Blogademics: Social Interaction and Why I Didn't Comment Back

One of the best things about blogging for me is getting to talk to people about books. I'm pretty sure my family and friends in the non-internet world are relieved that I've got some other outlet for my book obsession, really. It just isn't their thing (at least, not to the extent that it is mine).

That said, I don't have boundless social energy, either online or off. Talking to people online generally saps less of my energy than full-blown meetings with actual physical people in the actual physical world, but... I can only socialise so much in a day before I need to curl up with a book and recharge. I am, overall, not a people person. I can be terribly picky about whom I enjoy spending time with- it isn't really something that I can help.

One of my things for blogging is that I pretty much always reply to comments I get on this blog. This blog is small enough that I can generally stay on top of comments pretty easily, and I really love hearing what other book nerds think! I will just about always reply to you on this blog. BUT. There is one thing you can do that will completely turn me off of visiting your blog.

That thing is linked to why I started blogging about books to begin with- which is to talk about books. That thing is that you have to seem genuinely engaged in what I've posted about. Seriously, if you aren't interested in what I'm posting, then you really don't need to comment. I won't say I can always tell when someone is just commenting so that I'll visit their blog, but at least be subtle about it!

I'm not even saying don't link yourself. If you've got a post you're really proud of, or that you think I'll love based on what you've seen of me, including a link in your comment! That doesn't bother me in the slightest (I actually kind of really like it).

What I'm saying at least pretend that you've read the blog post you're commenting on. I don't like feeling like someone is commenting on my blog solely so that I will visit theirs, At least mention something about the content of the blog post where you're leaving your comment. I talk about things that interest me on this blog. You talk about things that interest you on your blog. If the things that interest me don't interest you, chances are that I'm not going to be interested in your blog either, and then neither of us get anything positive out of the exchange.

Because I am a person with such low social energy, I'm more likely to visit and interact with the blog of someone whose comment on my blog has caught my interest for some reason than someone who has left a generic comment. (Tip: My interest is not that hard to catch. Squirrels and sparrows and once paint drying have managed to catch my interest in the past.)

Basically, I love hearing from people, but I really love hearing from people who value hearing from me the same way.

Blogademics: The Murky Marshes of Motivation

Remember how I once mentioned that I go through phases of intense apathy? Well, they're almost immediately followed by phases of hyper-creativity where I feel like writing six or seven posts in three days, wreaking havoc on my sleep schedule.

These are obviously not ideal either as a student or as a blogger! Because I have assigned deadlines, and commitments, and secret deadlines that I must meet even if (and maybe especially because) I've only promised myself that I will. I have a real problem with inertia sometimes. I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about... sometimes once you stop doing something it is really, really hard to start again.

Motivation is a flighty creature. The sort of creature you have to chase through a bog in the middle of summer with a net, only to have it ambush you from behind. So here's some things that I do to bait a trap for motivation, and how I deal with when it just won't bite:

1. MUSIC. I discovered in high school that I genuinely cannot do certain things without music in the background. This one sometimes gets me weird looks, because some people have a hard time working to music. I research and draft most of my essays and papers while listening to pop music (lots of Taylor Swift), soundtracks, and some truly bizarre music of unspecified genre. I listen to music while writing posts, too.
2. To-do lists. Usually my bookmark is a list of things I need to do. I still take pleasure in being able to check things off, so it gives a necessary little nudge to sit down and get the thing done. Sometimes that's all it takes.
3. I keep notebooks and scrap paper everywhere. By my bed, in my backpack, next to the computer. Now, I know inspiration and motivation are two very different things, but I like to have an idea at the ready whenever I am feeling super-motivated.
4. Grocery shopping. I don't know, somehow taking a bus over to the grocery store and purchasing salsa is conducive to motivation. I don't make the rules.
5. ROUTINE, ROUTINE, ROUTINE. This is probably the most important one for me. I'm a creature of habit, so being in the routine of something really helps me get it done.
6. I have "seed posts" in my drafts all the time. Posts I've started that are just waiting to be finished. They're great for days where I'd like to post something, but I'm not super motivated. (It also ensures keep my draft pile under control!) This doesn't really have a school-related equivalent, unfortunately. I don't have any back-up eutrophication essay prompts.

Motivating myself can be frustrating. It's less of a problem for blogging, because my grades and future don't depend on my posting for every single Top Ten Tuesday, and also because blogging is, by and large, really fun for me! (Meanwhile, Fluvial Dynamics labs are... not.)

So, dear readers, do you have any methods for avoiding procrastination and getting motivated? Also, does music distract you, or help you focus?

Blogademics: My Degree Doesn't Mesh

My degree has ABSOLOUTELY NOTHING to do with book blogging. The closest I get to reading novels in any of my courses is getting particularly well written textbooks, or maybe a newspaper article about climate change. Let's talk about what my degree doesn't cover:

• Anything to do with literature. 
• Anything to do with coding.
•  Anything to do with running a blog or business.

Folks, I study everything but the above. I'm doing my bachelors degree in Environmental Science (which I'm capitalising because it is Important). I study geography and biology. I study policy and government. I study chemistry and economics and map making.  You see where I'm going with this? I dabble in just about every imaginable fields, except for anything remotely bookish or blog related.

If I could, I might take courses that made me a little more tech-savvy. I don't like that I'm dreadful at coding! But I honestly don't think I'd want to go anywhere near university English, much less do a degree in it.

Because here's a thing about me: I hated high school English. Well- that's not entirely true. I liked writing essays and exploring storytelling. But I hated reading books in high school English, with one or two notable exceptions. I came out of my high school education with the overall perspective that if you liked reading after you'd gotten your English credits, you liked it despite English class. The Kite Runner and I shall be eternal enemies after what it put me through in eleventh grade (seriously, high school teachers, PLEASE find something else to make your students read).

Everything is a learning experience though, and I learned several things about myself:

1. I don't like being told what to read. I don't mean recommendations- I love when people recommend books to me! I mean being given a reading schedule and then being told "okay, now read chapters 1-5 of The Kite Runner and discuss!"
2.  I despise being told what to think about whatever I am reading. No, I don't need you to tell me all the reasons that I am going to love this hideously depressing novel. And no, you are not going to persuade me to love it.
3. I don't like super depressing books. English teachers (or, at least, my English teachers) have a gift for choosing novels that are just range from dreary to relentlessly miserable. They seem to be under the impression that such novels are a deep and meaningful portrayal of the real world, and that a bunch of teenagers really need to be sad more often. Here's the deal, English educators of the world: if that's what the real world looks like, I'm perfectly happy over here with my dragons.
4. Possibly I'm not deep enough for Great Literary Masterpieces. (Capitalised because Importance.) I am a simple creature, I read primarily for enjoyment. If I can't enjoy a book, chances are I won't read it, whether it is a Great Literary Masterpiece or not. There may be books that fall under this category that I do enjoy, but I refuse to pretend I enjoy reading something I don't.

My experience with the English curriculum really taught me one major thing about me: that I wasn't going to succeed and be happy in a university English program, despite the fact that I loved books as much as I loved pizza and read a novel every two days. I didn't even consider applying for an English program when it came time to think about what I wanted to do after high school. Too many required readings, too many people telling me what I ought to think about said books, and far, far too many Great Literary Masterpieces.

I love books. I think I could happily spend the rest of my life talking about books. But I have never really regretted closing the door on the more academic side of books and reading.

Blogademics

I'm hesitant to call this a new "feature" on this blog, per say, but "Blogademics" is now going to be the title of a series of mini-essays I'm writing about my experience as a student, as a blogger, and a student blogger. (I just really like making up words, okay?)

These are born mainly from me thinking a lot about how I blog- my process is ever-evolving, but there are common threads. By and large, this will be a mini-essay collection about juggling blogging with school, and all the weird ways in which they have and do overlap in my life. I did say I'd talk more about my life this year, right? (Look at me, attempting to implement a New Year's resolution!)

I love being in school, now that I'm not in high school (your time in high school will really only be the best years of your life if you do the rest of your life wrong). I've been in school for over 80% of my life and I've internalised some pretty weird thought paths. Conventional education really does train you to think a certain way, to do things a certain way, to follow a certain path in a certain way. Blogging isn't like that. It also isn't not like that. And these posts are my chance to muse on that.

You can expect:

• discussions about reading, blogging, and transferable skills
• panic about grad school applications
• amusing rants about high school English (at least, I hope they'll be amusing)
• complaining about deadlines
• probably mentions of my favourite blogs/ bloggers
• undoubtedly double negatives

I'm super excited to launch this featurette/ essay series/ quest/ thing! I've never really done something like this before, so it'll be an adventure. I hope you'll have as much fun reading these as I do writing them!