Monday, February 6, 2012

Book Blogger Confessions: Deadlines

Book Blogger Confessions is a new meme hosted by Tiger's All Consuming Media or For What It's Worth. What is it? It's a meme that allows bloggers to weigh in on a topic, talk about or own blogging experiences and maybe vent a little. This time we're talking about deadlines. The question: Deadlines for reviewing and blogging. Do you set them? How do you keep them? What do you do if you can't meet a deadline?

Hmmm. Deadlines. Well. Deadlines are subjective. I have two separate circumstances and in one the deadlines matter and in the other they don't.

So, when deadlines don't matter - I actually don't receive a lot of review copies. I buy my books. I pick what I read off the stacks and stacks that I have in my room. I work at a bookstore, so I do get ARCs here and there, but they are selective, and I'm selective about which ones I choose. When I am reading and reviewing these types of books, I don't set deadlines. I hesitate to commit to reading books at certain times because I don't want to read something I'm not in the mood for, because then I'm likely to resent it, or to color my opinion of it with a pre-set attitude. If I am reading and reviewing a book before it's intended date, I always try to post that review within a week of it's release date. Other than that, I read what I feel like and post shortly after.

When deadlines matter? Well, when I receive copies intended specifically for review - i.e. NetGalley and author requests. In these instances I come up with a rough date that I intent to have a review posted for that book. Also, for memes, giveaways, or events. Those three things are when my deadlines are actually set, because they often involve a lot of other people.

This is not a blog run by deadlines. I set them occasionally - so the ones I do set are easy to stick to, because everything else is so flexible. I DID just get a calendar specifically for the blog though. I'm now keeping better track of book release dates and those instances that actually have deadlines. I feel better about being organized and coming up with a system - but most of my calendar is open to be filled later, depending on what I'm reading.

How about you? What's your take on deadlines?

Monday, February 6, 2012

Book Blogger Confessions: Deadlines

Book Blogger Confessions is a new meme hosted by Tiger's All Consuming Media or For What It's Worth. What is it? It's a meme that allows bloggers to weigh in on a topic, talk about or own blogging experiences and maybe vent a little. This time we're talking about deadlines. The question: Deadlines for reviewing and blogging. Do you set them? How do you keep them? What do you do if you can't meet a deadline?

Hmmm. Deadlines. Well. Deadlines are subjective. I have two separate circumstances and in one the deadlines matter and in the other they don't.

So, when deadlines don't matter - I actually don't receive a lot of review copies. I buy my books. I pick what I read off the stacks and stacks that I have in my room. I work at a bookstore, so I do get ARCs here and there, but they are selective, and I'm selective about which ones I choose. When I am reading and reviewing these types of books, I don't set deadlines. I hesitate to commit to reading books at certain times because I don't want to read something I'm not in the mood for, because then I'm likely to resent it, or to color my opinion of it with a pre-set attitude. If I am reading and reviewing a book before it's intended date, I always try to post that review within a week of it's release date. Other than that, I read what I feel like and post shortly after.

When deadlines matter? Well, when I receive copies intended specifically for review - i.e. NetGalley and author requests. In these instances I come up with a rough date that I intent to have a review posted for that book. Also, for memes, giveaways, or events. Those three things are when my deadlines are actually set, because they often involve a lot of other people.

This is not a blog run by deadlines. I set them occasionally - so the ones I do set are easy to stick to, because everything else is so flexible. I DID just get a calendar specifically for the blog though. I'm now keeping better track of book release dates and those instances that actually have deadlines. I feel better about being organized and coming up with a system - but most of my calendar is open to be filled later, depending on what I'm reading.

How about you? What's your take on deadlines?