For What It's Worth


Tuesday, August 8, 2017

Tell Me Something tuesday

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Tell Me Something Tuesday is hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings and discusses a wide range of topics from books to blogging.

Question:

Do you feel pressure to read more in genres that other bloggers read?

I wouldn’t say that I feel pressure but I used to get caught up in book hype for genres that I knew didn’t work for me, primarily fantasy or “important” novels/literary fiction.

That’s pretty hard to avoid in the blogoshpere. Especially YA I think. First comes the awesome covers, then the kick ass blurbs, then all the raving reviews and you’re the only one not reading it. lol

With literary fiction – there’s a lot of shaming when you primarily read romance. You should read “real” books, something of substance etc.

So I give it a go and barely make it through 50 pages before falling asleep with the literary fiction or baffled and bored by the fantasy world building.

I felt left out more than pressured and even if I didn’t think I would enjoy the book I would be like….well maybe this is the one that will work for me. That was rarely the case, so I just trust my gut these days.

Not that I don’t venture outside my genre lane – I think it’s good to stretch those reading muscles but I do my research now instead of falling for hype.

And maybe I’m filtering out hype better but I don’t see as much of everyone reading the same thing at the same time anymore. Of course, it still happens, but I see bloggers reading more of their back lists, or going out on their own these days.

But what are your thoughts on this weeks topic?

45 comments:

  1. Hm. I don't think I feel PRESSURED to read specific books. I pick up what ever I'm in the mood for. But I do feel like I SHOULD read more literary books, or classics. And I DO enjoy reading them! It's just that I have SO MANY YA BOOKS TO READ, how can I possibly slip more, longer books into the mix without letting my reading count for the year suffer? I've already told myself though, if I make it to 100 books before the end of the year I'll pick up another classic to top it all off. :)

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    1. A few years ago there was a push to read the classics and I felt really dumb because I didn't but when I tried it was such torture for me lol

      I was getting burned out reading all one thing too - so now I read a mix of genres or do mini binges, reading all YA contemporaries for 2 weeks then switch to adult romance. It's working for me.

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  2. Oh heck yeah I feel pressured and I totally get that whole "You should read 'real' books" bit from people. I started to respond with "Well excuuuuse me Mr./Mrs. Hoity Toity but I read romance to escape monumental d-bags like you!" It works like a charm.

    But the pressure I usually feel is for like those "critically acclaimed" books you see in all the ads. Those usually end up making me cry with boredom and wondering if those critics were high when they reviewed it. Lol.

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    1. Yeah - reading is an escape for me. Whenever I try to read *literature* I'm bummed for weeks. lol

      I think everyone should read whatever makes them happy!

      I don't read literary fiction but my MIL does, so when I see great reviews for something I pass that rec on to her. It's all good and people need to stop judging.

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  3. I think you're right- I think bloggers are doing their own thing more, I mean sure new "hot" releases and coveted ARC's will always get attention but I see so many bloggers now saying they're going to slow down with ARC's, read more backlist or owned books, etc. I think that's good. I mean there's enough of everything to go around!

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    1. It's feels that way to me too. I see a lot of bloggers passing on the *big* books. I think it's better for everyone. It helps authors to feature books that aren't getting all the publisher press and helps bloggers from falling prey to hype and then burnout.

      I know that I wait until the hype dies down even if it's something I'm interested in.

      I wanted to read When Dimple Met Rishi for example. I thought it sounded good but the hype was insane! I ended up filtering out all of that and read it a little later and did love it.

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  4. When I first started blogging I definitely felt pressured to read certain books and like them. Most of it was internal because I wanted to keep up with the trend, etc. I'm much better about it now. I DNF more and like you said, I do my research on books outside my normal genres and if they don't sound like something I want to read then I move on.

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    1. There is SO much hype sometimes and you feel like the only person on the planet not reading this amazing book. You feel left out.

      But I found that about 80-90% of the time I wasn't enjoying whatever the latest *it* book was so it's a waste of time and money for me and then I end up hating to read. Not worth it.

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  5. I have to admit that I am a little guilty of reading books for the sole reason that it seems popular amoung other bloggers. I have changed that a bit recently tho. I've started to read more of what I want and slow WAY down with requesting ARCs. I own so many great sounding books but haven't gotten to them because I was trying to read the "popular" books first. I've been much happier with my reading since I changed things up.

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    1. I'm not saying I don't still cave to that a little. I'm particularly susceptible to Twitter buy links ;-) but I'm done trying to make myself like books that I'm pretty sure I won't enjoy from genres I never read.

      I have been trying to branch out some but instead of grabbing whatever everyone else is raving about - I ask for suggestions from people who love the genre and know me.

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  6. I don't feel pressured at all, I'm that grumpy person that's gonna read whatever she wants lolol

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  7. I've been reading soooo long that I'm pretty familiar with what I like and what I'll never be able to finish. Hard scifi and most YA doesn't do it for me. I fell into the YA trap a few years ago, getting sucked in by the covers and the hype but I'm over it now. The majority of them drove me crazy. I pretty much stay in my horror and romance lane these days and hope to read almost completely from my physical (and old) tbr piles next year. The ARC's are nice and shiny but I KNOW there are gems in my pile that I'm ignoring because of them.

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    1. I think it's something we all learn over time and get better at.

      And with the arc's - I found there were so many that I didn't even enjoy or didnt' get to in time. It's a vicious cycle! lol

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  8. There have been times I occasionally feel pressured to read YA, but then I think about the genre of fiction that is my real love and I couldn't ever give it up just to read or blog a genre that I honestly have no interest in because I have tried to read YA and its so not for me at all. I am all about doing what you love and NO SHAME hehe

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    1. YA is so prevalent in the blogosphere that you feel left out of you're aren't reading it. Then certain books strike a chord and you're sure you're missing something brilliant even if it isn't your thing.

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  9. That is how I feel with every JR Ward book. Everyone loves her and her books and every once in a while the hype sucks me in and I give it a try... it never works out. LoL

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    1. YESSSSSS!!!!

      I forgot about this one but I read several more books int hat series than I wanted too because of pressure. People would e like - you can't stop now! And then everyone is talking about it and you feel left out lol

      I still get a slight pang on a BDB release day but I gave up a few years ago. I just can't with the Warden anymore lol

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    2. Yes I so agree but then I stopped reading her after hearing that one of them wasn't even an HEA :( Yeah I don't anymore either.

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  10. HYPE! The killer of YA books for me, lol

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    1. You get to the book and wonder what all the fuss was about instead of reading what you wanted to.

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  11. Hmm, interesting question and what a great answer. I don't know so much about pressure but I personally think there is a certain amount of what I think of as book snobbery out there when it comes to certain genres.

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    1. There really is. I get it a lot because I read both romance and YA.

      But I know a lot of bloggers feel left out because they don't read YA

      People should respect each others reading choices and read whatever they want.

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  12. I have been caught up in the hype and burned so many times myself. However, every once in awhile I am glad I do listen to the hype. I have learned though that some authors and genres just don't work for me and I steer clear.

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    1. I think it's all about learning how to navigate the hype. It's not bad to learn about new authors/books through hype but you can get burned (like you said) from jumping on the bandwagon without investigating a bit first.

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  13. I do think bloggers are doing their own thing a bit more these days, which is nice to see! I don't really feel pressured - sometimes I wish I had more time to read certain books or series that everyone seems to love, but most of the time, I don't think I'll like them all that much anyway so I just stick to my own thing. I love trying different genres and age levels, but I find what works for me. :)

    -Lauren

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  14. I like a variety of books and total mood reader. I realized that i liked fantasy where as a while ago , I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole. There are certain authors I will read in certain genre. So I like a variety :)

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  15. Interesting topic, momma. I love what you say that about venturing out of your genre, but ultimately, you want to like the book you're reading. I see nothing wrong with gravitating towards a particular niche if that is what interests you and holds your attention!!

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  16. I started expanding what genres I read once I started blogging. I didn't feel pressure to read them, I was just exposed to them more from people I liked. I enjoy most genres, so I read what I feel like depending on my mood.

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  17. Ah yes, the book hype really does suck you in huh? I think excessive hype turns me off of books. They build up expectations so high that a lot of the time there's no way they can live up to it.

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  18. Generally, I'd say no. I read primarily fantasy, but I'm not usually interested in the "big name" YA fantasy books and typically avoid them; when I do end up giving them a shot, I almost always quit the series after one book because they're not my style. I do feel pressured to read "important" literary novels at work though, since a lot of my colleagues are...I hate to say it...kind of snobbish about books. But thankfully I'm not too bothered by what they think about my fantasy and romance novels! ;)

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  19. Since I read YA mostly I don't feel that pressure, but I do feel the need to get all the buzzworthy books! I've been trying to read more genres just to have a wider range.

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  20. Since I read YA mostly I don't feel that pressure, but I do feel the need to get all the buzzworthy books! I've been trying to read more genres just to have a wider range.

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    1. You truly love that genre so it would be what you were reading anyway so that's great!

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  21. I have totally read literary books because I caved into pressure to read more serious stuff. And some of it's good, but usually it's not for me. And I agree that our book blogging world seems more diverse than ever with less pressure to all read the same things.

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    1. If you like it that's great! I think it's food to stretch and try new genres as long as we aren't doing because of pressure. I think a lot of this learned the lesson and are doing our own thing and actually spotlighting more books than ever.

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  22. I'm a sucker for a pretty cover but thankfully never felt too pressured. And gah literary fiction...snooze fest. Totally not for me. lol

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  23. I totally get it. I don't ever feel pressured, but, as someone who reads a lot of indie/self-pub and not very many hyped books, I do feel left out. But I'm genuinely not interested in most of the hyped books, and I'd rather read things I'll enjoy. I did at one point take a month to just read a bunch of popular series in order to see what all the hype was about and maybe understand when people talked about them or whatever, but by the end of the month I was just kinda like UGH and have not done that again lol. Now I just occasionally read a hyped book if it does sound like something I might enjoy.

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    1. It's hard when you aren't reading whatever everyone else is and you're screaming to get these under rated books noticed.

      I do like some hyped books but I think it's more because I stay away from them during the hyping lol I don't have a lot of expectations by the time I get to them.

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  24. I used to feel pretty much the same way Karen, I didn't want to review books that everyone else is reviewing upon release so I concentrate my reading on Aussie YA in particular. The big international releases are always more popular in terms of views but I'd rather a smaller readership who appreciates more than just blockbuster fiction. I used to feel the pressure of reviewing big titles but I've mellowed out so much with blogging now that I read for me. Really interesting discussion Karen <3

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    1. I'm seeing this attitude a lot more lately and I think it's good for everyone involved.

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