Finding time to write reviews....

I do sort of a rough draft on my reviews.
Then I take a break from it, and come back and read the Extended Format

Then I try to get some feedback, and then work out kinks, then let it sit overnight.

Then I re-read it, finishing touches and hope for the best.

I'll keep a running list of things to bring up in the review and add to it while I'm working on other things (you know what they say about guys and thinking about sex, right?).

Once that's done it takes between 1/2 hr and an hour to get the review out. Video reviews are longer (much longer).

I take forever cuz I'm still in the new stages of writing reviews and I have the "oh God it'll sound stupid" fear lol I also multitask with everything so that adds to the time as well.

After I've used a toy for awhile and I feel like I'm ready to write a review, I start with just thinking about what I want to say. I'll play around with what I want to say and how several times in my head throughout the day. Then when I'm finally ready to write, I have a good idea what to say. It still takes me awhile, but I'm also a procrastinator.

was supposed to write a review this weekend...didn't happen (yet)

I've actually cut back by a couple reviews a month. I now do at least 2 per month, including a video review. If I have time to write another I will. With 2 rambunctious boys who have endless energy and are in my face almost non-stop, it's pretty much impossible for me to sit down in one sitting and write a review.

When I wrote my first review (submitted to my mentor right now) or added my side of things to my husbands reviews, he seemed to have more time. While I on the other hand wrote it out in our word program one sentence at a time if I was lucky. With the kids and such I had to get creative with how I got it done.

Doesn't help when I am never happy with my work and delete the whole review eight times. But like now I could be working on another review or working on my part of a couples review because all the kids are asleep for now. But I have chosen to read the forums and respond some. Tomorrow is another day and I will try again.

You sure are busy. I guess do what you can when you can. I try not to fret over getting it done but then look at how many times I start one and delete it, maybe I ought to be a bit concerned.

I do two things.

1st: I fill in the packaging info, care instructions and what it looks and feels like right away. Then I just leave my review until I have used the toy a few times, and come back and write from the easiest point in the review to the hardest. Sometimes this takes a couple of approaches. I find doing it that way means that you will have a lot less work when you have to come back and actually THINK about what you need to write about.

2nd: I have a list of pretty much every question that could be asked about every type of product that I have reviewed. I have it broken down into a few categories with one all encompassing group of questions, and then sub categories within that
For instance
Sex toys: the sub categories are, vibrators, anal toys and male masturbators
Bdsm Gear: Restraints, floggers, harnesses, swings and suspension kits, misc

I find with the list in front of me, I don't have to concentrate on what information I need to be coming up with, I simply have to answer questions that are all right there.

I tend to fill out a little here and there. A bit after work, a bit before bed, a bit in the morning. Sometimes i have time to do it all in one swoop. But if I dont i know it is there saved as draft

Text Reviews. I tend to work a little bit at a time. Sometimes I do an outline with basic info such as materials before I even get the toy. Packaging I write up then and there and then just add and modify as needs.

Video Reviews, the problem for me hasn't been time per say it been finding time that is quite and uninterrupted. I'm way over due on a vid review and the problem has been that when ever I sit down to do it has been to much background noise/distractions. Frustrating.

I usually do what many people on here have already said. I'll sit down and right a really rough draft. Then, as I get time, I'll go through it and refine it. I'll probably do it in a total of 3 or so sittings.

I use the extended format, and just fill out a section or two when I have time. Since the draft is saved, you just come back to it until it's done.
Shouldn't be too hard for even a very busy person to do a review a week that way.

When I've done reviews & articles in the past where I have to cover factual information, my process has usually been something like...

1. "Outline" - Not the A, II, b, etc. kind. Just a list of facts I need to include & anything else important. This is just a scrawl of random words that no one else can even read/decipher. It floats around with me for a day or two getting things added as they pop into my head. I can end up with stuff scrawled on receipts while out shopping & such.

2. Go back through the outline & convert it to a rough prose format. Get all the related information put into paragraphs, start getting it into kinda the appropriate review format. This usually has too much information, a lot of repetition, etc. in my case.

3. Take a little break & then go back through the previous, crossing out redundancy, irrelevant information, getting down to a reasonable word count, adding in anything I've forgotten.

4. Hit the computer & edit the previous as I enter it. Get it entered, then read back through & keep editing as I go until I'm happy with it, which might take 1 read-through or three, just depends.

It sounds like a lot, & I'm certainly more thorough than some, but the process gets a lot faster & more automatic as you get used to it. The most important part for me is breaking it up into chunks. If I try to just sit down & do everything in one sitting the result is never as good. I *can* do it, but really prefer not to & breaking it up works better when you have other commitments anyway. And, hey, at least we aren't reviewing toasters or something.