Friday, May 27, 2011

Armchair BEA: Blogging about Blogging


The last daily topic of Armchair BEA is: Blogging about Blogging!

So, let's face it, I don't have a lot going on in my life. Keeping up this blog isn't that complicated, but there were times where I felt stressed or bogged down by it. Then, I realized: this is not a job. I started this blog for fun, and I eventually went back to that.

This blog has been up for almost two years. When I started it, I had no idea where I was going with it, but I think I've found a pretty good niche and rhythm. Here's how I've gotten here:


  • When I first started blogging, I had no idea about ARCs and the like. I didn't do this to get free books, but as soon as I was getting offered them, I was all, "Sure! Send 'em over!" However, I soon got overwhelmed. Feeling as though I had to read these books instead of wanting to, and also not being able to read my own books from my shelves. So, eventually, I stopped saying, "YES" to everything and just occasionally picked out what I thought I would like. And besides, it's nice to read your own books, yes?
  • Type out reviews as you finish books using Word or Open Office or whatever you choose. You don't have to post them right away, but it's nice to have some reviews already typed up ready to go. Then, you can just copy & paste them into a new post. And seeing as how blogger isn't reliable all the time, I like knowing I have my reviews saved on my hard drive ready to go.
  • Read and review books outside of the 'hype'. I've been finding that the reviews I get the most comments on are books that haven't made the rounds of the book bloggersphere. Not only that, but reading little-known books is exciting. You can discover new authors, and you also get more excited to share the book with everyone.
  • At first, I was sugar-coating my reviews. Not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings with how I really felt about some books, but I was feeling restricted by this. I've never been mean or overly negative in any reviews, but sometimes I just gotta say: I don't like a book. But it's best to state the reasons why specifically. That way, people can decide for themselves if they want to read that book or not.

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