That is that.
It MAY be temporary, but I suspect it will be permanent. The blog is no more.
And the reason for stopping the reviews is quite simple - I just found myself spending more and more time sharing links and engaging in (admittedly enjoyable) conversations with other film fans, to the point where I would have to plan my days and weeks as far in advance as possible. Believe it or not, I haven't actually written a full review in about 5 weeks. All of the preceding blog entries were already done by the time I'd decided to stop blogging.
I may not have given that much thought if it hadn't been for an incident that occurred a few weeks ago. It was just one of those typical internet snowball affairs, most of us have been involved in one or two if we're online for the majority of our time. But that one incident led to this blog receiving a record number of traffic. A record number of people coming here to see what I'd written, all because of a quick, offhand joke/insult that I made on Twitter. I don't regret that tweet, and I certainly don't mind getting lots of banter from it, but I was extremely saddened to see how easy it can be to boost figures with that kind of approach, unintentional or not. It made me realise that all of the hours I'd spent trying to find the right word or phrase didn't actually matter. I could have just as easily written an inane stream of consciousness, gone on social media to bait people with any comments that would stir them up, and sit back to watch the numbers jump up and up and up. Nope, I may not have any solutions but I didn't want to be part of THAT problem.
On the plus side, that means even more actual viewing time, I've started to use Letterboxd to maintain my OCD levels, and I may still be tempted to cover a few festival releases for Flickfeast.
In the meantime, many of you will know where to find me. Now, excuse me while I line up my next movie viewing choice.
Sad day indeed, but understandable. This has been a great contribution to blogging however, and you can be proud of the great, honest reviews you're leaving behind for people to stumble upon and find movies in the future
ReplyDeleteCheers mate. We'll still be enjoying plenty of movie chat anyway, and I won't be any less annoying to my friends offline hahaha
DeleteHey amigo,
ReplyDeleteI knew this day was coming, and wasn't looking forward to it. Now that it's here, all I can say is how proud I am of you for following your heart and gut and going out while you're still on top. I know all too well the struggle you refer to, and the frustration that comes from realizing that sensation always seems to win out over well-crafted content. That said, please know that I (and many others, I'm sure) looked forward to reading your well-crafted content and have enjoyed the gifts you've showered upon us daily. I've discovered many films thanks to your suggestions and have re-examined a few based on your articulate thoughts. In many ways, I envy the fact that you're going to have more time for viewing as opposed to spewing. I remember back before I felt the need to share my thoughts with the world, and it was a much simpler time with a much higher movie-per-year count. I wish you the best, and am glad to know you're never too far away, good sir.
yours in fright,
AC
You're too kind, Doc. And those viewing figures are already climbing up and up. I'll still do my best to spread the word about favourite viewings from both Dead By Dawn and EIFF, which may just lead to me pimping out my Flickfeast contributions on Facebook like I'd never been away ;-)
ReplyDeleteI never loved you.
ReplyDelete