Need coffee. Hang on a sec.
Ok back. MMMMM better.
I used to be soooooooo good at going out and visiting my fellow bloggers. I prided myself on visiting twenty blogs a day minimum, reading reviews, checking in…. and now, sadly not so much. I mean to. I want to. And then I write a review. Read a book. Listen to audio while cleaning the house. Work on Library projects. Go on coffee dates. Meet friends for lunch. Connect with my son. Spend time with my hubby. Work on business connections. Write proposals. Create events. Reflect on what I am going to do with my life….
I am the queen of the time suck.
SO… this morning it surprised me as much as it probably surprises you that when browsing my email (pre-coffee…. maybe that is the trick) I spotted a post title from my good blogger friend Care about Book Blogger Appreciation Week. I LOVE that week and I clicked to read when it would be only to find out that this is actually the last day of it.
Wait….
what?
Yes. That really is how out of the loop I am.
I would have loved to participate but because I am now a blogger with my head in the sand I am missing stuff.
Poo.
So this last day of BBAW I am going to quickly catch up on what I have missed and give you my “pretend I have been doing this all week” post. Ready? Here we go.
Day 1: Introduce yourself by telling us about five books that represent you as a person or your interests/lifestyle.
Well ok… hi. My name is Sheila and I have been blogging here at Book Journey since June 2009. CRAZY right? And let me just say…. TOUGH question. Let’s see how far I get.
- The Harry Potter series. These books are a household staple around here. My boys grew up on them and my son Justin and I really bounded over these books. We started a tradition of going to Harry Potter world in Florida every November and we were able to do that three years in a row. These books will always be a big connection to my son for me. They are a part of my heart.
- The Three Sisters Trilogy by Nora Roberts. Yes Nora Roberts. The book, Dance Upon The Air was the first book my book club read in August of 2001. We all loved the magical aspects of the book and the magic must have worked on us too because that same book club is now 16 members strong and has been meeting every month now for 14+ years.
- READY PLAYER ONE. OMG I LOVE this book. I have listened to it on audio three times now and EVERY time I talk about it I want to read/listen again and NOW it’s going to be a movie! SO EXCITED! This book brings out the gamer in me. Yes, I am a girl who loved playing Nintendo, Xbox, Play Station with my kids. AND….. without my kids. I mastered all of the Zelda series and still years later find myself drawn to strategic game play.
- Hunger Games Trilogy. Ok not sure if I would say these books define me….. but they are kick a**. I love strong characters. I love survival stories, fiction and non fiction.
- The Bible. My faith does define me.
Ok…. I wish I could honestly add an impressive title like “Ulysses changed my life” (In truth I have never read it), or “If I could only take one fiction novel to a deserted island it would have to be Gone With The Wind”, uh…. no. Read it, liked it…but Harry goes to the island with me. HARRY POTTER.
SO basically what I see here in my choices is that I am a faith driven person who LOVES to read about magical worlds, the “what if’s” in life and strong female protagonists. And I also love gaming.
Day 2: IT’S INTERVIEW DAY!
Missed it! Love this part. Ahhh well 🙂
Day 3: Blame a Blogger
Have I ever read a book because of a blogger recommendation? You bet! Do I remember those recommendations? No way. I can recall a couple big genre moves I have made though because of bloggers.
Kim at Sophisticated Dorkiness hooked me on non fiction. When we were roommates at BEA in 2010 she told me about the book The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks. That was it. I was sold. Non fiction became a big part of what I read.
Candice at Beth Fish Reads, my BEA roommate for 2014 and hopefully 2016 loves to review foodie books and cook books. Her enthusiasm and great reviews pulled me into finding it hard to resist a good foodie book and I love to make recipes I find in books, especially fiction books.
Day 4: Staying Connected
I used to be so good at this as I mentioned above. When I first started blogging the rule of 20 blogs a day is how I grew this blog. I would make a goal of visiting 20 blogs a day and not just my faves. I would click on bloggers who commented on my favorite blogs. I would always leave a comment and watch to see if they visited me. Most did. I made sure once they got here, I had something interesting up so they would want to come back. It worked. I have a twitter account for Book Journey but I rarely use it. I do not have a Facebook page for Book Journey…. just seems like a one-more-thing. Basically what you see here is what I do. I talk books, life, food, and try to keep it real. I do hope to get back to reading more blogs. I do enjoy it.
Day 5: Blogger Burnout
It is true. Some of the rock star bloggers that were my blogging idols when I started have dropped off. I was sad to see them go but understand that life happens, jobs change, babies are born, interests change… This past year for me I thought there was a good chance I was done. We took a huge hit this past year and it blew my life wide open. It still does. What I found for myself is that once again Book Journey changed a bit. I felt safe here to share my heart and my heart ache. I talked about what was happening. Honestly – I have met many of you through the book expo. Others of you from our talks here and reading your blogs, I feel as though I know you. Book Journey for a while went away from book reviews and instead became a place I could just talk it out. Honestly when I look back at the things that have helped me get this far, this blog would be one of them. I don’t want to let this connection go.
My suggestion to those feeling blogger burnout is if it starts to feel like work you either need to change up what you are doing or walk away until it feels right. It’s your blog. If one day you feel like writing about burned toast instead of the latest hot read – do it. If you no longer find that you can post 4 times a week like you used to, change it to what works for you. It is your corner of the internet. DO what works for you 🙂
In closing, I wanted to be a part of BBAW because you all matter to me. It is hard for me to put into words what this past year and your generous outpouring of love for me and my family has meant. And to think… it all started with a book review and one girls desire to connect beyond her life circles. Thank you all for being a part of my online book friends life circle.
Sheila
PS Thanks Estelle for putting this together. Thank you Care for posting about it so I seen it. I hope to get around to those who participated so I can read their great posts this week.
Book Journey 
Thank you for this post. Especially the paragraph about burn out and doing the blog your way. Some times I feel like I “need” or “have” to do it a certain way or the publishers/tour people won’t work with me. I forget I need to do it my way.
I used to be that way. I thought I could only talk books on a book blog. I thought I had to post practically daily to maintain my readership. I thought….. well I was wrong. I actually gained a stronger readership when I shared more than books. I no longer feel the need to post every day or even every three days. I love the connections at my own pace.
Thanks for your words of wisdom.
You always make me think of Harry Potter. The connections truly are the best part of blogging, aren’t they?
They really are Kathy. This past year it was connections in RL and on this blog that sustained me. We do not have a lot of close family so my relationships I have built through the years are what kept me going. I was and am so thankful to have them. And the Harry Potter comment is a great compliment 🙂
It has been a great week. I met a whole bunch of new bloggers who I have somehow missed. I may be right beside you outside the loop.
Oh good, the loop is a big one…. plenty of room for both of us 🙂
Hey, better late than never, right? I managed only the interview, so together we completed the week!! And yes, I have a room reservation for 2016 BEA … we will talk as the time approaches. :))
Awesome.
Aw, I’m sorry you missed a bunch of the week! But I’m glad you were able to participate at the end, at least, and maybe we can catch you on our next go-round in 2017!
I just didn’t see anything about it. Oh well 🙂
WOO HOO!!!! And you slam into that finish line with the enthusiasm and style we know you for! Great post. Glad you were able to catch up and dive in.
Thanks Care!
I love that about how you wish you could say Ulysses changed your life! LOLOL (well you could SAY it, LOL)
LOL 😛
A faith driven fantasy lover who likes games! I love that!
LOL – I am really a hot mess. 🙂
Aaaah! I love that you smushed it all into one post. That is glorious. And wonderful. HUGS ALL AROUND!
Thanks, I was going to just complete day 5 but the whole things was so much better 😀
I love how you did a whole week in one post. I love this.
Thanks, I wanted to feel connected.
Sheila, you’ve been with us in spirit. Your name was mentioned all around, on many, many blogs. We all admire you and love you and support you. And I think you were the perfect person to chime in on today’s topic. Truly. You know, I believe that many things happen when they are supposed to happen. I’m thinking maybe this was the day that you, Sheila, were supposed to write your one post for the year’s BBAW. It’s going to touch hearts and it’s going to help someone who is struggling. And you’ll probably never know who that is. Because that’s how those things work. Hugs to you. Always thinking of you. Always.
Ahhh thanks Kay that is very sweet. I appreciate your kind words. Those that have been here this year know I have been on an emotional roller coaster that I can’t seem to get off of. Saying things out loud has been so helpful. Now I want to go and read ALL the posts.
better late than never! Hoping to see you at BEA!
This is fun too, to read all of it together. 🙂 And, yay to Harry Potter! 🙂
You sound like me. I often find out about these events too late too. I just don’t read all the right blogs or am not on Twitter when others are talking about them, I think.
We are big fans of Harry Potter in our house too. My daughter recently discovered the movies and demands we watch them over and over and over and over again. I feel guilty that I haven’t even introduced her to the books yet. Bad, I know. The audio of Ready Player One is awesome, I agree.
You probably don’t feel them, but I send you virtual hugs every day, Sheila. I love your honesty and openness. And you have my continued support.
Glad you jumped in at the end, Sheila! I have to say that in reading the five defining books on some other blogs, I don’t think I saw Ulysses once. I saw Harry Potter a lot! I think you are in good company. 🙂
“Book Journey for a while went away from book reviews and instead became a place I could just talk it out. Honestly when I look back at the things that have helped me get this far, this blog would be one of them. I don’t want to let this connection go.” And THIS is why I chose you as “Most Inspiring” when I made my list of BBAW Superlatives. SO glad you’re planning to be in Chicago in May!
Ahhh thank you Florinda.
I am glad to see you join in even if it was at the end! I think Twitter is why I knew it was happening so I dusted off my blog and posted a couple times. But normally, I am out of the loop more than I am in the loop nowadays.
One thing life has taught me is that we each need time for what is most important to us and that usually come down to three things – me time, family and friends time, and if I don’t clean up this house, critters are going to move in, Right now you need a lot of family and friends time AND some me time, that may or may not include blogging and some of the other things you did religiously. Hugs, my friend. I enjoyed your post.
Thank you. Hugs to you too.
Awww, sorry you missed it ahead of time, but I’m glad you decided to participate your own way! I love the idea you had about 20 blogs a day. Most of my growing was done through commenting too – I rarely use my twitter, and I have no facebook page – but I’ve dropped away from a lot of that for the last few years.
your goal of 20 blog visits a day is quite ambitious especially if you want to leave meaningful comments too. some days I manage about 15 but others it can be as low as 5…