Semi-Live Nude Books

I've been hardcore neglecting the book blog. Not on purpose, though. I'm feeling overwhelmed by all of my obligations: thesis, fiction workshop, teaching, Blue Earth Review, freelancing, job search. None of these items are getting the attention they deserve. Hopefully, I'm not spread too thin, resulting in poorly produced work. That very well could be the outcome on any or all of my obligations. But right now, the first victim seems to be the book blog.

I haven't updated it in a month and a half. The latest book review should have been written back in late August, since that's when I finished reading the book. But that hasn't been the case. Not just because of time concerns, but because I'm having a hard time thinking of good things to say about the book. It's not horrible. But it's not that great, either. The point of the blog is to promote books and spread the word about them. I'm not sure how to do that with this one. Every time I sit down to write the review, all I think about are the book's weaknesses.

When I started that blog, I worried that something like this would happen. That I'd read a book I wasn't into, but would have to write about it because I would have already announced it. The first few books I reviewed were ones where I was either already familiar with the author's writing, or I had already read the book before committing to review it. I'd like to say that once I sit down and force myself to write this review, I'll be able to move on and the blog will move much more efficiently. But I can't, considering my latest shameful secret: I haven't been reading on any sort of regular basis in the past month.

Workshop manuscripts and freshman comp papers have been my main reading material for the past month. And Esquire keeps me company when I'm on the throne. But I haven't been reading any stories, essays, novels, or poems. This must change. I'm well aware of how bad I've been. This week, I screw my head back on and get to work. I've gotten some review queries from authors--which means free books--and if I want that to continue, I can't neglect this thing anymore.