been an avid reader since I was a little girl. I enjoy reading everything from the classics to hard science fiction to high fantasy to contemporary romance. I honestly love it all. I always have. It’s only one of the reasons I decided to start the blog in 2014.
Over the last year though, I’ve really struggled. As the title suggests, I’m burnt out on books. That’s something I never thought would happen. To just give you a glimpse of my current feelings on books: I’ve DNFed (did not finish) 8 of the last 12 books I’ve read. Y’all!!!! That’s more than I’ve DNFed since I started blogging four years ago. I average maybe 2-3 books a year. But 8 in the last two months?! That’s ridiculous. Not to mention that I’ve only finished four books in that time, one of those I admittedly skimmed because I just wanted to know how it ended. To me, that’s not acceptable.
Books are supposed to be fun, a safe haven for those that want to escape reality. Not a chore and never a burden! But y’all that’s exactly what books have become for me over the last year. There are very few authors that I actually enjoy reading anymore. I’ve become cynical about my books. I find excuses to not read. I deliberately go out of my way to prevent reading. Not cool y’all. It’s just not cool!
With that said, I’ve taken the last week or so to really examine why I feel this way. And it keeps coming back to the blog and ARCs (advanced review copies) and schedules. I’ve always been a mood reader, meaning that I read whatever I’m in the mood for whether that be a sweet romantic comedy or a post-apocalyptic thriller. I read by what I’m in the mood for. When the blog was still young and ARCs were few and far between, it was easy for me to balance my mood with my blogging schedule. Now not so much. Now I’m drowning in ARCs because I’ve lost the desire to read. Some of that is my fault in requesting a book on Netgalley. Some of that is not being able to say no when an author makes a request. No matter the case I need to find a balance again which leads me to the reason for today’s post.
For the summer, starting today, I will no longer be blogging. Instead I’m going to take the summer and really examine why I lost my joy in reading. I’ll be focusing on what I love about blogging and what is a chore. I’ll be working on coming up with a way to manage my mood reading with my schedule. And I’ll be revamping the blog to match what is important to me going forward. My goal is to return with a fresh outlook in September and lots of books to share.
During this process, I hope you don’t forget me ๐ I’ll still be posting on Twitter and Facebook, and occasionally Instagram (still figuring that one out). Below are some questions I have for you that will help me in this revamp. Please answer them and if you have more to say (or book recs) shoot me an email at momwithareadingproblem@gmail.com
See you in September ๐
Sorry to see you leaving, even if just for a little while. But you’re doing the right thing. When reading becomes more like a chore, it’s definitely time for a break. Which is probably why I find I don’t get much reading done on weekends. Look forward to your return!
Jessica @ a GREAT read recently posted…Waiting on Wednesday
Thank you Jessica! A break is exactly what I need I think. Have a great summer โบ๏ธ
I hope that the break is just what you need. Blogging and reading should be fun and if you aren’t having fun that what is the point. Have a great summer!
Carole @ Carole’s Random Life in Books recently posted…Review – Undead Girl Gang by Lily Anderson @ms_lilyanderson @RazorbillBooks
My thoughts exactly Carole! Hope you have a great summer as well ๐
I just did this, but I kept pushing myself to keep going and then for about 3 weeks I just stopped. I wanted to go longer but now Berls and I have a schedule that we plan to take off while the other manages the blog to avoid burn out. Right now it’s my turn to hold down the fort. ๐ I stopped taking ARC reviews and now just read what I want, it really has been helpful. I take ARCs on occasion especially if it’s something I really want but lately I have been just waiting until it’s released. Somethings I think the stress of ARCs is what burned me out. I love reading just on my own time. I want to read a my pace. I realized for blogging I set one or two days aside to do it and if I don’t get more than 2 posts done, oh well, it has to wait until next week. ๐ It helps.
I will be here when you get back! Take your time finding your love for reading. Looking forward to seeing your new look, I’m sure it will be amazing (wink, wink) LOL
Michelle@Because Reading recently posted…#Review ~ Miss Wilton’s Waltz (A Proper Romance #4) by Josi S. Kilpack
I agree with you about the ARCs causing stress. I think that is a lot of my problem. Weโll see what I discover this summer.
I have no doubt my new look will be amazing because the designer is awesome ๐