Hello! Good morning! How’ve you been? I’ve been busy! Lazy, yes, but still busy with many other things in my life, and since I’ve got 20 minutes before class I figured I’d drop by and tell you all a bit of what’s going on.
As I mentioned above, university life is officially in session! Between class, homework, a part-time job, and other life stuff, there won’t be much time for anime, let alone blogging.
Or should I say, not as much time for those two things.
You’ve probably noticed me taking periodic two-week breaks, typically to come back and write an OWLS post, respond to a few comments, and leave once more. While I thank OWLS for giving me a scheduled reason to come back, I’m sure you’re not following this blog just to read OWLS posts (even though the tours are pretty fun). Obviously, I’ve noticed my own drop in post count—you know it’s especially bad when you look at the “recent posts” handle on the side of my blog and see nothing but back-to-back OWLS posts, ahaha!
The reason I’ve stopped writing regular reviews as of late is pretty simple: there’s no show so far that I’ve just “absolutely had to write about.” Anime is still good—hell, it’s fantastic—and I’m not going through a blogging “burnout” either . . . it’s weird, it’s like
I don’t think I have anything interesting to say.
My list of posts to write grows every day (SO MANY REVIEWS), and ideas are always poppin’ up in my head! But when it comes to spillin’ the deets, I’ve suddenly got nothing. Nada. Inspiration comes and fills me with hope and creativity, and then it’s gone the next minute. (Either that, or I’m not able to write when I get the blogging rush.) Is that burnout? Heck, maybe it is . . . but then I think to myself, “I have no trouble writing OWLS posts, so why can’t I churn out another review?” Maybe it was caused by this incessant need to review every single show I watched, in the order I watched it, rather than writing about the shows I wanted to talk about. Tricky business if I do say so myself.
Maybe I should try writing like this more, without plan or overly structured design. But then again, a post without purpose or focus is doomed from the start! I’ve always found my writing to be pretty organized, but perhaps I’m overdoing things.
A few days ago, I combed through my blog for some old posts, some stemming from three years back when I started. While the main intent was to find that From the New World review, I ended up going down memory lane, like ya do. And oh my, what a spirited blogger I used to be! It’s weird, because I much prefer the content I make now compared to the amateurish, unpolished, picture-less posts of yesterday, but there’s something wonderful about my old posts. Maybe it was charm, maybe it was enthusiasm. I don’t know, but whatever it is, I can’t find it as near as much in my posts now. Again, I have no regrets for writing any of my posts, but I think I’m a tad bit stuck in the mud at the moment.
This post was entirely spontaneous—it wouldn’t have been written had I not woken up an hour earlier and felt like I owed something to you all, something that’s been long overdue. An explanation, or an announcement, or whatever. Still, I’d like to put together a formal update on what I did over the summer and some of the shows I watched, so stay tuned for that. Does this mark a significant return to blogging? Welp, let me sort things out for a little bit, and then we’ll see. If you’ve got any suggestions as to what I should write instead of a plain old review, I’d love to hear them! No, I’m not desperate, but I do think a change of pace is in order. Change is good, right? Right!?
Wishing all those returning to university or college the best of luck this semester! And to those merely chugging along or trying something new, I hope happiness continues to find its way to you! I’m not sure where we’re headed, but I do hope you stick with me through these, hmm, peculiar times. If you read this content-less post, well, I can’t honestly thank you enough. Have a great day, and good morning on this side of the world!
– Takuto
Takuto's Anime Cafe 
Thanks for being a little lost with us Taku. It’s more fun this way
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I’ll stick with you for sure, so no worries at all! Not knowing where we are going is half the fun! 😛
Hope you the best for this semester and part-time 😀
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Well..one thing is for sure: It’s your blog, and I think the most important thing to do is just write about the things that you love to write about 😊😊 And no matter what that is…I will be reading it, because I have always loved your posts! 😀
Good luck with everything, and don’t be a stranger ! 😊😊
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I find that the words come far more easily when I’m writing about something that I’m genuinely interested in – I think that readers can pick up on that zest and passion too – so don’t force yourself to review shows that you feel lukewarm about! That’s just my two cents! Have a wonderful day!
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We are both lost Taku, I’ve been in this strange spell myself with writing. It’s something that will pass for sure. I’ve been personally focusing on writing past posts have yet to write, also been writing more first impression of new manga, I’ve borrowed a whole heap of new manga titles to try out and will be doing first impression on my blog. This has been a fun idea to do, while doing some anime and drama first impressions. Right now working on a discussion piece for serious Aquarion, avoiding a review completely. I’ve been focusing on what would make this show sell for people to be curious or watch it. Hope this helps you Taku 🙂
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This tug between what I’ve read/watched, what I am currently enjoying, and what I plan to start is certainly tricky to get around. Perhaps I should try one of these, be it a first impression or a loose discussion post on a series. Either way, I definitely know that trying something new will be a step in the right direction!
Glad to hear that I’m not alone, and thanks so much for the advice Lita!
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“Welp, let me sort things out for a little bit, and then we’ll see. If you’ve got any suggestions as to what I should write instead of a plain old review, I’d love to hear them!”
Take your time!
Mind if I ask one question?
Okay, mind if I ask a second?
What do you want to write?
I may be projecting, but when I start to feel a drag on my writing, it’s because I’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere. If it’s in fiction, my characters actually start ridiculing me as I try to write their dialog. If it’s in non-fiction/reviews, it’s because I’m reviewing something that I don’t like, or I’m trying to affect a persona that’s not real. That might just be me, but on the off chance it might be useful, I wanted to share it.
Write what you want to write! Sort out what you want to sort out. Want to experiment? Cool! Share what you got!
And you certainly don’t need my suggestions on what to write. I’d much rather see what you want to write!
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There is so much inspiration in this comment, thank you so much! I think you hit the nail on the head with the reviewing thing, in that I should reassess the shows I’m bringing on here and think, “Is there something here that I really want to talk about?” I got into such a habit of reviewing everything I watched, in the order I watched it, that I kinda lost sight of why I was writing them in the first place. Was it to chronicle my viewing experience? Maybe, in part. Was it because I had something I wanted to chime in on? Definitely debatable.
Looking back on this comment (sorry I’m so late!), I’m much less stuck in the mud as I was, and I hope that I can keep what you said in mind when I compose the next post, and the one after that!
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There’s plenty of older anime that still need some love.
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I agree! I’ve recently started watching Kino’s Journey, Emma: A Victorian Romance, and have picked up where I left off on Ranma 1/2. There’s a joy to some of these titles that seem left in the past, and hopefully I’ll bring one or two or all of the ones I’m watching back to the forefront with a review or something.
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Ahhh I understand the feeling….
Change is good, but make sure you aren’t doing something you wouldn’t like to do. Perhaps try out a post series like”twelve reasons why….” for twelve days or something?
Haha I don’t know really, not an advice giving type (^～^;)ゞ
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I actually really like that! It’d be easy to do, in theory, and not too consuming on both time and energy. Perhaps I should jot this idea down in my notes for the future. Thanks Auri!
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