The struggle to write a perfect review sometimes leads me into a blogging burn out, more than my TBR pile does. A lot of anxiety and time is crammed into that 500 word blog post. Still, reviews – on the blog or on Goodreads – make up a bulk of the time as a blogger. So when Heidi @ Rainy Day Ramblings asked an interesting question about the choice of reviewing, I knew I would want to weigh in this week. She asks,
“Are most of your review books for publishers or are you reviewing books of your choice?”
In short, I review books for myself. I’ve had one or two instances where I’ve been approached by well known publishing companies or agents to review a book. The books they offered were not for me and I was a bit torn because while I wanted to give more exposure to my blog, I didn’t want to read a book that I wouldn’t love.
When reviewing, do you ask yourself for whom are you reviewing all these books? Does it create a conflict between wanting to please your audience and reading whatever you want?
It does for me.
:et’s be honest, sometimes it’s hard to decide between reading whatever you want and giving into to the audience. Personally, I think it’s a good idea to balance both because I’ve come across some great finds accepting books from publishers. If I’ve established a relationship with a certain publisher beforehand and they send me book, I’m willing to accept the unsolicited review copy. Only because I believe that the publisher would be familiar with my blog and preferences by now.
I also review some books based on my audience. There is no strict genre that my blog caters to. Even though at the end of the day this is MY blog I still take into account my audience’s interest. This is why I’m always looking for diverse books as part of the mission of my blog is to create an awareness among my following.
So there is no clear answer, I suppose who my reviews are for. I write them because a certain story needs more readers. Or a certain author needs more exposure. I write reviews because I enjoy analyzing.
Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on w with discussions ranging from books to blogging.
Let’s be friends!
instagram || twitter || goodreads || facebook
Disclaimer: Text dividers from Freepik. Camillea Reads uses affiliate links, which means that, at no cost to you, I receive a small commission whenever purchases are made using the links.
Camillea Reads 
An interesting thought, particularly since I’ve just started doing the same thing and really working out who I am writing for. I find it hard to balance wanting to write an honest review and recognising that a lot of my bias will still show through!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Aw, just keep writing and eventually you’ll find out 🙂 Experiment with different genres and authors. At least, that’s what helped me!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Most books i read/review are my own choices and i picked them because i felt like reading them at the moment. As a result, a lot of my reviews are about “old” books, not new releases. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I enjoy reading reviews for the more unknown or not hyped books. After seeing a certain book going around, I feel like I already know what the others will say.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I review books of my choice. I’ve never gotten an ARC or sent a review to a publisher. I don’t like deadlines, and I don’t like being forced to read something at a certain time. Blogging is more fun if I just do my own thing.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes, so true!
LikeLike
I review books for other readers first then to help authors. I try to mix ARC with moody reviews too so I can stay “fresh” in my reviews.
LikeLiked by 1 person
“it’s hard to decide between reading whatever you want and giving into to the audience” YES YES to this. I find it always so complex to read what I want and / or to please my audience, to do both at a time. Sometimes, we don’t even know what we really want to read, or if we want to read it because everyone has mentioned it, or because it would make other people happy, too. I guess it’s all a matter of really trying to focus on ourselves and pick the books we really want to read… well, try at best to do that. I know I am, it makes me happier for sure when I just pick up what I’m really drawn to 🙂
Lovely post! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, trying to differentiate between what you want and the hype can be difficult!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve never really thought about it but I guess my reviews are mostly me reading what I want to read because even if they’re ARCs, they’re ARCs I requested because I wanted to read them.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, this 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I review books for myself and to help other readers decide if they want to read a book. I’ve seen people say they review “for authors,” but besides the fact that the author is very unlikely to ever see your review, I honestly doubt they’re looking to the general feedback for “tips on improving their writing.” While I think reviewers can have valid and insightful points, at the end of the day, one can only take so much feedback, and since the author already has family, beta readers, an agent, an editor, etc., I think they aren’t really looking for a fiftieth opinion on how they should write, you know? 😉
So, my coblogger and I do just read what we want, and often that means we review things that no one has heard of and that don’t really get page views, but I think blogging for yourself is really the only way to keep up passion and momentum. You can take your audience into account, of course, but you should also like what you’re doing, or why blog?
LikeLiked by 1 person
*to the general public for feedback (totally typed that wrong!)
LikeLike
Mmmm yes, that’s true. I used to think that way as well but it would be quite disappointing when a certain review doesn’t get seen by the author haha I love finding those rarely read and hyped books! Very few blogs review that way. This comment is so insightful! Thank you!
LikeLike
I choose the books I want to read and review, but I definitely read a lot of ARCs and so sometimes my reading feels a bit “scheduled” for the publishers. There are benefits and drawbacks to that. I’m lucky enough that I’m offered a good array of books and I only accept the ones I really want to read—but it makes it hard to get in those backlist books sometimes!
LikeLike
This is a really great discussion and something that I have definitely struggled with myself.
When I first heavily started book reviewing, I fell into the trap of focusing on reading/reviewing upcoming new releases primarily and scheduling my reading very much on the ARCs that I had been provided with. Because that’s what I thought my audience wanted.
But recently, after falling into a slump and really feeling the pressure of scheduled readings for publishers I realized that reviewing ARCs after their pub date isn’t the end of the world and I’m finding monthly TBRs easier to schedule ARCs but also allow for mood reading/reviewing.
6 months into my blog and I have NO IDEA what my audience really is, apart from book readers/bloggers.
LikeLike
Love this Cam! Great question and an even better response. I agree that a balance is needed. I was reading way too many ARCs and so when I did read a book I wanted I’d fall into a slump and take forever to finish it. I realized I needed to read more diversely and work on my TBR too. It’s been a lot better… but that means I don’t have as much pressure to review the book. So in one hand I do review for the publisher but on another I realize I like having a reason to gather my thoughts. I also always think about those who may read a review when I write them. I try to talk about elements that would be important for a potential reader. ❤️
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think when writing reviews, you should write it for you and hopefully, other people will find it helpful. Also, it helps to read and review books that have interest to you. I read ARCs from publishers, but only accept and request books that I am interested in reading and in a genre that interest me.
Here’s one thing reviews aren’t – for authors.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Love your comment!
LikeLiked by 1 person