One thing I’ve always been curious about is how many of you guys read this blog without knowing that there’s been a new post? Perhaps you visit us through a bookmark? I’ve made it so that this post won’t be included in our RSS feed, therefore it can only be read by those of you that visit in this way.
These days, I almost exclusively read websites through Google Reader and that tends to influence my approach to this blog, too. It’s all geared towards emphasising the newest posts rather than generating a more complete “website experience,” (God, that sounds awfully business-speak,) but I’d really love to hear from you, our loyal visitors!
How long have you been reading our blog? Is there anything you’d like us to do differently? Would you like us to update more frequently? Focus on new or old anime? More live-action reviews?
I’m sure that there’s so much more I could do to make this a better website, so please don’t be afraid to be critical. Just hearing from you, even if it’s only to say “Hi!,” would be great.
And as ever, thanks for reading!
I used to visit you exclusively by bookmark, but the blog offers an option to be emailed when there is an blog post, and I selected that option about ten posts ago. I’ve been reading for maybe five years? It’s hard to say for sure. Definitely at least four. As far as content… that’s totally up to you. It’s your blog. I started reading because of the subject; I kept reading because of your taste. Live action is a good addition as long as it doesn’t dominate. Manga is a great addition and could equal anime in quantity. New or old doesn’t matter. The blog is really about your consumption of anime and that’s why it’s relevant to you. And frequency doesn’t matter to me… as long as you get around to posting once per anime season. Gambate kudasai!
Thumbs up on the Kaiba pic.
I’ve been visiting this blog since my sophomore year of college May 2006. I remember specifically discovering Black Lagoon and Kemonozume and trying to figure out how to navigate through the anime blogosphere. Bateszi’s writing and taste was eerily similar to mine. I’ve never subscribed through feeds or emails. My interest in anime has dwindled since I was 21… graduate school, job, mortgage etc. I stop by once in a while to see if Bateszi recommends anything because I know he’d only write about something that resonates with him. Which in turn means theres a possibility I might like it. Honestly, I’d rather the blog have 2 focuses split between old shows and current ones. I would love for you guys to do a top 10 all time series and top 10 of the year annually. Either way, I dont come here to learn about new anime (thats what randomc is for) I come here for specific insights into shows that I have or havent seen. I’ve discovered some truly fantastic gems based off this blog and my trust of the author: Legend of Galactic Heroes, FMAB, Kaiba, tatami galaxy, durarara, baccano etc.
Anyways keep up the good work. This blog is like the Terrence Malick of blogs. Theres not always something new, but when there’s a post it counts
I’ve reading it blog on a off since a year or more ago. I only use rss for podcasts so I read every website the old fashion way. As for content it doesn’t really matter to me. You always seemed to put in a lot of thought in all your writings and that’s the main reason I read this blog.
Though I’ve been beginning to read some quality manga so it’s cool to see you’ve been writing about those too.
I’ve been reading this blog for about a year, and I can say I generally do find something of interest whenever I finally do visit.
The only thing I could ask for more of is features that let me know more of what’s out there and what’s interesting. You know, the ones that skim over several different titles. Never can get enough of those.
Thanks for the responses so far, guys! I guess the overriding themes I’ve picked up on so far are to keep it up with the manga reviews and to look at writing more list-style articles, like top 10s and other kinds of spotlights. Again, I appreciate the feedback, so thanks :)
I still use bookmark :) I’ve been reading for maybe 4 or 5 years, your blog was the only one I read for a good while when I was only watching a few series per year. Nowadays I watch a lot more so I visit psgels mainly for recommendations because he has the same great taste as you and he post a ton. I still check back here once every week or so to see what you’re watching since you introduced me to so many great animes. Thanks for all the years and keep up the good work. :)
I’ve been reading this blog since 2006 (maybe), because that’s when I started reading blogs, and started my own blog too. I primarily use AnimeNano to check the latest posts because I’m too lazy to bother with Google Reader. In the past I used to check for updates a lot but now that my priorities have changed I haven’t been able to check frequently like I used to.
As for doing things differently, I’ll echo the previous suggestion of lists. Though I do prefer quality over quantity when it comes to posting frequency.
As to the kind of anime I also like Legend of Galactic Heroes, Kaiba. I get turned off by most harem/ecchi/moe shows but at times I can turn off my brain and enjoy/tolerate stuff like K-On! and Dusk Maiden of Amnesia. So yeah just keep posting about anime you like. :)
Every week or so I say to myself, “I wonder what that miserable SOB Bateszi and his minions are up to?”
Or I spot it on animenano.
I like to think of myself as an apprentice or an associate, rather than a minion. I suppose it’s best left up to bateszi to decide.
I read via a bookmark, the old-fashioned way. I’ve probably been reading for a couple of years.
I like the more analytical posts here, because I feel like it enriches one’s viewing experiences of the series being discussed (and it’s the sort of content I’d like to move more towards with my own blog).
But top-ten lists and that sort of thing are fun also in that they serve as a good writing exercise but don’t usually require a whole lot of major brain power. I’d love it if the blog were updated more often, but I ultimately prefer quality over quantity.
Thanks so much for the feedback so far, guys. I’ve read every comment and it means a lot to know that you’re out there.
I must say my goal for a while now has been to try and update more often. There’s things, people, films, manga I still want to blog about, and yet the older I get, the more I aspire to raise the standard of (1) my writing (2) the anime and manga I choose to write about. These aren’t things that lend themselves freely to regular updates, but I’m sure there’s a balance to be found there. I want to communicate with you all more often, after all!
Late to the party. AGAIN. But I guess that is evidence of how I read updates. I’ve had the site on bookmark for years now D: and I just remember to swing by ever so often when I’m on an anime kick. I’m pretty confident there’ll be some discussion about something new worth watching so that is what keeps bringing me back. I’ve never used RSS for much of anything personally.
I guess I’m a luddite in that I want the complete blog/site “experience”. I’m a fan of Pocket (or page bookmarks) for processing posts into minimally designed digestible articles though so grain of salt.
No criticisms from me though.
Just thought I’d provide an update on some of the things I’m doing with the blog.
I’ve been tweaking the theme and functionality for a week now, just trying to improve the general “flow” of the blog.
The most notable new feature is that I’ve coded a WordPress plugin to display “Latest comments” on the homepage and sidebar in a particularly forum-esque way. I’m hopeful this will go some ways to centralising discussion across the blog. Take a look and see what I mean :)
I’ve also gotten rid of post tags until I can work out a better way of utilising them across the site and added a little more “polish” (or “sh*t”, depending on your point of view! :) ) to the blog’s theme.
Let me know what you think or if there’s anything you’ve seen on other sites that could be integrated to our humble blog. Feedback is always welcome! :)
I like the latest comments feature, it’ll be a particular help for older posts. I hope the tags come back though, it can be a nice way to track what we’ve said about shows across a range of posts.