So last night and early this morning, I was able to join my first Twitter party, and what do you know, it made me stay an extra hour at work, and it made me wake up earlier the next day to attend the second Twitter party. I would not have done all that if it weren’t for Armchair BEA.
When I started my blog, I was pretty much of a lurker. I used to keep to myself and only read specific blogs and hardly leave comments, because it’s never really been a habit of mine, back even when I had my personal blog. It’s a strange thing, especially since I’ve been blogging for years, and the fact that very talkative in real life. :P
I think I tend to lurk because of two things: I’m not really someone who ask questions, and I kind of suck at keeping in touch with people that I hardly see in real life. I’m trying to work on those two things, and it extends to the book blogging world, too.
I guess for me, that’s how I’d nurture my relationships with other book bloggers. You just can’t take and take and wait and wait for people to come to you. You’d need to be able to reach out, too — you know, reply to comments, visit other people’s blogs, converse in Twitter, join in online events like Armchair BEA. I mean, what can you lose, right? As long as you’re respectful, I don’t think there’d be any problems. :)
And if there are online gatherings, offline, face to face gatherings are the just thing to seal the deal in nurturing relationships. I’ve always enjoyed the Filipino Book Bloggers meet-ups because it’s not often I get to talk to like-minded people. I found that book bloggers are a very nice and friendly bunch, whether online or offline. :)
First Filipino Book Bloggers Meet-Up
Like I said, what’s to lose? Who knows, these blogging friends could be not just that but true friends, people who you can talk to even if it’s not about books (like movies, make-up, and sometimes even english horse tacks, no matter how strange it sounds). :) I know I found some of those because of my blog, and I’m excited to find more. :)
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Now, let’s go to blogging. I won’t ramble too much here now because I rambled above. :P In my almost 10 years (gasp!) of blogging, here are some things I learned and try to live/blog by:
- Be respectful. Respect goes a long, long way. Remember, the blogs you read are run by people, too, and everyone deserves respect.
- Unless you blog for a living, don’t be pressured to blog. Remember why you started your blog for the first time — because it’s fun. If you feel like burning out, take a break.
- Readable fonts. Nice, clean layout. It makes people want to visit your blog more.
- Content is king. Memes are fun, but don’t make a blog just full of memes. When writing reviews, don’t just write raves or rants without saying why you’re raving or ranting. Personally speaking, I like going back to a book blog when it contains good content, and I can rely on the blogger to have a review that I would like to read. Content is what makes people come back to a blog. :)
- But speaking of content: never steal content. Always give credit where it’s due. Always.
- Don’t make it hard for the people to subscribe or comment. Personally, if there are too many word verification thingamajigs, I skip commenting.
- Interact! Don’t lurk! Trust me — it’s fun to de-lurk and say hi to people. :)
- Finally, don’t be afraid to be honest. I admire bloggers who write what they think, even if their opinion is a minority. I think being honest in a review is the best thing a book blogger can give to the community and maybe even to the industry. Honesty with a lot of tact is very valuable in a place where opinions are given in every post. :)
So it’s been a fun week. :) This has definitely refreshed my book blogging mojo. I look forward to visiting and checking out the new blogs that I’m following, as well as interacting with the new-found friends I met from the entire week and yesterday’s Twitter party. I’m proud to be a part of this great community. :) Thanks so much to the organizers of Armchair BEA — you guys are more than awesome! Till the next!
Mom & wife who has an addiction to books, handbags, & shoes. Sometimes I’m way too talkative, loves traveling, music, & photography.
So last year I watched Twilight for the first time, and realized this was based on a book. I bought all four books in one shot and stayed up till the early hours of the morning reading.
Ah this is one of those books that I never thought I’d enjoy reading, but was totally, absolutely blown away when I was done. I loved how simple and haunting it was, and how it leaves you with lingering thoughts on the characters life and how it all ended. The movie was also just as good (and depressing!), but go for the book first. If you haven’t read this one, I suggest you put it in one of your books.
I’ve had this book since forever, but it kind of slipped under my TBR pile until I unearthed it late last year. Since Tosca Lee is coming up with a new book this year (with Ted Dekker!) and another one next year, I figured it’s about time to read this. Oh, and it was such a beautiful adventure. Havah is definitely one book that spoke to my heart.
I rarely read YA paranormal romance because honestly, I’ve gotten tired of the genre. If it wasn’t for the good reviews of blogger friends who also don’t read much paranormal romance, I would never have picked this up. Unearthly had a good set of characters, solid mythology and a healthy romance, and the story’s very engaging, too. :)
Jasper Fforde has been one of my favorite, favorite writers of all time. When news came out that he was coming out with a YA book, I was thrilled. I was lucky enough to snag a copy of this as soon as Fully Booked had it, and this book seriously saved me from a slump. If you love Fforde, you’ll enjoy this one. If you’re new to Fforde, The Last Dragonslayer is the best book to get your feet wet. :) Quark! :3
I love contemporary YA, but I’ve surprisingly never read any Marchetta. My first Marchetta was actually 
If you see the distance between the Philippines and NYC, where Book Expo America is being held, you’d probably understand why I’m just participating in Armchair BEA. But it’s okay! I’ve always dreamed of going to New York City, and BEA just adds to the perks of wanting to visit the city. One day, one BEA, I’ll be there in the flesh. :)
