Friday, June 8, 2012

Armchair BEA Day 5: Ask the Experts: How do you handle Burnout?

Welcome to the last day of Armchair BEA.  I will admit to being slack the last couple of days, but we had a death in the family (husband's great uncle, but he was close to him) so that put a crimp in things with visitation and viewing and I didn't pre-plan my posts as I should have.  But I am back today for the final day and I had a blast last night co-hosting the final twitter party.

Today's suggested topic is Ask the Experts and I'm supposed to ask you, my readers and wonderful Armchair BEA participants stopping by any burning questions I might have.  And I do have one.

I am currently suffering from blogging burnout.  Something that has come and gone in the past but this is the longest it has stayed with me. I honestly don't want to quit my blog.  I have developed wonderful relationships with bloggers and publicists and love reading and writing here, so to you dear bloggers and readers, how do you handle burnout?  What advice and suggestions do you have?  I admit Armchair BEA has helped some, but do you have others?  A big huge thanks in advance because I need all the help I can get right now :)

9 comments:

Bekka said...

My first piece of advice (not that I'm some kind of authority on these things lol) is to realize that taking a break is okay! Remember that blogging is supposed to be fun, so if it stops being fun, there is absolutely nothing wrong with backing up a little bit and doing something totally not blog related.

Another thing: us bloggers get very tied up in our review copies. Sometimes scheduling what we're reading ahead of time can be a drag. So I suggest picking up a book for no other reason than you want to. Maybe it's a sequel in a series you're loving, maybe it's the new book from your favorite author. But when you're done reading that book you know you're going to love, you're going to want to shout it from the rooftops! What better way than that to bring you back to your blog?

Everyone goes through this sometime. It happens to me a lot. But a break from the monotony to do something fun or something you're really excited about should help. Good luck!

Becky B. @ Bibliognome said...

Hi, I agree with what Bekka said. It is vital to have fun and sometimes just read something for no reason other then you want to.

Cackleberry Homestead said...

Thanks Bekka and Becky B., I have been working on this. I've been reading some library books, like Divergent and some others and it is helping, now to just write the review.

Bekka, I think you are very right that we get very tied up in scheduling and it does become a drag. I often want to throw up my hands. So I am coming to a point that I am being very picky now. I have to really want it to schedule it so that I now have time to read from my tbr pile that I have added to from all the other wonderful blogs out there!

Amanda said...

I agree, take a break! If you still feel like reading, grab a few books that you don't HAVE to read. If not, spend time with family or friends. Relax. Work on another hobby.

fredamans said...

Sending my deepest condolences.

Unknown said...

I have a handful of true favorites and classics on my shelf. When I get burnout I tend to pick up a favorite and read it again. This usually restores my spirit and desire to read again. The other thing that helps me is to try something new and scrap the old. If you are getting burnt out on something it is time to spring clean. In the real world if I get tired of my hair I get a new cut or color it. Likewise change up the memes you do or what you post about. Be crazy. Those true followers will stick with you through it. Try writing one sentence reviews instead of the full thing. Just shake it up.

Gwen@ChewDigestBooks.com said...

NOOOOO! You were supposed to help me with my blogging slump!

I am hoping that the glow from this week will last long enough to get me started again.

★Leila | The Fiction Pixie said...

I think that mostly everyone has already covered that it is okay to take a break. I was burnt out pretty bad after about six months or so and it was because I jumped in head first and was completely overwhelmed by all the good things there are to do and books to read and review. Since then, I have a balance that keeps me interested and keeps things on my blog but it is nowhere near daily or on a schedule but I don't want to quit but I'm enjoying my life outside of blogging too and that means a lot.

If you find that you feel a break has helped, don't come back full force at first, find a "vacation" pace and don't force it or you may never get it back.

I'm not an expert and I feel like I just rambled a lot but maybe it helped :)

For what it is worth, I'm a long time follower and I will stick around 0:)
Leila | The Fiction Pixie

Kristin said...

I find that I have to continually remind myself that blogging is my hobby. That said, I'm ok if I feel the need to take a break from it. I also have definitely cut back on the reviews I accept - I only take them on if I really want to read the book. As for changing things up - one thing I started doing was participating in some different memes - this is a great way to try something new and to meet some new bloggers.

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