I seriously threw myself off reviewing books in November of 2023 because I binge-read a series so fast that I couldn’t wrap my mind around getting all the reviews written. So, dear readers, I thought it would be great to kick off 2024 with some advice about binge-reading (and reviewing) books.
- Binge-reading is so much fun as a reader! I love it when I can sink into an author’s universe and feel like I’m walking alongside the characters as their stories unfold. Books are like movies for me, and I have a VERY vivid imagination, so I literally feel like I am part of a story’s world when I read. If I can make that feeling last for more than one book,… even better!
- Binge-reading makes me forget things like housework, hobbies, and sometimes interactions with real people. This can be such a negative. On the one hand, you are getting an extended vacation in a fictional world. Still, on the other hand, you have real-life responsibilities and blessings that cannot and should not be ignored. I can get hyper-focused on a series of stories to the detriment of laundry, dishes, etc. I must actively and purposefully walk away from reading to avoid becoming a hermit.
- As a reviewer, I can get the timeline of events mixed up between books. While this is less difficult when each book of a series focuses on a different couple, like The Bailey Brothers by Claire Kingsley or the Redleg Security Series by Jackie Walker, it is essential to keep a timeline pure when reviewing a series like A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. I’m not too fond of reviews that give away essential details and elements of a story, so it is a non-negotiable rule that I never write a review that contains spoilers. Binge-reading an entire series without stopping to review a book at the end of each story creates a risk of possible spoilers and can decimate a reviewer’s productivity.
- Binge-read reviews can cause a narrow audience for your blog site. Think about it: if a person reads one of your reviews, then reads the book and discovers that the book isn’t their cup of tea, you risk not having them return to your site… especially if they read the review for book 1 and thus are uninterested in book 2, 3, etc. If you read as fast as I do, schedule your reviews so that the series is split apart by reviews of other books and blog posts with a variety of genres or topics so that you bring a larger audience to your site.
Even recognizing how valid all of these points are… I find myself binge-reading if there is more than one book of a series available to me. I also find that I will finish a book in a location or at a time when sitting down to review a book is not an option. So, how am I going to keep my book-reviewing goals on track? Well, my awesome husband bought me a reading journal for Christmas. In fact, he bought me the Clever Fox Reading Journal from Amazon. You can get it by clicking here.
In this reading journal, I have a way to index my journal entries, a reading log that is broken into months, a daily reading tracker, TBR (to-be-read) pages, a reading list with start and end dates, and 2 pages with question prompts for each book’s journal entry. Initially, I think some of these elements may be redundant. Since this is my first reading journal, I’ll withhold judgment until I discover which elements I use.
This journal, along with a planned schedule of blog posts, genre/subgenre guidelines I’ve created, scheduled time to write, and increasing my awareness of ways to use social media effectively, will hopefully make Lounge Time With Liz a fun place to hang out for a while.
Cheers to 2024!
Lounge Time With Liz 