One of the unfortunate side effects of reading and blogging like rock stars seems to be a tendency toward burnout. How do you keep things fresh on your blog and in your reading?

My brain needs to be entertained.  Reading is the way I entertain it.  I don’t really ever get burned out on reading.  I might get into reading slumps though where I just can’t find a book that I want to read.

Getting over slumps:

  • Don’t try to force yourself to read something you aren’t interested in.
  • Freely discard books that aren’t holding your attention
  • Try something completely different
  • Try something brainless.  Usually I have slumps when my brain is too busy processing other things to settle down to reading.  It helps me to read something so light and fluffy that my brain doesn’t realize that it is reading until it has been doing it for a while.

I don’t really understand blogging burnout either.  I’ve been doing this since 2004.  That means that in real life I probably look like this.

So take it from Granny, dearies. The key to not burning out is to have no limits.  Stating that you are going to write only about contemporary mysteries involving ladies over 45 or only YA or only books even is setting you up to get bored.  I think it bores readers too.  I’ll write about whatever comes to mind.  This is my journal and you guys are along for the ride.  That keeps it fresh or me and hopefully for you.

That means that I started out writing about current events and religion, morphed into more about horses and family, and then moved to more books and travel.  Quilts and working out and other random stuff makes appearances as they want.  I don’t care about branding or staying true to a niche.  This isn’t my job.  This is for my own amusement and if it isn’t fun for me then why do it?  Taking this all too seriously leads to stopping writing all together.