I'm not done. . .

Not quite yet, in any case.

I've been giving this a lot of thought since my announcement last September, and these last few weeks I sort of had decided that I was going to call it quits. Sure, the detractors and the shit thrown my way had something to do with the whole process, but they were just a factor among many. All in all, I had the feeling that I had done pretty much everything I had ever envisioned for the Hotlist, and then some! So I figured the timing was just about right to go out on top.

Anyway, I'm moving in a few weeks, and I spent the last week or so painting my new apartment and getting my shit together for the move. As I was applying plaster in an attempt to cover a dumbass caulking job running the length of my kitchen counter, I realized that this was no way to spend a Saturday morning. Such mornings are usually spent sitting in my favorite chair, reading a book with a steaming cup of coffee.

Thinking that I should be back home with R. Scott Bakker's The White-Luck Warrior, it hit me that I couldn't really leave the game just yet. All the more so because of the fact that it took longer to complete the final edit of Steven Erikson's The Crippled God, and chances were that I might not be able to read and review it prior to retiring. The same thing goes for Patrick Rothfuss' The Wise Man's Fear. Can't quite turn my back on the SFF Blogosphere without polishing off these eagerly anticipated titles.

And out of spite -- I know it doesn't speak well of me -- I wanted to keep annoying all the haters out there. For some reason, this always warms my heart. :P As Sam Sykes told me: If you quit, then the terrorists have won.

So I'll be sticking around for a while. . . Get ready for more short, pathetic book reviews, crappy interviews, insipid articles, vapid SFF content, and the odd music video!

Pat's Fantasy Hotlist: Wasting technology since 2005. Says so in my profile! ;-) So we'll keep at it!

72 commentaires:

Eric said...

I'm glad you're sticking around. You've introduced me to some new things to read. I've found some new authors to read via your reviews and interviews.

Droidprogrammer said...

Thank you! I don't know where else I can get my fill of music I hoped to forget from my teen years! But seriously I appreciate your efforts, and you have turned me on to many new authors when I thought I was getting stagnant. Thanks from Ontario Pat, keep up the good work!

Stinky93 said...

Good to hear. This is one of the better sites out there and I'd hate to see it go away.

maine character said...

I knew I could count on you to ruin the holidays.

Really, though, keep with it - if someone doesn't like what you post, they can go to another site. I hear there's quite a few out there, but I've found few as good as this.

Pip Hunn said...

Pat, you're awesome.

Not only are you awesome, but your awesomeitude was directly responsible for me purchasing a copy of your anthology, about three dozen of the books you've recommended (and enjoying all of them!), and generally making my life and experiences as a lover of SF&F more enjoyable.

Go out in the style you want, when you're ready, and not a moment before.

And if you do leave the Blogosphere, then it's not like you're slamming the door shut behind you. There's always room for a triumphant return...

Cheers;
Pip

WyzWmn© said...

YaY for annoying the haters!

makes the winners win

Wise Bass said...

And out of spite -- I know it doesn't speak well of me -- I wanted to keep annoying all the haters out there. For some reason, this always warms my heart. :P As Sam Sykes told me: If you quit, then the terrorists have won.

I'm glad you're still sticking around. Just remember that for every annoying hater, you have at least ten fans who support you, but don't post.

Besides, you're good at blogging. That's a talent, and it would be a shame to waste it.

Anonymous said...

hi pat,

Im glad you are staying. Yours was the very first website i encountered when i first started reading fantasy a few years ago. I have bought countless books just based on your reviews and had never regretted a single purchase. keep up the good work!!!

Thanx,
James (singapore)

mayo_20 said...

Happy to hear it. Keep up the good work.

Zafri Mollon said...

Really glad you're sticking around for the foreseeable future! Can't you agree to at least wait until 'Dance with Dragons' comes out ;)?

buddyt said...

I've been following your blog for over a year and I would be sorry to see you leave.

I don't always agree with your take on a book but I have always found that you are honest and that has earned my respect.

You have also introduced me to a few new authors, I would probably not have heard of otherwise, especially Carlos Ruiz Zafon whose two books I have enjoyed immensly.

If you really have too much else to do, maybe just go to a weekly post but I do hope you stay active.

All the best.

Neville Thompson

shaneo52 said...

Keep kickin ass, Pat, Dont give up dawg!

Jason said...

Salut Commendatori!

SQT said...

If it wasn't for you Pat, a lot of us wouldn't be here. Glad to see you're sticking with us awhile longer.

Blodeuedd said...

Yay :D

Ted Cross said...

There are a lot of us out here who read all your posts and enjoy them. Who cares about the haters?

~Stardust~ said...

This is excellent news...I wasn't looking forward to a "Hotlistless" world. I always enjoy your reviews and find they closely match my own views of many books, which leads me to trust you with regards books you review that I haven't yet read. Keep on keepin' on....there are plenty of us who'll continue to read and support you.

Jamie Gibbs (Mithril Wisdom) said...

I'm glad you're sticking around. There'd be a significant hole in the SfF blogosphere were you to retire. Here's to more Hotlist awesomeness!

Christabel said...

That certainly put a smile on my face. Great news!

Anonymous said...

Oh good I can call off my hired goons...not that I was planning to have you abducted and chained to a computer. No. I was never planning that...never...

Sam Halliwell said...

I'm really glad you're sticking around! I love reading your blog and my mornings will definitely be short and boring, if there's nothing new on here! Yeeeey! :D I'm happy!

GreetingsFromHungary said...

That's awesome news, Pat, thank you! Keep the haters annoyed, and keep the fans happy - there are plenty of us who will stick around here as long as you will.

Again, greetings from Hungary! :)

Anonymous said...

I'm glad you're not quitting.

Paul (Russia) said...

Dear Pat,
Thank you very much for the job you are doing with this blog. Your blog and Adam's blog are two places where I get most of the information about new titles in Fantasy/SFF genres nowdays. If not for your blog I would have never dicovered Pat Rothfuss, Abercrombie, Richard Morgan and many other authors. I dont necessary agree with all the things you write, but even then I respect your POV.
So I am very grateful that you decided to keep up with the blog and it can stay in my bookmarks:)
Greetings from Russia,
Paul

Anonymous said...

Hurray!

ssgorik said...

Glad to have you around.

Sascha Walter said...

Yay, he will stay around for a while! I am thankful for this blog, since I found quite a few authors to read here (pushing my to-read piles to dangerous heights). Also the only book I ever won, I won on this blog! So, I have good memories of this blog!

Robin said...

I'm glad you decided to stay. It's been nice to read your thoughts about SFF although sometimes I feel I disagree with you more than I agree. But that's one reason why your blog is such an interesting place to lurk :)

Peter said...

Although I don't always agree with your reviews or taste in music ;) I share your passion for books and Eriksson, Abercrombie and (my personal favorite) Mieville in particular. I just thought you'd like to know that although we aren't that vocal there's a bunch of us silent witnesses who approve and appreciate what you're doing here with this blog and who still hope that you'll reconsider even further and decide to keep this thing going!

Anonymous said...

That's great news. You're my main source of fantasy and sci-fi news on the net. Have you ever thought of getting into reviewing tv programmes (such as the walking dead?)

Cecrow said...

First - you're doing apartment repairs instead of reading, can't you let the super look after that? Second - hey, that's great news. I imagine it's a ton of work doing what you do, but think about the benefits you reap in terms of industry profile, free books, having the credentials to meet and chat with your favourite authors, etc. I'd hang in there just for that alone, but you didn't even mention those perks.

Matthieu said...

You're making my day. I am glad to hear so, keep it up!

Jessica said...

Omg don't you go anywhere.

Esther said...

Good!

Asty said...

+1 for the yays.

Yagiz [Between Two Books] said...

Glad that you're stiking around!

Anonymous said...

Glad you're not going. Haters are gonna hate, no matter what you do- they'll hate on you if you keep blogging, they'll hate on you if you quit. (They'll definitely hate on you if you give book reviews 7.5/10 though ;))

Sethvir Ringstad said...

I'm so happy to hear you're sticking with it. There is no other blog like yours. You are the Gandalf of SFF blogging - please don't quit and leave it all to the hobbits!

We, your supporters, are just not vocal enough in our support if you start believing the haters.

Rich said...

YAY!!!

Anonymous said...

Good man !

Binder of Demons said...

Glad to hear you're sticking around, I've really enjoyed your reviews and interviews (and other sundry postings) over the last few years.

But being such a Malazan Empire fan, i thought you would have just slightly tweaked your heading to mirror Itkovian's famous line ;)

Todd said...

Glad to hear it!

CoreyInHamilton said...

Glad your sticking around, I always look forward to new items in your feed.

Corey V

Anonymous said...

I think your blog is great and it's my first stop for all things sff. So yay!

Anonymous said...

Thanks from a long-time reader who has never commented before. I'm sure there are hundreds/thousands/tens of thousands more like me who are regular readers, who eagerly read your reviews, but who don't read comment threads (at least not often). You're doing great work, and we hope you'll keep at it!

Iwan_Emmetowitsch said...

I am a big fan of the Hotlist and am very happy that you are continuing! I'm not always on your side, but your arguments are well presented and I like that! Keep up the good work!!!

Anonymous said...

Glad you're staying. You would have been missed.

Myra C said...

I am glad you are sticking around for awhile longer!!!

Anonymous said...

No surprise.

Mark said...

Glad your sticking round Pat. Hotlist was one of the first blog sites I came across. Your reviews are always insightful, I dont always agree with your point of view, but that is whole point. Keep up the the good work !

Tonya said...

Well, I for one am glad you'll be sticking around. I stopped reading almost all the other book blogs when I changed the theme of my blog. You and one other are the ONLY book blogs I read anymore. Not to put a guilt trip on you...but you should really stay for me. :)

Anonymous said...

That's great! I have come to rely on your blog to learn about new titles that aren't covered in the mainstream press.

Thanks for continuing the effort!

Kenny Cross said...

Thanks for sticking around for a little while longer.

Have a great day Pat!

(even if you weren't sticking around I'd still want you to have a great day)

amysrevenge said...

Glad to hear it. We don't always agree, but then I don't really go for the whole "nerdrage on the internet" thing myself - people are allowed to be different from me without it somehow being a knock against me personally.

Chris said...

Glad you are sticking around! I for one enjoy your blog!

Susan said...

Glad you're sticking around, Pat. You're a good read.

Elfy said...

With Speculative Horizons winding up last week I'm pleased that you're sticking around, Pat. Love the pick you used for this post, too.

Anonymous said...

I never really understood why it was that you were considering leaving the website. I can't imagine that you would stop reading so even if you scaled things back, it'd still be pretty easy to keep updating.

In any event, I'm glad that you are continuing because I've gotten many excellent book recommendations thanks to you.

If at any point you do decide to leave, I think many of us would be grateful if you could give us some recommendations of other places to keep track of goings on in the SF/F world. This is pretty much the only blog I ever check so I'd be lost without you.

Anonymous said...

I'm glad you decided to stick around for a little while longer. The authors and works that you have listed as among your favorites has mostly coincided with mine and thanks to that I have found a fair amount of new authors to read. Keep up the good work!

Jim

Anonymous said...

I'm glad to see you decided to stick around. :D It would be nice however if you would scale back on your anti-muslim commentary though. :(

Anonymous said...

A simple thank you. The Fantasy Hotlist is my first daily stop in the Sci Fi/Fantasy world and I'm glad it still will be.

Anonymous said...

This site is the best resource for SciFi and Fantasy lovers out there. Please don't quite. I won't quite on you!

Val K. said...

I'm glad you're staying, it made my night, you saying that. I wouldn't have read some of the awesome books or seen some really cool links, etc, if it weren't for this blog.

The same spiteful Jake as usual said...

So basically you could have never announced anything and the world would have gone on as it was.

Lame.

ediFanoB said...

Good news! Keep up the good workd.

Anonymous said...

Great Pat !

Anonymous said...

yaaay I am so excited,
NOT!
just joking keep up the good work!

Mary said...

So excited! I was really sad when you posted you might be ending the blog.

Look forward to more good things to come!

Heath said...

Thanks for continuing with the blog, Pat! It has been a daily stop for me for years and you've turned me on to a lot of new stuff.

I'm not sure where the haters are coming from - there are plenty of blogs, so you'd think any reasonable person would just move on to the next if they don't like one.

Anonymous said...

Woo!

Anonymous said...

Best news I heard this week Pat! you brought a smile on my face, and I really needed that :)

Belechael

Nein said...

You're staying?Cool.I disagree violently with more than a few of your opinions,but I like your taste in books.
Here's to a couple more years of this:)

 
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