Friday, September 27, 2013

Where Did the Novel Go?

 I Didn't Abandon Princess

It's still there, I promise. And soon I will get around to editing the side bars. But I will admit to not doing a lot with it, mostly because by the time I'm done with classes and homework my "producing" abilities are severely compromise, and soon I am too burnt out to do anything but consume (books, some TV, food) and sleep.

But rather than simply not blog at all, I've been experimenting with some new things. Like the Black Swans series, which I will continue (but slowly, because that actually involves some research and writing of coherent sentences). Also like book reviews.

I'm not planning on turning this into a review blog, but there will be more reviews coming. Mostly because they're helpful to me, as a writer.

Reviews are a Teaching Tool

Reviews lead me to read critically, and to think about books critically. And that is something that is vitally important to improving my writing. Reviewing books allows me to see what works and what doesn't, what plot devices feel fresh or overused, what dialogue sounds natural and engaging....etc. etc. etc. until the cows come home -there is so much to be learned!

Also, reading is fun.

The Friendly Bit

So, anyone else review the books they read? Why/why not? If you're a writer, do you find it helps your writing?

1 comment:

  1. It's perfectly understandable that you need to focus on your schoolwork right now--you've got a lot going on this year! Good luck! We'll miss you, but we'll wait.

    Reviews? Hmm.

    I do love to read, although I don't read as much or as fast as most of you (I seem to average about 500 pages per month).

    The funny thing about me is that I do not read critically. Even when I try, I'm not very good at it.Therefore, writing reviews is very difficult for me. If I like something I might feel like I want to review it, but I find that anything I write sounds trite and shallow. Therefore, my review could do more harm than good, so I leave the reviewing to you professionals.

    I really appreciate all of you that can write good reviews, it really helps me find books I will like. So, thank you!!

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