Category: discussion

discussion

Let’s Talk Bookish – Writing Whatever You Want?

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

Aria @ Book Nook Bits will be the new host for Let’s Talk Bookish! If you aren’t following her yet, good check out her blog and give her a follow!

October 14: Can you write whatever you want? (Anna)

Prompts: Can bloggers just write whatever they want? Or are there boundaries they should respect even on their own platform? If a blogger is called out for something they post, are they obligated to respond?

Welcome back to another week of LTB here at DTRH everyone! Today’s topic is quite interesting, and something that I didn’t immediately have an answer too. As a relatively new blogger myself, I don’t feel like I have seen enough iterations of the community to know what may hold true or not over time, but I’d love to hear what the rest of you out there feel or instinctively think about this!

I suppose I do have an immediate thought that yes it’s your own personal blog and you can realistically write almost anything you want. That being said, because it’s not just a personal diary, in which I think you really could have no limits on what you write, a blog is something public and to be shared and read by the community (with that intention in mind!). In that case, I feel like just naturally there should be some restrictions, are at the very least, considerations before posting just whatever you want.

I think as a personal blog, we should definitely allow a large degree of freedom, and after all, it is really more like an open discussion forum where we are free to express our opinions. That being said, I definitely wouldn’t support anyone spreading hate speech or anything like that on such a public forum. I have not seen any of that around in our community, so I don’t think this will be an issue, but I am grateful all the same.

Definitely any opinions on books, and other bookish content, etc., should have full disclosure. I mean, that is the point of a blog, is it not? As for other content…I think people should use their best discretion as to what they do or do not say. One thing to remember is that the blog is an extension of yourself, and people will judge (or at least realize) more about your character based on what they see and read. In that case, it may just be best not to express things that you wouldn’t say in public, for example. But I would leave it up to each person’s discretion as to what they want to divulge and share about themselves rather than set “rules and boundaries” in the abstract.

I have never personally seen someone “called out” for something on their blog, though I can imagine it happening easily over controversial topics or books. I don’t think anyone is obligated to reply, but I can see many reasons why one may want to defend or address their own opinion. Sometimes posts or comments just don’t age well, and we can’t always put the full blame on the writer (though there should likely still be some accountability).

What do you all think about the freedom of a blogger to express their own opinions? Unlimited free rein over the internet? Or maybe something a little bit more subdued? I think I tend to lean towards freedom with each person using their own discretion, but this doesn’t always work, unsurprisingly. What do you all think? Let me know in the comments below!

discussion

Let’s Talk Bookish – DNFing Books

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

Aria @ Book Nook Bits will be the new host for Let’s Talk Bookish! If you aren’t following her yet, good check out her blog and give her a follow!

October 7: DNFing books (Mint @ Mint Loves Books)

Prompts: DNF is an acronym that stands for did not finish. What makes you DNF a book? How often do you DNF books? What’s the silliest or pettiest reason why you DNF’d a book? Do you review books that you DNF?

Hello everyone and welcome to another week here of LTB here at DTRH! It is now October and time is flying way too quickly. But nevertheless, we start this month with an exciting topic that perhaps may be more hush-hush? Can’t wait to hear what you all do regarding this topic!

I personally try and finish all books I pick up and start reading. Caveat being I usually won’t take huge risks with a book that I probably won’t like, and I also try not to commit to books that are too long, so that even if I don’t like it, I can usually make it through. I just generally don’t like the idea of not finishing a book, since it may be me not giving it a fair chance. Though of course I am sure there are many reasons why a book can just be unbearable.

I really do try my best not to DNF a book though, and so I actually don’t remember any time in recent history that I didn’t follow through and just finish it. Honestly, it is more likely that a book will not interest me from the start and I won’t pick it up to begin with, rather than not finishing something that I have already started and committed to.

I suppose this is a really big sign that I’m pretty lucky with the books I choose, rather than my own personal perseverance (though I feel like I am good at making it through not-so-good books). I think what tends to happen when I am not as interested is that I start to skim more and more, but I will usually want to find out what happens at the end to see if there’s any redemption. That still counts as finishing though, right?

We do review books here at DTRH that we DNF, but like I said, DNFing at all will generally be the exception rather than the rule. I’d love to know what silly or petty reasons you all have for DNFing a book though. I don’t think I have any good (or rather, bad) stories to share about not finishing a book. But I hope overall not to have to put down any book at all!

How do you all deal with the urge to DNF a book? Or are you like me and like to push through even some dreadful books? Let me know in the comments below!

discussion

Let’s Talk Bookish – Reading Seasonally

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

Aria @ Book Nook Bits will be the new host for Let’s Talk Bookish! If you aren’t following her yet, good check out her blog and give her a follow!

September 23: Reading seasonally (Mikaela @ Mikaela Reads)

Prompts: Do you read seasonally? Do you like a beach read in summer, a spooky book in the autumn and holiday themed ones in winter? What’s your favorite season? Do you have any favorite seasonal reads?

Welcome to another week of LTB here at DTRH! Or should I say, Season’s Greetings! Now that it’s fall, it got dramatically colder, at least where I live. Appropriately, today’s topic is about seasonal readings and who partakes in it!

I don’t generally read seasonally. After all, murder mysteries and thrillers don’t lend itself to any season in my opinion. Okay I take that back; cozy mysteries do tend to lend itself to fall weather. However, I don’t really pick books according to the weather or season. Even if I were to, it would probably only be a book or two per season to “match”.

I do have a book club coming up that will be based on a Halloween theme! I do think that if you’re going to be setting up something with friends or a book club, that using a theme is a convenient way to narrow down choices for books, in case anyone is facing decision paralysis. I am certainly excited for that book club, and can’t wait to share it with all of you too when the time comes!

I read spooky books all year round, not just in autumn, but I think I do tend to pull out the beach reads during the summer, and perhaps the cozy mysteries in the colder season as well. Something about sitting by a fireplace and reading under the covers really lends itself to the atmosphere of certain books. Of course, if there’s a book I really want to read, the weather certainly won’t be stopping me.

My favourite season is generally autumn because I’m rather afraid of the high heat, but in true Canadian fashion, I really do complain about any weather that isn’t temperate. I also like reading all year round, and I would say the season doesn’t really affect it that much; it’s more likely that my work or schooling is what really affects what I am able to read each season.

Lastly, my guilty pleasure read is probably the Murder Mystery series by Joanne Fluke! The dessert themed mysteries really lend itself to a rather whimsical read in the colder seasons. What are your favourite seasonal reads? Let me know in the comments below!