Here are twenty things I love--and hate--about being a book blogger, in no particular order. Many of these could apply to other types of blogging as well.
- I love to read and to write.
- I love to discover new books and blogs worth reading.
- I love the sense of community. In reality, it took me a long while to connect and link to other book bloggers, and to join reading challenges, but once I did, it made a tremendous difference. I now consider myself a real blogivert (one who connects to many other bloggers).
- I hate when I write a post, and then wait nervously for my first comment. Waiting for that first comment can be grueling. (Am I taking this too seriously? Perhaps.) When I am lucky enough to interview an author then I worry that the interview will not get many comments. That's the worst, because I worry about the feelings of the author. I guess I've been lucky in this regard so far.
- I love the surprises blogging brings, the free books and other perks, and the wonderful friends that I've made online. And they are friends. There's definitely a connection.
- I hate when people assume that every blog is narcissistic.
- I love when others link to my blog or specific posts, or tweet about my posts.
- I hate when I publish a post and then notice a typo, or two, or three. (Luckily it's possible and easy to edit after posting, and I take advantage of this.)
- I love when someone compliments or follows my blog, or does both.
- I love receiving awards.
- I hate Spam or mean comments, and delete them.
- I hate the fact that sometimes I blog so much that I don't spend enough time reading. I'm a book blogger, right? (Get thee to a bookery!)
- I hate when people don't take the time to carefully read my reviews or posts. I know some of them are long. I know there aren't enough hours in the day. But my ideal reader has some time, a cup of coffee or tea in hand, and wants to read. I try to make my writing worthwhile.
- I love that my blog's international. I've mentioned this before, but it bears repeating.
- I hate when the internet goes out and I can't check my email or blog.
- I hate when I spend too much time trying to fix the layout of a post, when I have problems arranging images and texts in posts. This takes up precious time. I wish the Blogger rectangle that I type into were a bit larger so I wouldn't have to preview my work as often.
- I love when others read the same books as me or want to. Or see the same movies, which are often based on books.
- I love the give and take of blogs, the spontaneity and interactivity.
- I hate when I simply waste too much time on my blog.
- I love questions and comments, consider them carefully, and am thankful for them.
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This looks like a very good list! In fact, I think most of the points you've mentioned up there apply to me as well!
ReplyDeleteI'm still such a newbie in the book blogging world, I completely know what you mean about waiting (very nervously) for that first comment. But I've also been blogging about other thing elsewhere for long enough to know that blogging does help build a very strong community, and the friends made through blogs can be very close ones.
I like your list. It feels warm to know that there are people out there who feel like how I do about blogging. :)
We definitely share some of the same loves and hates about blogging, the agony over the first comment being one of them. Especially early on it blogging it is hard trying to find the balance between writing for ones self and wanting to attract and keep readers. I certainly feel it is important to do the very best we can with blogging regardless of the number of readers so that at the very least we can be satisfied with our work. And yet it still is very pleasurable to be able to engage in a conversation with someone because of something you've posted. I certainly hope that the things you love about blogging continue to get better and better and that the things you hate would fade away.
ReplyDeleteI look at this list and think we have many things in common when it comes to blogging! I am trying to train myself not to care too much about comments, although it's always so nice to see someone reads and thinks about the things I say. I started my blog as a way to keep track of what I read and my thoughts about it, and I never really expected people to read it -- so when people started it was both a pleasant surprise and a bit of a shock.
ReplyDeleteAlso, re: the editing thing -- I know exactly what you mean! Sometimes I will post something and then have to go back three or four times to fix it before I'm happy with it, and that's with previewing the thing first.
Great post!
I hate that even in preview, you can't tell if your images are going to be in the right place! Ugh! Blogger is not the most efficient in its html, and I'm not smart enough to know how to html-fix it!
ReplyDeleteI haven't really sat down and thought about what I love or hate about blogging. Mostly, there haven't been a lot of hates. I do hate that I don't spend enough time writing, but I don't know that that's blogging's fault...
Great list Suko. My biggest pet peeve (hate) is with blogger images, and getting posts to look right. Sometimes in preview they look fine and then when the post is show, it looks stupid. (I can't line up photos)!
ReplyDeleteWaiting for comments was discouraging at first, but you just have to have the attitude that you are have a blog because you love books, and soon the readers/commenters will follow.
I found the more you comment on the blogs of others, the more of an audience you get reading your posts Just remember..have fun!
That's a great list! I can't think of anything to add, I think your list rounded it up really well!
ReplyDeleteFun post. I love the abundance of books as well, and hate that the computer pulls me away from reading.
ReplyDeleteAnd I came across your blog while judging BBAW, and I DID sign up for your feed -- something you love!
(also from www.5minutesforbooks.com)
Great post! I find that I have quite a few of the same loves and hates as you do, especially the one about the guest bloggers and comments. I also just started subscribing to your feed, and have been really enjoying your reviews as of late.
ReplyDeleteI really do appreciate all these comments, and welcome more.
ReplyDeleteGreat post Suko. I love the surprises blogging brings too :)
ReplyDeleteAnd I do like when blog visitors take time out to read my posts as well.
http://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/
Nice list! Many of these apply to me as well.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with ALL the points! My list would be very similar ... if not a copy of this altogether :D :D
ReplyDeleteI love reading fun posts like this!
ReplyDeleteI must say that I appreciate all these comments. Some of them are quite thoughtful. I think all of us share many of the same "loves" and "hates" with respect to blogging.
ReplyDeleteWhat else belongs on this list?
You have so thoughtfully written this list. I love your reviews and all the interviews you post. The only thing that I would add would be that I wish there were enough hours in the day to enable me to better appreciate all the wonderful blogs that I love, especially this one. You open my eyes to many books that would otherwise pass under the radar. Keep up the great work!
ReplyDeletexo
Mervat, you are so kind--thank you!
ReplyDeleteI also wish that there were more hours in the day to read books and blogs. Too many books and blogs, too little time!
Oh I totally can relate! Specially with this one: "I hate when I publish a post and then notice a typo, or two, or three." It can be really frustrating when I've already re-read and re-edited a published post a number of times but still find a typo or mis-alignment or wrong formatting the next time I read it again. What I actually did now is I created another blog, my test site, where I first publish my post. I read and examine it there a couple of times before finally publishing it on my main blog. It helps a bit. I remember how I used to edit a published post more than ten times just because I keep finding mistakes. I thought maybe those following me through Google Reader must get frustrated at me as well when they keep receiving multiple notices for the same post :)
ReplyDeleteMark David, your test site is a great idea, but I'm not as patient as you. I just go ahead and publish and then edit any typos or spacing issues.
ReplyDeleteThanks for taking the time to comment!