Co-hosted by
Karen - For What It's Worth
&
Pam - Midnyter Reader
Book Blogger Confessions is a meme that posts the 1st and 3rd Monday of every month, where book bloggers "confess" and vent about topics that are unique to us. Feel free to share, vent and offer solutions.
Just keep it respectful - no bashing authors or other bloggers! If you want to participate just grab our button and include it in your post with a link to either Midnyte Reader or For What It's Worth. We will be providing a linky at the end of our posts so people can "hop" to see all the participants answers.
Question: How does blogging effect your *real* life? Are friends and family supportive? Do you find that blogging cuts into family time? How do you strike a balance between the two?
It consumes my real life. Or at least it did. I spent way too many hours on my blog and not participating in real life for the past few years. As soon as I woke up I would start going through posts and commenting for an hour while I ate breakfast, do errands/work, then come home write reviews & format (the real time drainer!) posts and then do another round of commenting & tweeting. Then after dinner I would squeeze in reading.
I went through a horrible reading/blogging slump last year where I forced myself to take time off. It was really hard to step away from the computer but I realized that I stopped participating in any non blogging/reading hobbies for almost two years. I wasn’t watching TV, going to movies or gardening – which I loved even more than reading at one time. I didn’t have time damn it! Had to get that book read, that post written, comment so I wouldn't’ lose all my friends…. It was a big wake up call to me and made me jump off the blogging merry-go-round. I’m much more laid back about it now and manage both real life and blogging quite easily. I even planted a flower garden already this year.
As for family and friends being supportive – my husband is not only supportive but he’s an enabler! He’s happy that I found something I enjoy doing so much and is always finding places to buy autographed books, sales, signings etc. He has my plane & hotel tickets for next years BEA pretty much a week after I get home from the current one. AND he loves going to BEA and bookish events. It brings out the hunter/gatherer in him. I tell him the books/authors I like and off he goes lol He also helps with html code, and sometimes edits my reviews for me. He’s awesome.
I try not to tell anyone else about my blog. A few people know but I didn’t tell them. (The aforementioned awesome hubby outed me) I feel like it’s my own little space and it makes me self conscious to know my friends and family are reading it. Especially with some of the books I read O_O
* Upcoming 2013 Book Blogger Confessions topics here
Past Book Blogger Confessions posts here
Wow, your hubby sounds so awesome. I am keeping my blog a secret as well. To stay safe online, mostly, but also because I feel like it's just for ME.
ReplyDelete+JMJ+
ReplyDeleteYour husband sounds amazingly supportive! =D
I have never kept my blogging a secret. In the past, I even invited friends and family to read it; but these days, I just mention that I blog as a hobby and don't offer the URL unless someone asks for it. I guess the fact that very few of the people I invited cared to visit tempered my enthusiasm. =P
The first answer which came to mind when I read your question was that some people will explicitly say to me, "Don't blog this, okay?" when confiding something to me. Apparently, I've shared details which I hadn't known were intimate on my blog before! I never outed people's identities when I did so, and I usually shared the stories by saying, "This reminds me of the time a friend told me . . ." But I guess people--even those with their own blogs--were a little put off by the ease with which I wove my private life and online life together. It reminds me (Oh, here I go again! LOL!) of a relatively well-known blogger who gives a lot of dating advice saying that her daughter has trouble finding dates because the boys are afraid they will be written about on the blog! LOL! The blogger has assured her daughter that she will never write about the daughter's private life, but the boys are still dubious!
Wow - it sounds like we both have impeccable taste in hubbies ;D. Mine can't read English (only understands the odd word here and there), but I manage to keep him updated with my reads and stuff, and he has never told me I'm a hopeless ex-teenager-unable-to-let-go so far LOL.
ReplyDeleteI can see how addictive blogging and all the related activities are. I'm glad you managed to find a balance. As a budding blogger, I haven't undergone a stage like that yet...and I'm doing my best not to. But it's not that easy.
So glad that you have an enabler and glad that he supports your hobby and going to all things bookish. Yes it can addictive and not fun at times. Love you
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you had an epiphany and have found a balance.
ReplyDeleteMy husband loves my hobby too. He's always encouraging me to go to "my happy place" i.e. Bloglandia.
Oh my goodness you have an enabler! That must be so awesome! Mine just makes me feel guilty every time I pick up a book or get on the computer. Plus he accuses me of being in love with all the fictional guys and therefore not loving him. *sigh* So not true. But then I have swapped hobbies many times and no matter which hobby I am currently loving he is not a big fan of. So I just do my best to ignore him. But I really can't be too harsh on him either. I do tend to go overboard when I get focused. I let everything else go. It is ugly. Balance is something I really struggle at. I would love a hubby that supported me attending book stuff so I could actually meet the people I mix with on the internet. But alas just the mention of going to some book event causes him to go on the defensive.
ReplyDeleteThat is hard if you don't have support for your hobbies.
DeleteThis is the first one I've gotten crazy over (although I spent SO much money on gardening!)
I *may* have forgotten to pay bills and clean the house because of blogging on occasion lol I'm trying to stop that level of obsession though.
What else can I say then YES ;)
ReplyDeleteYour hubby is AMAZING! My boyfriend is not a huge fan of going to bookish events. Especially since I mostly read YA, haha tons of screaming teenage girls is not in his list of favorite things. He does enable me as well though! He going through things on the blog and tells me what should be changed lol. I'm trying to convince him for BEA next year ;)
ReplyDeleteYour old routine sounds like my current one :S
Mine is freakishly organized so he has a group of us that goes to him for instructions at BEA lol He's like our fearless leader!
DeleteMore men having been going to BEA each year. The lines can be too much on them sometimes but overall they enjoy it.
Oddly enough Kevin (my hubby) is more patient with lines than I am. I'm like it's not worth it but he'll wait for an hour.
I reward him with lots of delicious NYC food!
That's pretty funny, but I keep my blog pretty private too. It's not like I hide it, but I definitely don't really announce it. I think a big part of it is exactly like you said. It's my own private space in a way.
ReplyDeleteI really need to make some time for other hobbies besides reading/blogging. My friend and I are trying to work out more now that Spring has arrived, so that will at least get me out of the house.
Kevin is SO awesome! Can he train my husband? I take my husband to motorcycle shows, maybe BEA can be payback. I know he would hate it though. Edits for you too? I'm jealous!
Awww...your hubby sounds like a real keeper:) I keep my blog pretty private too...I don't think anyone IRL really cares enough to visit it anyway...I'm alone in my bookish nerdiness so thank goodness for all of you!
ReplyDeleteThis is really a unique blog! Sydney
ReplyDeleteThis is a very timely post for me! I have been SO busy in real life the past few weeks that I literally have had no time to blog. Sometimes with balance comes knowing what the priorities are.I have finally been able to catch up today!! It feels so good to get the deadlines crossed off my list!
ReplyDeleteI love that your hubby is so involved in your blogging! My boyfriend is definitely supportive and never gives so much as an eye roll when it comes to reading, books, or blogging. I think he would enjoy BEA too!! He always asks me when it is, but so far we haven't been able to get away to do it!
Hi, I just came across your blog today. I'm a new subscriber. :)
ReplyDeleteThat's great that your husband is so supportive! Mine is too and is willing to help me figure out coding issues. Right now I am debating on trying to have him and I create a new template/blog design or if I am going to buy a design. So many thoughts go into that alone.
I am the same way about broadcasting my blog--the space is for me so I do not tell my friends and other librarians about it. I'm glad I'm not the only one who feels this way.
Happy Reading! :)
Thanks for following!
DeleteIt's strange but I only want to talk to you guys about reading lol It's my little escape from reality.
I am DR SHAKES SPEAR, I welcome you all to my world of spiritual temple of solution i want to assure you that what so ever you contacted me for will come to pass with the powers of my ancestors. i want to let you know that i am here to help you in any problem you might be facing, i have been in the field of helping people for over 55years now, i want to let you know that i have helped solving over 7000 people with so many problems in different countries and they have never stopped calling me to thank me for the good work i have done for them. My good work has spread to so many countries, why, is because they have seen my good work and they helped me spread it all over to the whole world. I want to let you know that the moment you contact me just consider all your problems solved because i know that once i commence on your spell work you are going to testify to the whole world here,Email me via address.( shakesspear23@yahoo.com OR shakesspear23@gmail.com )
ReplyDeleteAre you passing through any of these problems,
DO YOU NEED YOUR EX BACK VERY FAST
DON YOU WANT YOUR LOVER TO LOVE YOU AS NEVER LIKE BEFORE
ARE YOU SUFFERING FROM A LONG TIME SICKNESS
ARE YOU FACING FINANCIAL PROBLEMS
ARE YOU SEEKING FOR A GOOD JOB
DO YOU WANT TO BECOME A HOUSE OWNER
ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A FIRST CLASS GRADE
DO YOU WANT TO COME OUT FIRST IN YOUR EXAMS
ARE YOU A STAR AND YOU WANT TO BE SO POPULAR TO THE WHOLE WORLD
DO YOU WANT TO BE RICH
DO YOU WANT YOUR BUSINESS TO KEEP MOVING
DO YOU HAVE A COMPANY OF ANY KIND AND YOU WANT IT TO EXPAND
DO YOU WANT YOUR HUSBAND OR WIFE TO KEEP TO YOUR WORLD
ARE YOU FACING ANY MARITAL PROBLEMS
ARE YOU FINDING IT DIFFICULT TO GET PREGNANT FOR YOUR HUSBAND
ARE YOU EXPERIENCING MISCARRIAGES ANY TIME YOU TAKE IN
DO YOU WANT TO COMPETE IN ANY LOTTERY GAME
ARE YOU FACING HARDSHIP
HAVE YOU BEEN THREATENED BY SOMEONE
DO YOU WANT TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN ANY THING YOU LAY YOUR HANDS ON
IS YOUR SON OR DAUGHTER BEHAVING STRANGELY
ARE YOU FACING WITCH CRAFT MANIPULATIONS
DO YOU WANT TO CAST A STRONG LOVE SPELL ON YOUR GIRL OR BOY FRIEND
DO YOU NEED MAGIC POWERS TO DO ANY THING YOU WANT
ARE YOU FINDING IT DIFFICULT TO CHOOSE A LIFE PARTNER
DO YOU WANT YOUR PARENTS TO BE PROUD OF YOU
ARE YOU EXPERIENCING FAILURE AND DISAPPOINTMENT IN ANY THING YOU DO.(ETC)
If you are facing any of these problems all you just need do is to contact via email (shakesspear23@yahoo.com OR shakesspear23@gmail.com )and it will be handle with full force and with my oracle and ancestors beside me i want to make you testify just the same way other people did that i have helped. Do not die in pain and silence email me so that your problems will be solved by me with full speed.I want welcome you again to my spell temple.If you have any problem that you want my help for just email me and immediately it will be solved. Here is my email address(shakesspear23@yahoo.com OR shakesspear23@gmail.com )
My name is Morgan Diana, i want to use this medium to testify of how i got back my boyfriend after 8months of separation, I and my boyfriend broke up on August because he felt i was cheating on him with a male friend of mine, i tried all i could to explain to him but he paid deaf ears, i was emotionally devastated because i really did love him until i saw a post on the internet about a spell caster, who helps people gain back their lost love, at first i doubted if it was real because i never believed in spells but decided to give it a try, when i contacted this spell caster, he helped me cast a re-union spell and i got back my boyfriend within 48hours (2days). Contact this great spell caster for your relationship or marriage problems via email: greatogudugu@gmail.com this problems listed below:
ReplyDelete1)HIV CURE
(2) If you want your ex back.
(3) if you always have bad dreams.
(4) You want to be promoted in your office.
(5) You want women/men to run after you.
(6) If you want a child.
(7) You want to tie your husband/wife to be yours forever.
(8) How you been scammed and you want to recover you lost money.
(9)if you want to stop your divorce.
(10)if you want your wishes to be granted.
(11) Pregnancy spell to conceive baby
I want to let the world know about Dr Malawi Racum the Great spell caster that brought back my husband to me when i thought all hope was lost. I was pregnant when my husband left me for another Lady. Dr Malawi Racum used his powerful spell to put a smile on my face by bringing back my man with his spell, at first i thought i was dreaming when my husband came back to me on his knees begging me to forgive him and i accepted him back into my life and ever since then he loves me more than i ever expected so i made a vow to my self that i will let the World know about Dr Malawi Racum because he is a God on earth. Do you have problems in your relationship? have your partner broke up with you and you still love and want him back? Do you have problem with your finance? contact Dr Malawi Racum today for i give you 100% guarantee that he will help you just as he helped me. Email: spellofsolutiontemple@outlook.com. Leslie Tan from USA
ReplyDeleteHello, I just want to give a little information about this powerful man called Dr.Zack Balo that i contacted last Wednesday, He is able to bring back ex girlfriend within 72hours and you can simply contact him on his phone number +2348078927387 or email him wiseindividualspell@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteHow I Got My Husband back... Am so excited to share my testimony of a spell caster who brought my husband back to me. My husband and I have been married for about 6 years now. We were happily married with two kids, a boy and a girl. 3 months ago, I started to notice some strange behavior from him and a few weeks later I found out that my husband is seeing someone else. He started coming home late from work, he hardly cared about me or the kids anymore, Sometimes he goes out and doesn't even come back home for about 2-3 days. I did all I could to rectify this problem but all to no avail. I became very worried and needed help. As I was browsing through the Internet one day, I came across a website that suggested that Dr.Odu adebayo can help solve marital problems, restore broken relationships and so on. So, I felt I should give him a try. I contacted(WhatsApp) him and told him my problems and he told me what to do and I did it and he did a spell for me. 48 hours later, my husband came to me and apologized for the wrongs he did and promised never to do it again. Ever since then, everything has returned back to normal. My family are living together happily again.. All thanks to Dr.odu adebayo If you have any problem contact him and I guarantee you that he will help you. He will not disappoint you. you can WhatsApp him(+2347055287754)or Email him at : poweroflovespell@gmail.com.
ReplyDelete