Category: discussion

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!

June 3: Have you ever considered quitting blogging?  (Kristin @ Lukten Av Trykksverte)

Prompts: Have your reasons for blogging changed since you started? If so, what changes have you noticed? Have you ever taken a break from blogging, or thought about it? Have you ever thought about quitting blogging entirely? What stops you? What gives you motivation to keep blogging?

Welcome to another week here of LTB at DTRH, everyone! Today’s topic is a little bit more sombre, but hey, it’s also part of the reality of anything we do. Can’t wait to hear why you all blog, and what drives you forward!

Personally, I really didn’t start that long ago (though the years do begin to fly by). However, the commitment isn’t really that huge, and the connection and structure that I get from co-maintaining this blog really adds a lot of value to my life, so that’s my main motivation for going on. In the beginning it was really just to kind of help Andge out, and to re-acquaint myself with the bookish world and to really start reading many books again, something that I had neglected to do during my undergraduate studies.

Nowadays, it’s much more for my own interest that I want to keep reading. It’s fun to work together with a co-host, and we each get more exposed to new things about the bookish community as we work together on this path, which I think is super exciting. I suppose it started off much more as “understudy” type of role, but I think I’ve really grown into it, much more like a true partnership nowadays, though I really do attribute most of the effort to Andge still!

We have never taken a break here at DTRH. Just kidding. If you’ve been following for some time, you’ll definitely have noticed where some unannounced hiatuses (hiati?) have crept in here and there. Though we have had a really good streak in the past year and a half! We take a break when we need it. Let’s face it, life can be overwhelming for so many reasons, and there’s no need to be tied down to something that isn’t helping your recovery. For those of you out there who also need a break, I highly recommend it, you won’t regret it. Your personal (physical and mental) health is so much more important and should never be taken for granted.

I can only speak for myself in motivation to keep going and not quitting, but really I wouldn’t be totally against quitting if there’s no longer an interest, or if blogging just becomes a huge chore. Hopefully (fingers crossed) it will never come to that, but really the community and also the chance to express yourself and keep track of the books you read are all the pros I need to keep going with this hobby. I know in my heart of hearts that if I need a break or if I can’t handle it, I can also just take a break! Which I think is basically what has happened so far.

Keep going if you want to keep going. This I definitely encourage. However, if you have any doubts, don’t be afraid to take breaks as well. It’s a hobby, after all. It’s supposed to be fun, and stimulating, and life-giving. If it’s just a bore or a drag and just getting you down all the time, maybe it’s time to revisit why you’re doing it in the first place. Can’t stress enough how much things should be adding value to your life in some way at least, and if it’s not, maybe it’s time to reconsider.

Do you agree? Why do you all blog? Are there any interesting reasons why you all do what you do? Let me know in the comments below!

---

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!

May 27: Tracking reading (Aria)

Prompts: Do you keep track of the books you read? If so, do you use Goodreads? Storygraph? Another platform? Has the way you keep track of your reading changed since you started blogging? What are the pros and cons of tracking your reading?

Welcome back to another week of LTB here at DTRH! Today’s topic is suggested by our very own host, Aria. I have been wondering lately how people keep track of their reading, so this is the perfect time for this topic. Can’t wait to hear what you all do!

Personally, I use Goodreads and Storygraph. But I only minimally use it. I use them both to merely mark off what I have read, but not in particular to share with anyone or to provide a review. Goodreads because it is such a major platform, and I started doing Storygraph last year too because my friend and I thought that the little infographic they have was quite interesting to look at.

Do any of you know a different platform? I’d love to hear what else is out there. Though between the ones I already do and the blog, I do not really have time for another site, unless it is particularly convenient. Still, I think goodreads basically covers the gamut of what I need with my tracking so I haven’t been on the hunt for a new site.

I really only started keeping track because of blogging. For the most part I can just remember what book I’ve read, but with the start of blogging, so many more books have been floating around my periphery that it can definitely start to get confusing. Have you ever thought you read a book but actually hadn’t? Or the other way around? I definitely remember reading a book and then being like …oh I’ve read this before. Such an odd deja-vu moment.

Not sure if there are any cons to keeping track of your reading. It seems either like a pro to stay organized if you’re a blogger or like to look back through your reading list to suggest one to a friend. Or it’s possible that having this list doesn’t affect you at all. But I for one cannot think of why it might be bad to have a reading list. Perhaps it takes up too much of your time to keep track? If you have one, let me know!

How do you all keep track of your reading?

---

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!

May 20: Have you got any characters who you feel reflect you as a person? (Mikaela @ Mikaela Reads)

Prompts: What fictional characters do you think you have the most in common with? What is it you have in common with them? Do you think you would get along with these characters if you could meet them in real life? Have fictional characters ever helped you understand yourself better? How does it feel to read about a character who really reflects you as a person?

Welcome everyone to another week of LTB here at DTRH! This week’s topic is certainly something I always think about, and I’d love to hear how the rest of you feel about characters that you resonate with too. Without further ado, let’s dive right in!

I think I relate with a lot of characters that deal with self-sacrifice. I always think that I would do the same (or not the same) in their situation and that always gets me thinking about the values that I hold dear. Another type of character that I relate to is one with a similar parent-child relationship to my own family. I suppose this is related to the first idea, of how much you would be willing to do for your own family.

With these characters, I feel like the way we look at the world and consider the different values in it can be pretty similar. I’m not sure that would necessarily translate to us getting along in real life, but I would certainly be able to at least relate to their actions and understand the motivations behind their actions. If I were to meet these characters, I would try and get to know more about their intentions and what drives them to make these tough choices, but I think whether or not we’d be friends would rely on other factors.

I think reading about any fictional character always helps me to better understand myself. It is clear that some protagonists (or other characters) you just can’t get along with or just can’t agree with. I usually use this time to reflect on myself after reading the book, and to consider why it is that I just couldn’t relate or care about those characters. Most often it will be an attitude or perhaps a core value problem, that really sets us apart. I’m almost certain that I would not be friends with those characters, but at least it does help me to understand myself and how I think a bit better.

Sometimes seeing characters in a book that really reflect you in a book can be eye-opening. First, you get to attached to such a character (for obvious reasons), and their every triumph and folly almost becomes your own. It can be interesting in those situations to think about whether or not you’d react the same (given your similarities), and that can really give more perspective on whether you are similar or not. Sometimes a disposition can be the end of a similarity, because the actions you choose to take from those motivations/perceptions can often be more important than what you were inclined to do. If the character does something silly from an outside perspective as a reader, it can be a good reminder to self-check and look at whether you might also do those things unknowingly.

What do you all think about characters? Do you meet characters that match you? I assume that’s one of the charms of reading and that there will always be characters that you feel more attached to for one reason or another. How do you feel relating to them? Let me know in the comments below!

---