Let's Discuss--Where Have All the Bloggers Gone?

 

Times are changing. I'm well aware of this. Although, what is making me sadder and harder to function as a reader is the lack of reviews lately. I've been seeing different platforms that bloggers have shifted to these days and finding new ways to promote books.

Where Have All the Bloggers Gone?

I use to always turn to the blogosphere to find reviews on books I was curious about but didn't want to outright buy without getting some insight. So I could easily find a review or two or five in the blogosphere from fellow bloggers who either got an ARC or just can read super quick and have the review up a week or so after the book's release. It was a happier time.

Nowadays I am not seeing that. Blogs I use to visit daily have gone quiet or disappeared altogether. I get there are times when a blogger decides they no longer want to blog anymore, and I'm not talking about that kind of disappearing. There are now more platforms where people can have share their voice, be it Instagram, TikTok, Youtube, and probably other ones too that I'm not aware of as I just stick to Instagram and Twitter myself.

But the times I see a book on Instagram and think, "oh that looks interesting!" I find there's nothing to know about the book other than what I could look up on Goodreads. I don't know. Maybe I'm not following the right Bookstagrammers. The ones I tend to see a lot with 1000+ likes on a picture from an hour ago just show a pretty book in a pretty setting. They might include the book description. But that's usually it. There's nothing to really know about the book and I almost wonder, are they even reading it? Or you get the two sentence review that basically says they loved it. Well...why did you love it?

I guess I'm showing my old soul age here when I just want reviews in the classic format. I always ignored movie critics back in the day, and still do because they only ever rave about the 3+ hour movie that put me to sleep with the preview and bash the hilarious comedies. I mean, come on dude. Be real. 

But anyway, I just liked being able to read a review about a book I was hesitant about and find out what it was all about. What was the pacing like? Were the characters relatable? Was there romance? A slow burn, a hate-to-love, or the dreaded insta-love? What other tropes did the book have? All these things are things I try to touch on when I write my review. I've always written the kind of review I want to read about in trying to make a decision, give a little taste of the plot to jump start things, touch on pacing, action, romance, characters...that kind of thing. If any one kind of moment stood out to me or caused a good laugh or possibly cry I'd share that too--maybe not so much the cry moment other than a forewarning to have tissues handy for emotions! Lol.

I guess I chalk the lack of bloggers mostly due to the blogger needing to move on with life as blogging became too much of a job for them. And I get that. I guess my blog never really took off as much as others who constantly get packages from publishers. If I get one or two a month, it makes my day! The newer platforms for book promoting also take part in the lack of blogging, but I find I just can't get into those as I don't see much of a review and I don't have the patience to sit through a video that takes X amount of minutes as I feel I can read a review faster than in the time it takes for someone to tell it all to me.

What about you? What are your thoughts on blogging and the ever changing platforms for promotions?