Discussion Post: My Fear of Discussion Posts

Confession time:

In 3+ years of blogging, I have never written a dedicated discussion post.

Let that sink in a minute. In over three and a half years there has been not one single discussion post on this blog. Sure there have been countless Top Ten Tuesdays when I might have briefly chatted about that week's theme. But to come up with a topic on my own and generate a post delving into my own thoughts and feelings about a particular subject? Nope, never happened.

So that naturally leads to the question: Why?

Glad you asked. And there's a simple answer.

It's because I fear the discussion post!

And we're not talking a mild nervousness. Or a slight skittishness.

No ma'am. We're talking outright fear.

Dread.

Horror.

Alarm.

Panic.

*insert further synonyms at will*

So why this reaction to the mere thought of a discussion post? I have reasons. 

So... let's discuss shall we? (yeah, I went there)

EVERY POSSIBLE TOPIC HAS ALREADY BEEN COVERED

Okay, this one is bogus on two accounts. Because one, I see bloggers discuss new and interesting topics all the time. Sam @ We Live and Breathe Books is great at this! Whether it's a broad subject or a very specific thing, she often posts interesting discussions that are unique and generate discussion in the comments.

And secondly, just because a topic has been covered doesn't mean there's nothing more to say. Or that I might not have my own perspective or opinion. Goodness knows no one I know, including me, has a shortage of opinions. :)

I HAVE NOTHING OF VALUE TO ADD/NO ONE WILL AGREE WITH MY OPINION

Alright, another lame excuse that I can easily shoot down. Thinking I might not have anything of value to add kind of goes hand in hand with the aforementioned "everything's been covered and there's nothing left to say" b.s. 

And no one agreeing with my opinion? Well, for starters that's highly unlikely. It's not like I'm that controversial or extreme. And secondly, who cares if they don't? I mean, seriously - it's my blog, my opinion, and my right to throw out my little thoughts and feelings into the void. If no one agree with me... okay. *shrugs* At the end of the day does it really matter? And do I really care? (Answer: not really, no.)

I WON'T BE ABLE TO COME UP WITH ANY NEW TOPICS

Oh puhleeze. I'm rolling my eyes even as I type it. I've told myself this so many times but the fact is that I often find myself wondering if others do the same thing (like picking a bookmark based on the book), experience the same thing (wondering what fictional characters are doing when I'm not reading the book), etc. There are ideas all around, just in day to day life, so having nothing to talk about is pretty ridiculous.

So it would seem that none of my excuses reasons are all that valid. And that maybe I should get over myself and just do it. I mean, hey, I just proved that I can write a discussion post... even if it's about my fear of discussion posts. That counts, right? :)

So how about you?

Do you enjoy discussion posts? Fear them like me?

Do you struggle with topics?

Let's chat it up!

Discussion: ARC Overload

So I currently find myself in a position I've not been in before. One that I'm sure is familiar to many of you. Let's call it... ARC OVERLOAD. Do I see you nodding your head already?

It's not like this is some new phenomenon. It happens all the time. I know this because I see some of you post about it. But - it's new to ME.

Here's the thing: I'm not one to request a lot of ARC's. Typically it has to be a book by one of the handful of my favorite authors or one with a synopsis so amazing that I just have to have it. This doesn't happen often. Sometimes a couple months can pass without me requesting a single title. And when I do request a book and get denied... well, it happens. I never view it as a personal slight, to me or my blog (I've never understood that particular reaction), and all it means is that I'll get the book on its release date along with most everyone else.

But (there's always a but), there seems to have been a perfect storm of circumstances that now have me experiencing ARC OVERLOAD.

1) I was in a blissed-out book haze one recent afternoon and had a field day at Edelweiss. And requested eight books. Yes, eight. And, so far, have been approved for at least half of those.

2) Those emails direct from the publishers who tell me that since I previously requested Book X I'll probably enjoy Book Z and I can download it now from NetGalley. Yeah, the emails must have been sprinkled with book crack because I was all over those.

3) A direct request from an author for a book that sounded so right up my alley and, despite all the other ARC's already pending, I couldn't help myself.

4) Blog tours that I had previously signed up for are coming up soon and, because I typically choose to do review posts... yeah, the ARC's for those are coming in as well.

Now for the real irony? And the real reason I rarely request ARC's? Because my reading philosophy has long been: I read what I want to read - when I want to read it. I try not to get my head turned by all the shiny new releases, the latest book that everyone is reading/talking about, or (you guessed it) ARC's. I love the freedom of reading whatever my heart desires at any given moment. A book that's been on my shelf for 3 years, a series that I want to binge, a book I picked up at the library. I'm a total mood reader and I never know what I'm going to pick up one book to the next.

And yet here I am, currently buried under a pile of ARC's, knowing I'm on a timeline, and ignoring all the books that I really, really want to be reading. You see the irony, right? That I did this to myself? Yeah, me too.

So. My current plan? Get through these ARC's (without requesting more!) and consider this a lesson learned. And then I can get back to my bookish happy zone: reading exactly what I want to read. Again.

Do you ever experience ARC OVERLOAD? Is that your usual

state of being or do you prefer to keep a handle on it?

Let's discuss!

#ShelfLove Quarterly Topic (March): Oldest Unread Books on My Shelf aka The Bookshelf of Shame

For the second year in a row, I'm taking part in the #ShelfLove Challenge. 

The focus is on reading the books you already own - and I'm all about that!

The discussion topic for this quarter: 

What are the top books (unread) on your shelf 
that have been there the longest?

Don't you just cringe reading that? Being forced to think about some of the books that have been lingering on your bookshelves for ages. Are we all hanging our heads in shame? Well it's time to 'fess up and share those books that are unread (but not unloved!) and just patiently waiting for their turn.

Note: These are all books that are physically on my shelves, not just on my TBR. All dates gathered from when I added the book to my GoodReads To-Read shelf.

ON MY SHELF SINCE 2014

ON MY SHELF SINCE 2013

ON MY SHELF SINCE 2012

ON MY SHELF SINCE 2011

ON MY SHELF SINCE 2010

My #ShelfLove Challenge Progress:

What unread book has been 

on your bookshelf the longest?

A Traitor in the Midst: Or, Why I Won't Be Reading the New Harry Potter Book

Today's post is brought to you by the letter S. S is for Sick. Which, in case anyone has noticed my absence, is the reason I haven't been around for the past week. On the plus side, I'm finally vertical which is a step in the right direction. Baby steps, y'know.

All that time spent horizontal gave me plenty of time to ponder. Because (hold on to something now) I felt so poorly I didn't even want to read. 

Yeah, yeah, I know. It happens. But back to my pondering. Once I was able to get semi-vertical (propped up in bed) I noticed that my email inbox and Bloglovin' feed were blowing up with posts about Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Posts about its release, posts about going to midnight HP events, posts about expectations, posts about the sheer excitement over a new entry into the world of Harry Potter. And as I took all that in, my own feelings were... meh. 

See what I did there? ;)

Now before anyone gets all up in arms and puts a curse on me, let me explain: I loved Harry Potter. I read all the books, I saw all the movies. I was thoroughly captivated by the epic story. I even remember the thrill of the release of the final book and the excitement of finally having it in my hands. 

But, no matter how much I enjoyed it all, my feelings about the series will never match those who grew up with Harry Potter. When Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone came out I was already 29 years old. (And by the time the Deathly Hallows released ten years later... well, you can do the math.) Reading any book as an adult will guarantee a different experience than if the book was read in childhood. And I think that goes tenfold for a series as beloved as Harry Potter.

There's something magical about experiencing a special book in childhood. Especially a story as amazing as Harry Potter. It becomes part of the fabric of your childhood. Memories of reading the books for the first time in elementary school, or receiving one of the books for Christmas... they're woven into a special time of life that is filled with nostalgia. 

So when I see readers/bloggers of a certain age gushing with excitement over Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, I'm happy for them. I know that for them this is an epic event. An addition to a series they have known and loved their entire lives. But for me it's different. My childhood did not include Harry Potter. It was a series that I read and loved as an adult and... that's it. For me, it's over. It was over when I read the Deathly Hallows in 2007. And it was over (again) when I saw the final movie in 2011. It's not something I feel any need to revisit. 

So, as happy as I am for my friends who are beside themselves with the release of the new book, I'll be sitting this one out. Enjoy, my Harry Potter-loving friends!

Will you be reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child?

Do you have a different sort of love for the books you read as a child?