I like the thread What Are You Reading Now because in a quick space of time I'm able to see what people are reading. A lot of those people also do blog their books, and will say for a better review check my blog...however that thread allows me "one click" access to see what is being read. On that thread we also tend to discuss non book topics in quick snippets...the sort of thing I think we were better able to do last year than we are this year.
Therefore....I would surmise that people who are participating in a forum/thread...whatever and not blogging are having their needs met quite well wherever they're visiting, and don't see the need to come here and perhaps repeat themselves? I'm not sure...how to phase what I'm thinking...so that might be wrong.
Again, I also think that if when we suggest people blog their books we don't push the need for numbers, but rather the need to grow our community, and thus perhaps as Sadhbh said...our ability to discover a great new author, or maybe an online friend we might get more people blogging.
Now if no one minds I'm going to post this word for word as a blog on my blog...so that people can see that I do agree we want to grow...not primarily to increase our number(albeit that is a nice effect) but to increase our spirit of community, and what brought us all here in the first place our love of reading.
Sandi
Outside of a dog a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read. Groucho Marx
HHi Sandi - I can understand your frustration with what seemed
to be JUST a push for numbers. There was also a load of discussion on the "best" way to blog, but for me those are all side issues.
There's only one "good" reason to blog - because there's this great book you really want to share with us
There's only one "best" way to blog - the way that suits YOU
That's why I do a more or less short blog for every book I've read, because I liked it, didn't like it, felt it was middle of that road, but most of all because I don't know what book is going to tickle someone else's fancy, so I can't just blog the best and the worst (no matter how much I feel like it when after four days of intense reading I already have a twenty to twenty-five book backlog)
I have several advantages over the rest of you, I touch-type (thank you Mammy), I read REALLY fast (but still only one word at a time) and I'm selfish enough to spend a lot of time on my sole hobby (Penni will no doubt have told you my house would not win any good housekeeping prizes), but I get fed up with blogging, I have reading slumps (which I ironically try to solve by reading even more
) and a lot of people are interested in my reviews, but like everyone else, when my energy levels drop so too does my enthusiasm for blogging and that's when I notice nobody comments, because you can feel it in my reviews when it's become a chore
So no, I'm not the perfect example of what to do or how to do it, I'm just another Challenger and yes it's really difficult to keep up with everyone else. To a certain extent (this is ONLY my opinion) I feel that the Challenge is "suffering" from the new site and the lack of familiarity with its features that a lot of members seem to have, me primarily. Yes I know we can do (this that and the other) to access the forums and reviews, but we're creatures of habit, and unfortunately I don't HAVE any "habits" with this site because it's only been around since January and my energy is low at the moment so I don't have the spare energy to put into developing the habits. So I've been using the tracker and occasionally bookmarking the Challenge blogs pages so that I can see and skip the blank reviews but everything seems to take more time and effort than I have available, because I have a job and a husband and two kids and a brother, two hours of travel time each working day and a large untidy house.
and I'm a typical Member, we've all got busy lives and books to read, and we can't do everything
Which is why I'm concentrating on the reading and the natural (for me) desire to share my love of books with everyone I can possibly bore into submission.
Hopefully I'll find some spare energy to check out some of my fellow Challengers' reviews - soon!
Hugs
Sadhbh
Dream Team 2008 Challenge blogs
I much prefer community over
I much prefer community over numbers. If I want to review books, I can do that anywhere. In fact, blogging here sometimes takes away from the time I have to read and review books that I have to review. I am getting a bit overwhelmed by non-Harlequin books I have to review (and want to review because so far they are pleasure reads too) so the harder the numbers are pushed, the more I think doing the Challenge is maybe not for me. I stay here for one reason only---the other bloggers and the atmosphere here is more pleasant than certain other review places that are all about proving who is better than other people in this kind of mean way--which is not what I find here. I come here for relief from all the other places on the internet. I don't know why other people are here in terms of forums versus Challenge or other parts of Harlequin's site but cranking out reviews makes me feel pressured and overloaded. Community, whether it be forum or Challenge or a bit of both, is what keeps me wanting to come back and participate. I just think a balance is good because it can appeal to more people and more kinds of people can find themselves at home here. I like freedom and diversity and not everyone being expected to do the same things.
AKA Merri
Family Challenge Team: The Spine Breakers with my dh Glenn AKA Phaedrus