Sorry, I’m chiming in after one-third of August has already passed us by.
And in three more weeks, two-thirds of 2018 would have passed us by, too. That’s wild, isn’t it? At least to me, it is. The clock is grounded in quicksand but the calendar pages fly off into the distance.
That’s enough of that sort of sentimental sappy nonsense, though. Onto what I wanted to bring up in this post already, right?
Partial Explanation of an Unintentional Hiatus
Unfortunately, I’ve been taking a lot of breaks this year since around May. There are a few reasons, but I guess I should just talk about the personal ones.
Essentially, it hit me that I’m just a blogger. All of a sudden I was reminded of my current position again and again. I’m not an important critic by a long shot. Not that I deserve to be one but that just sunk in for me multiple times. Maybe a long time ago I thought I could make money by writing. But being jerked around by other “professional” websites have soured me on the idea.
“Write for us for free”
“We’re gonna keep you waiting for a month before going back on our word since you’re really a nobody”
Stuff like that has really hurt my motivation, I guess. It’s not like I keep things professional around here, but I wanted to think I’m a go-getter. But since I’ve settled for being a casual blogger, I’ve unintentionally became very lax in regards to publishing posts.
Also it just feels bad to post when I’m behind on other people’s posts. Is that just me? Am I being weird for wanting to read and interact with other bloggers’ content while also struggling to make time to uphold this fickle expectation of mind? Am I strange for resenting people who don’t do that? Maybe I’m a hypocrite. Maybe I’m not all there and this isn’t a valid complaint at all. I don’t know.
There’s a lot of whining that I can channel into other posts in the future, so I’ll cut this short for now.
Increased Focus on Yuri Visual Novels
Most of you probably come to this forsaken blog for the anime content. But I also really care about yuri visual novels. I’ve been neglecting this side of my blog for a long while now.
And I just feel like there’s currently a shortage when it comes to coverage of contemporary yuri visual novels. Sure, there are other blogs out there that have a long list of reviews for older yuri VNs. But they ain’t really covering the newer ones. There are also some blogs who mention upcoming contemporary yuri visual novels in monthly or so posts without actually, you know, playing and reviewing them.
So I’m going to try to step up and fill this void. Hopefully I can review at least two yuri visual novels a month, but, um, no promises.
A Slow-down for Seasonal Anime Content
I’m… just not really interested in doing episode reviews anymore. I gave it a shot last season and I just called it quits even though I was covering two very good shows.
It’s also hard for me to really read most episode reviews these days. That’s all on me, guys and girls. Sorry about that. If I had more time then maybe things wouldn’t be like this. But even reading blog posts have an innate hierarchy. I’m sure some of you have already clicked away from this post before even reaching this particular point since I’m boring you with long-winded sentences and meaningless drivel.
Be that as it may, I still want to write about seasonal anime when I can. I’ll just have to let inspiration strike me as usual. As it stands, however, I’m not feeling particularly inspired and I’m on the fence regarding doing a Mideseason Musing for the current Summer 2018 anime season. I’ve been putting out those sort of posts for a while now, but I might opt out of doing one for this season. Sorry about that.
Furthermore, I’m sort of not feeling doing series reviews for seasonal shows anymore? I might pick and choose my favourites, but I don’t know. I really don’t know anything at all right now. Everything is very confusing even though I’m putting out words and pretending that I’ve got something to say.
Rambling about Regular Scheduling
I’m lying here. It’s not really that regular. But I’m going to set a quota of at least 3 posts a week.
I know some of my fellow anime bloggers like to point out that I’m being very weird about the whole quota thing. They argue that I’m setting myself up for failure by trying to force a schedule of sorts.
Perhaps they’re right. But a good friend theorized, back in January 2018, that I might have a solid year if I adhered to a schedule of sorts since I tend to just disappear and leave people hanging.
While the former has been true to an extent, the latter rings like a clear bell atop a tall tower. It’s because I lack structure in my own life. I live like a degenerate, sleep at weird hours like I’m an university student who has given up on passing his classes, and lack an overarching drive or goal. I overshare and probably push people away because I am too stupid to leave out all of the TMI details. The fact that I’m coming to terms with the fact that writing is likely not going to how I pay the bills doesn’t help.
I don’t know. If I’m allowed to pull back the veil like I’ve been doing throughout this entire post, then I guess I want to say it feels good to be overly honest. Presenting myself as a flawed person sits better with me instead of pretending to be some goody-goody.
With that being said, I don’t think humans are incapable of change. It’s too easy to sit on my haunches and blame everyone else around me without doing self-reflection. So hopefully I don’t do that. I’ll try not to, at least.
That’s all, folks.
Hopefully the rest of August is good to you.
The Lily Garden 
“I know some of my fellow anime bloggers like to point out that I’m being very weird about the whole quota thing.”
Do quotas help you write?
Then they’re not weird. They’re effective!
Find what works for you. That’s what is important. I enjoy reading your work, so maybe I’m being selfish when I encourage you to keep searching for what works!
I tell ya, these muses can be a real pain. But once you figure out how to follow yours, once you realize you’ve finally found the secret combination that lets you write regularly, it’s really an amazing feeling.
And please forgive me if I sound pretentious, but here’s one more bit of advice: Forget good or bad or whatever writing. Write. Improve as much as you can. Compare your work to your previous work. There is absolutely no substitute for experience, and the only way to gain experience is to write.
Good luck!
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Thank you so much for the great advice and support ;__;
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I’m looking forward to your content Remy once again. Myself has been off my game myself, it’s just not been there till now. But welcome back !!!
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Thanks, Lita!
Mmm I feel for you, too. Glad to have you back!!
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awww Thankyou remy dear !!
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Yeah, I understand the disappointment with writing not paying the bills. I’ve been strung along by a publication or two myself…but it’s important to remember that just because you’re not making money doing a thing doesn’t mean that you’re not good at a thing. Businesses just find writing/art/entertainment stuff easier to exploit
and it’s super draining when you have to work 40 hours a week doing things that aren’t what you love to make a living, and it does suck, but believe me when I say a lot of people still get a lot of enjoyment out of your writing whether youre writing for bigger website or your personal blog. Not to be a dork, but your blogs was one of the first anime blogs I found & it inspired me to want to write more & write better & made me believe people would want to read stuff I had to say about gay anime in the first place! I saw so much interaction on your posts (& personally likes reading your posts, too) that it made me think, “yeah, I wanna be a part of this, too!” So don’t sell yourself short 🙂 and of course, you shouldn’t feel bad about sharing things about yourself. I used to be really weird & repressed when it came to telling people stuff about myself, but it’s so much nicer to just let it all out. And most people appreciate people who share personal things like that. Anyways this was a long comment and I hope that it was encouraging bc that’s what I was going for! lol
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Sorry to hear about your own personal experiences with publications. You’re definitely right about how it’s not meaningless to write even if you don’t earn a cent – I had sort of lost sight of that, haha. Still, such shady and sketchy businesses out there, huh?
No kidding about work. I’m amazed you’ve been so consistent lately despite the 8 hour grind! I need to make some time and thoroughly enjoy your content.
Awww, Jenn, that means so much to me. Thank you! I really tried my best to be as interactive as possible even though I’m not quite on the ball these days. But hearing that was one of the reasons you got into blogging really makes my day (or night – it’s like 2 AM over here). Wow.
And I totally understand about the whole sharing of personal details. It isn’t easy but it’s also nicer, too. It’s strange, really.
It was super encouraging! Thank you so much!! c:
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I don’t think its weird to want to catch up with everyone’s blog content and what you missed out on! I did exactly that when I returned from hiatus, but I soon realized that it is going to take eons, and I wasn’t publishing posts when I wanted to.
I think we have to give and take, regarding both on ourselves and with respect to others as well. So on days when you feel more discouraged — just keep going buddy! It always helps to nap on the negatives (a trick my friend taught me) :))
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Nap on the negatives! That’s a nice phrase.
But mmm understood. You definitely had something similar (and more drastic) going on earlier when you went and completely won at real life (good work out there).
Thanks for the support c:
I’m also catching up on your blog posts and it’s been a treat.
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I don’t really know if I really completely won at real life XD… maybe just a bit 😛
But with the things I went through in my later university years, and reflecting on it, I tried harder not to obsess over the negatives – or I’d end up dragging the burden from the past/present to the limitless future.
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I’m here buddy :3 (Whether you like it or not XD) For your linguistic and critical treats 😉
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Thank you loads for the positive feedback, the Spring Lodge will certainly continue to whip up good stuffs for its customers 🙂
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I dunno about “just” a blogger…
A lot of people see to care for and resonate with your content way more than any so called important critic. I do. I can’t remember the last time I read a professional anime article but I read all your posts.
As for scheduling. As you know I live by it. Personally I would have completely abandoned my blog after a month or two without it. However, if it makes posting not fun, then it’s probably not a good idea.
In any case, can’t wait to see what you do next!
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Ah, good point. I think the personal touch is what people look for in a blog, really. Otherwise it gets too dry…
Thank you as always for your support. Hopefully I can catch up on your posts during the weekend as I try to empty out a bottle of whisky.
Fair enough. I’ll have to think about it for sure.
I’ll try to not disappoint!
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Dont worry about it. I do tag you for some stuff but I can just tell you in DMs if you’re intetested
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First off, I think I speak for pretty much everybody here when I say: it’s great to see you are back here again! Really though Remy, there is no need to feel bad at all about not being able to read people’s posts. I understand the feeling very well though but we all have times that we get busy and are not able to keep up.
Whatever you write about Remy, you know that I always love your posts. And I also know that I am not the only one either. So really: just very glad to see you back here, and am really looking forward to seeing new posts 😊😊😊
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I’m trying to get back, haha, raistlin, but thank you. Hopefully I can do what I just said here.
Right. Hearing that from you raistlin makes me a feel a bit better about falling behind. But I’ll try to catch up. And thank you as always for the support ;__;
I know your life has been very crazy with your father being hospitalized but I hope things are settling down. Seeing your content always makes me smile!
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Aww, thanks so much for these very kind and amazing words. They really made ME smile! . Things are certainly going better. This month is a bit crazy busy because of the Creator Showcase I’m hosting. But next month I intend to get back to my usual blogging routine and finally finish anime month theme, that I started before my hiatus, so am looking forward to that 😊
As for you: really as i said take your time! We all understand 😉
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Sorry to hear things haven’t been going great but I’m glad you are back again. Looking forward to future posts.
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Thanks, Karandi. I’ll try my best!
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Acknowledging the problem is the first step towards any kind of change. Even though I’m more of an anime guy, I’d love to try to read a few of your Yuri VN reviews. Also, don’t worry about episodic reviews—to be honest, I don’t really read them either, even if they’re from some of my favorite bloggers. Like you, it seems I just don’t have enough time! But hang in there—in a way, we’re kinda in the same boat, and I know we’re not gonna sink~!
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Ah, that’ll be greatly appreciated, but I totally understand if the yuri VN reviews aren’t to your liking.
Mmm I’m feeling a bit sheepish admitting that but I’m also glad I’m not alone.
Faito, Takuto, faito! We have to struggle to earn our free time!
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I’m going to make a few remarks, and please bear with me on what I say, since it may or may not be useful for you.
I’ve been around the block long enough to figure out what makes my blog tick, and the answer is a rather simple one: as far as personalities and the like go, I’m very uptight, committed and goal-oriented. As a consequence, I induce an unnecessary amount of stress in my life. Undue stress is a bad thing, but it can be managed, and so, for me, blogging is how I manage this stress. Putting how I feel about things to paper, or in this case, electronically, helps me regroup, reflect and also focus. It’s why mental health experts recommend journalling, and in my case, I treat blogging as a special kind of journalling.
In my journal, albeit a public one that anyone is free to check out, I write when there is something to say, and I don’t write when there isn’t. Journalling also lets me write from the bottom of my heart. Even for episodic posts, I consider how I feel about something that I’ve seen, and then put pen to paper. My bottom line, then, is that whether or not you have a regular blogging schedule is something not to stress about; if you like writing regular content of a certain style, that’s as acceptable as if you choose to surface only when you feel that you’ve got something big to write about.
Take my words with a grain of salt: not everything works for everyone, and at the end of the day, Remy Fool Blog is your party, and none other. Do what you enjoy, be yourself, and I think everything else follows after.
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What are you talkin’ about? All of that was useful. Thank you.
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Hey Remy~
I’m happy to see another monthly update again! I don’t think you should feel bad for focusing on your blog, even if it means reading others’ blog posts less. Of course ignoring them completely wouldn’t be good!
I like the oversharing side of you, honestly. It makes me feel that you are a genuine person. I would rather know you as someone who is honest than a goody goody person. If that side of you drives people away, they aren’t very gewar people then…
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Great* Oops I accidentally clicked ‘Post comment’
Yeah, I’m not a big fan of episode reviews either… Unless it was a stand out episode that was great and absolutely worth talking about! Anyways, I wish you the best with the blog and everything in life. Hope you see earlier!!! Please~
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SLEEP*
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I do episodic reviews when there’s a good reason to do so. Harukana Receive, for instance, is a series with lots of opportunity for interesting screenshots, so I’m going episodic to 1) showcase those screenshots and 2) see if I can consistently say something about a series that really is quite simple.
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I like your episodic reviews. 🙂 I think if you have solid reasons for doing them, then by all means! 👍
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No worries! I’ve done that before, too. ;__;
Right? Episode reviews might be a bit too dated these days. I’m not sure.
Thank you so much once again. And welllll I slept for a few hours but now I’m up at 11 pm haha. Hopefully you’ve been enjoying your freedom after your graduation! I also wish for you the best!
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No need to thank me. 🙂 My summer has been quite busy with work and hang outs. It’s been enjoyable! I’m going back to school in September to do my second degree so I’ll be very busy later this year!
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Hey Rose!
Ah, that makes sense. One has to find the right balance. Still, I haven’t been doing enough browsing, I feel.
Oh, that’s a relief to hear. Thank you. But hmm I do live a bit of a controversial life so I understand if that turns people away. It’s not their fault, I think.
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