Writing or Reading? The Constant Tug of War…

Will the struggle continue in 2014? My tug of war between writing and reading? I love both, yet have neglected books because I've dedicated so much time to developing ideas for my own novels as well researching, writing and then re-reading my work.

I am a workaholic when it comes to my writing, and sometimes feel guilty if I allow myself the "time off" to actually sit down and read those novels I've wanted to get to for so long. But this year, I promise myself that I am going to forget the self-imposed guilt trip and make time for the pastime that actually inspired me to write in the first place!

What has stirred this desire to read more? My newfound interaction with the book blogging community. In a few minutes, through visiting some of my favorite blogs, I have a list of book recommendations… so now I can't complain about not having time to search for a good book! And the bloggers' enthusiasm is contagious.

I know that I'm probably late to the party with this discovery. But let's just say that for the past several years, I've been living in my own writing bubble. I won't berate myself too much as I do love to write and accept the fact that it must occupy the majority of my time if I hope to actually work on all of the story ideas that fill my writing notebooks (see the one above, as usual stuffed with papers and notes). However, I think I need to find a better balance.   

So thank you, book blogging friends, for reminding me why I wanted to become a writer in the first place.