Bookish Habits – Pt. 2: On Reading and Blogging
Welcome to the week-long feature I’m hosting on Nyx Book Reviews called Bookish Habits. Spread over four posts seven bloggers will answer questions about their reading habits, where they prefer to read, how they juggle blogging, reading, and real life and how to overcome slumps.
Past posts:
Introductions
Pt. 1: How do you read?
Today our panel of seven bloggers will answer the following questions:
4. Have your reading habits changed since you started blogging?
5. How do you juggle reading and daily chores like cleaning the house, work, studying and social interacting?
Here are their answers!
Amanda @ On a Book Bender
4. I actually read less now than when I started blogging. I’ve also started reading more novellas. The genres I gravitate toward are in constant evolution as well.
5. Um… I don’t. At least not very well. Usually work stuff needs to be finished before I can read. Social interacting is…well, I like it. Reading often gets shoved down.
Ruby @ Ruby Reads
4. Yes, absolutely! I’m much more likely to keep reading a book I dislike or have problems with because I can’t wait to write the review and start discussing it with other bloggers and readers. On the other hand, I’ve developed what I call Reading ADD. I start books all the time and drop them when my interest starts to wane. Since I started reviewing books for my blog, it’s become increasingly difficult to turn off my reviewer’s voice while I’m reading. I think this is a shame and I’m constantly looking for advice on how to stop it!
5. To be honest: I don’t. I’m not a great housekeeper, though I find that audiobooks can be a great way to motivate me to get chores done. I plug my earphones into my iPhone, queue up a book from Audible and get started. At work, I channel my enthusiasm for reading by trying to engender it in my students. I always have a book I’m reading aloud to my class and I try to read some of the books they’re interested in so I can have conversations with them about what they’re reading. I’m no longer a student myself, so reading doesn’t interfere with studying–though sometimes it’s hard to set aside a book I’m reading for pleasure and read something for professional growth. I’ve been meaning to read this book called You Can’t Say You Can’t Play forever. As for social interaction, I’m in a two-person book group, so I have a little opportunity to discuss books in a social setting. Plus, of course, there’s always the blogosphere, in particular, Small of Small Review. We can talk books endlessly. I don’t know anyone personally who shares the exact same taste in books as my own, but it would be weird if I did. Do I wish there was a larger adults-who-read-YA community in my town? You betcha? Would I be brave enough to be a part of that group? Eh, probably not. I’m pretty shy.
Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal
4. I’m more aware of my reading now that I’m blogging because I’m looking at where the book I’m reading will fit in (will I post a review on my blog, on my freebie blog, on Amanda’s blog, or will this be just a Goodreads review), but I don’t think my habits have changed much. In fact, if I can point at anything as a habit-changer, I’d say that it’s my Kindle. Now that I have it, I read a wider variety of books (including monster erotica!) because all those books are literally at my fingertips.
5. I wish I had a solid answer for this but the truth is that I don’t know. Reading is a priority to me, so I find time for it. Also, I’m not very sociable in real life. Ask my family.
Renae @ Respiring Thoughts
4. Yes! In a big, big way. For one thing, I read much more as a whole—the year before I started blogging I read 100 books, and then my first year of blogging I managed to read 250. What I’m reading has changed a lot, too. I used to read primarily classic lit, but once I started blogging, the community’s general love for young adult convinced me to try new things, and now I read mostly YA.
5. I wouldn’t really say I have real plan, but I do keep books at the bottom of my agenda. I don’t let myself read unless I’m free to do so. If I have homework or housework to do, I get it done in the hopes that I have time to read, but if I don’t, that’s okay. As far as social stuff goes, I just do what I feel like doing. If my friends want to go out for coffee and I want coffee, yeah I’ll go. If they want to go to a party or see a movie but I’d rather stay home that night, then I do that. I think I’m a pretty laid-back person, and I try not to force myself to do anything unless I want to (except for classwork, of course).
Aleksandra @ Aleksandra’s Corner
4. Yes, I think my reading habits have changed, but only a little. I still tend to read at night when I go to sleep (something I’ve done since I was little, probably a habit I’ll never break, lots of nights I haven’t gotten the sleep I needed because I couldn’t stop reading ^_^ ), but I wasn’t multiple books reader before I started blogging. I used to read only one book at a time, I’d start a book & don’t start another one until I finish it, but since I’ve started blogging, I often have at least 3 books started, and I often jump around books, and sometimes I put aside a book for a while until I get in a mood for it again. I blame that on me being a moody reader 😉 but I have no problems in doing this because they’re usually different genres, and I’m pretty good at remembering what happened, and where I’ve stopped, so I don’t mix them up 🙂 Other habits I’ve picked up on (if they count as reading habits), is participating in read-a-thons, as well as reading challenges, and my latest habit – read-alongs.
5. I don’t think I’m good at juggling things. I don’t know how some fellow bloggers do it, how they manage to read & blog every day & be social around the blogosphere, yet juggle friends, family, chores, work, studying, etc. I try my best, for me first comes everything else usually, what I have to do I do (although sometimes if I can I postpone something so I can finish a book, I do ^_^ ) and reading comes first after all that. I tend to read every moment that I can. And my reading definitely comes before my blog, reviewing & socializing around the blogosphere. Although I love doing all of that, I usually have to choose if I’ll read a book or I’ll write a review/blog post or I’ll blog hop, I don’t have time for everything, so I’m not sure how people do it. That’s why I usually have a pile of reviews that I want/plan to write, because usually the reading wins 😉
Vicky @ Books, Biscuits and Tea
4. Oh, definitely! Not only did I discover lots of new authors and genres in the past two years but I started reading more as well. I’ve always loved reading, of course, but I don’t think I’ve read 60-70 books a year pre-blogging. It also widened my horizons and made me realise that stepping out of my comfort zone and trying something new, something unknown isn’t such a bad thing, after all.
5. Luckily, I usually read quite late at night so doing daily chores or work/studying first has never been a problem for me. I try to do all these during the day and leave all the blogging/reading related things for the night
Hannah @ Once Upon a Time
4. Oh definitely, because my book blogging beginnings weren’t clear cut. Not long before I started I was more or less not reading at all, so gradually I was rediscovering books and slowly finding my place in the blogging world. What’s more, I don’t think I started off quite right as very recently I’ve changed the way I go about blogging and reading quite a bit.
5. Easy actually, I prioritise the other things before reading, but make sure I set aside time around whatever I need to do for my reading. When I was working I would read while I was waking up in the morning, on my breaks, and before bed. Admittedly I was in the thralls of my slump when I was working but I still worked my reading in where I could.
There are seven questions in total, spread over three posts. The schedule is as follows:
Tuesday
1. Do you consider yourself a fast or a slow reader or something in between?
2. How much time do you spend reading on an average day?
3. Do you have a favourite reading spot?
Wednesday
4. Have your reading habits changed since you started blogging?
5. How do you juggle reading and daily chores like cleaning the house, work, studying and social interacting?
Thursday
6. How do you pick which book to read? Do you always read review books first, or your personal ones?
7. Many bloggers suffer from a reading slump occasionally. Has this happened to you? Do you have any tips to overcome one?
On Friday there will be a wrap up post.
Stop by tomorrow to see the bloggers’ answers to questions six and seven!
‹ Bookish Habits – Pt. 1: How Do You Read? Bookish Habits – Pt. 3: Overcoming Slumps & Wrap Up ›