- Reading other blogs. (There are definitely a few of you whose blogs I still semi-regularly check and some I need to go sign up for email notifications from because, if I'm being honest, that is the only way I am going to blogs these days.)
- The feeling of interconnectedness that comes with comments and Twitter.
- Knowing what the heck is going on in the book world. The funniest bit about this is that I work in a bookstore and the time when I knew most about what was going on in the book world was when I wasn't working in a bookstore. In all seriousness, bloggers are some of the most informed people when it comes to bookish information.
- Having goals and keeping track of what I read. Want to know what I've read in 2014 so far? Eight audiobooks and three graphic novels. Is this some sort of joke? I haven't even read one novel? This is truly pathetic.
- Processing what I read. If I was the type of person who used gifs, I would search for one of a person who picks up a book, reads its, then tosses it aside and picks up another, because that is what it feels like to me when I don't review books. Though I am very happy in my life right now it makes me sad to see how many books I read in 2013. I wanted to review them and I wish I could have shared the love. (or share the meh, as it was in some cases) I suppose I could always review some of them at a later date but I don't remember tons of details for most of them. *sigh*
- That exciting feeling when you find a book, hype it up online, and convince another person to give it a go.
- Recapping events I go to. I'm pretty sure all of you know I don't really care about traffic on our site but it makes me happy to see how much traffic recaps get and I love taking notes and sharing all the information I glean from authors at book events. When I don't recap them, or even when I don't take notes at events, I forget almost all of the event. In the past few months, I've gone to see Chang-Rae Lee, Kate Elliott, Margo Lanagan, Lish McBride, Victoria Schwab, Kendare Blake, Sara B. Larson, Lucy Christopher, Margaret Atwood, Neil Gaiman, Ned Vizzini (:(), Cornelia Funke, Amy Spalding, Andrew Smith, Josephine Angelini, Francesca Lia Block, Patricia McCormick, Gretchen McNeil, Kristen Kittscher, Bill Konigsberg, Lindsey Leavitt, Maureen Goo, and a bunch of other people I CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER. I can't even remember going to these events. I'm not kidding.
Anyway, I miss my online reading buddies, I miss recapping book events, I miss reviewing things, and I miss being a book blogger. So I'm going to try to be a book blogger again. Check back every once in awhile; this ought to be good.