The title says it all, but woah, long time no see, right?

Hi all, it’s Takuto, the host here at my anime cafe (whenever I actually decide to show up)! Before I go into the details of my absence, I do hope you’ve been doing well, and an extended “How do you do?” to the few of you who even followed me recently during this past month. It’s crazy to think that people would even read, let alone follow a slacking blogger, and for that I thank you, and welcome you, too!

The reason I haven’t been here is simple: I just haven’t felt like writing, that’s all! Nothing new to any of us, since we all go through that phase. But I figured over a month was pushing it, and that since I’m sorta back in the game I’d stop by here.

But EVEN though I’m here, I still don’t feel much umph for writing. I’ve watched A LOT of anime during this past month, so my passion for anime definitely hasn’t gone anywhere (which is VERY GOOD considering that blogging hiatus can sometimes indicate lack of love for the topic)!! I’ve even done some gaming which I’D NEVER do unless I was really trying to run from something.

It was just that, once I finished watching a show or film, I didn’t want to talk about it. Guess you could call me lazy, haha, or perhaps not feeling like wanting to shove my most recently watched title under a friggin’ black light with the reviews and all.

Another thing that stopped me was actually just that—formatting and good writing. An awesome and very helpful aniblogger by the named of Seasoned Prattle writes what to me is insanely high-quality posts. One of my favorites is about my current flu—writing when you simply can’t. Another recent post was about what I started talking about, formatting and the like, and it got me thinking:

What is my format, and am I jealous of Prattle’s work?

To answer both, I’m still not sure, and heck yes, of course I am.

But that’s when I realized, like you do, that I should “focus on doing me rather than constantly comparing myself to others (props to Shay for that encouragement).” I also did a little looking into Prattle’s site and found out that “they” are actually a team of four, not just one person—do fact-check me on this one if you know more or if I’m wrong—which only goes to reinforce the idea that I shouldn’t be comparing myself to four minds in one entity. Still admire Prattle’s work, so if you do read this, keep it up!

On this little self-reflection journey, Prattle and Shay told us readers and viewers alike that, as content creators, we should generally stress less. I can stress less, sure. I think what put me off most during this month was thinking that I needed to write with correct formatting, good grammar, interesting word choice, original thoughts, etc. And while those are certainly things to strive for, if they keep putting you down, you might as well not be writing at all, right!?

If I keep criticizing myself so harshly, which prevents me from posting at all, then I’ll never post, simple as that.

So here’s what I’m going to do—and this is NOT necessarily recommendable, but sometimes there are things that are more important than the rules. I’m going to essentially “care less” when I write. Until I get off my feet and bring the traffic back to this cafe, I’ll write without regards to the laws of formal writing. I’ll write knowing that some works won’t be as polished as my others. I’ll say the things I want to say in fewer words, straight from the heart to you. All this and more, I’ll write because THERE ARE NO rules to blogging. I’ll just get it out there and talk about it with you, and we’ll be dandy again.

Then maybe, just maybe, when the healing is done and the bells have rang, I’ll get back to the “correct format” and “catchy wordplay.” To “quality writing” and “original thoughts.” If you can stick it out with me until then, it would be greatly appreciated.

So YES, more posts are coming. They might not be the prettiest, but at least I’ll still exist. 

I’ll be slowly catching up on comments from my OWLS posts, as well as reading from all of you. For the most part I’ve probably caught your posts on twitter if you promote yourself that way, but if not, give me time and I’ll be there! Three posts quickly coming up will be:

– What I’m watching (normal update w/seasonal stuff since I’m back in the game!)

– My July OWLS entry (stay tuned)

– My actual thoughts on the Ghost in the Shell Live Action

Whether it’s wanting to discuss a show, dissect some themes, or even share the things I’ve bought, I’ll just do it. To get myself out there, I’ll imagine it, I’ll speak it, and I’ll change, and we’ll see if it works. Wishing you all the best, and I’m excited to write for both you and me again soon! Till next time~!

– Takuto, your host