Birdbrain(ed) Book Blog

Today’s post is about blogging:

The world of blogging is continually changing. Share 3 things you are essential tried and true practices for every blogger and 1-3 new trends or tools you’ve adapted recently or would like to in the future.

I tried to think of things that newbie bloggers both a) might not already know and b) might not have already been told. It was really hard! I’ve come up with five things, though, that I think are useful to know and haven’t been said too many times before. Unfortunately they don’t really fit with the prompt above, but, well. We can’t have everything.

1. DO go to as many book events as you can and/or that you’re interested in. I know some of you live in places that don’t have a lot going on in the way of book events, so, if you can, save up for a big one like BEA or ALA and go to that. Not only will it be awesome, but being around so many book lovers will make you feel like you’ve returned to the mothership.

2. DO be proactive in stuff. If you want a book, an interview, to write a guest post for another blogger, for more people to join in on your meme or event or challenge, or anything that involves people other than yourself getting in on it– be proactive and ask! Through email, preferably (it’s more professional). Politely, of course. And don’t be too upset if you’re turned down. It happens.

3. DO keep track of your books in some way. You probably all do this anyway, but having a catalog of your books (or even just of books you’ve read) will be really helpful later on when you’re wondering how you ended up with three copies of The Story of the Trapp Family Singers.

4. DON’T be afraid to make friends. Book bloggers are, on the whole, very nice people. If you want to be someone’s friend, do what I said in point no. 2: be proactive! Talk to them on Twitter, comment on their blog, be nice to them and soon you’ll no doubt have a new friend. Don’t worry about “cliques” or whatever– there aren’t actually cliques of people wandering around being snobby. Really! (Not that I know of, anyway.)

5. DO ask questions. Even older bloggers have questions about how stuff works, so you newbie bloggers shouldn’t feel bad about asking about things, either. Even if it’s questions that’ve been asked a million times before!

Happy end of BBAW, everyone! I’ve been trying to visit people who’ve commented here, but I’m a bit behind (understatement!). Still, if you’d like me to visit your blog– leave a comment here and I promise I’ll come over for a visit!

If you’d like to read my other BBAW posts, here they are: Day 1 | Day 3 | Day 4

Today’s topic is about readers:

Book bloggers blog because we love reading. Has book blogging changed the way you read? Have you discovered books you never would have apart from book blogging? How has book blogging affected your book acquisition habits? Have you made new connections with other readers because of book blogging? Choose any one of these topics and share your thoughts today!

It’s actually been kind of interesting how much my reading has changed since I started book blogging. If you look at my reading list from 2008, I read a total of 163 books, most of them graphic novels and YA. If you look at last year’s list, I read 238 books and the genres were all over the place. Also, I’ve started getting a lot more review requests than I did in my first year.

So, basically:
- I read more books total now
- I read a wider range of genres (which is either good or bad, depending on how I feel)
- I read more newer books

The first two points are pretty much fine with me (I do enjoy reading more/different books) but the third one is a bit troubling. I don’t want to read only new books, after all. I’ve been trying to read more stuff published pre-2000 but the newer stuff is overwhelming. Partly that’s because of the review copies, but also it’s because I get wind of so many interesting new books from other bloggers that I want to read, too. I don’t think I’ve ever paid as much attention to what books are coming out when as I do now that I’m a book blogger!

Sort of related to that, I think I’m also more deliberate about what I read now. The library is far away and all my books come from either my buying them or accepting them for review (or winning them in contests!). The books I read now are once I picked out for myself because of deliberate, specific reasons– not just because the cover looked cool. I may not remember the reason once I actually get around to reading the book, but it was there.

I’m assuming the more I blog the more my reading will lean towards newer books, but I don’t see myself reverting to only one or two genres and/or reading fewer books…unless something drastic happens, I guess! (I get a job, maybe? Please let it be so.)

[Sidenote: I'm actually kind of thinking of starting a series next year where I highlight truly forgotten childrens/YA/etc. books. Like, I have a few in my collection now that I'm pretty sure haven't been talked about since they were first published. If I can do it right, I think it might be interesting. What do you think?]

Today’s discussion topic is about community again:

The world of book blogging has grown enormously and sometimes it can be hard to find a place. Share your tips for finding and keeping community in book blogging despite the hectic demands made on your time and the overwhelming number of blogs out there. If you’re struggling with finding a community, share your concerns and explain what you’re looking for–this is the week to connect!

To be honest, I’ve been struggling to dig myself deeper into the blog community. I volunteer for stuff, sure, and I try to comment/Tweet at people/etc., but I still kind of feel like an outsider. Probably part of that comes from the fact that I don’t have a defined niche for my blog. I’ve got lots of crossover interests but I don’t really fit into any one defined kind of blog, you know? So I’m left sort of floating out in space while (it seems) everyone else is in their YA/classics/non-fiction/paranormal romance spaceships of amazingness.

I mean, I guess I could make my own spaceship, but it’d be a party of one in there and that kinda sucks. Even sending out messages to other spaceships isn’t all that fun when they go off to explore Saturn or something and I’m not invited to tag along.

I think the key to feeling more included might be to bring more community stuff back to my own blog, but I haven’t really worked out how to do that besides discussion posts (which I’m rubbish at). More events, maybe? (Also rubbish at that, by the way.) Videos, maybe! I don’t know, really.

Or maybe the key to feeling more included is in offline community stuff. Like, should I join a book club? Go to more book events? Meet up with book bloggers for coffee or something? That might work! I’m going to try doing some of that when I move to California. Not only will I be nearer to more book stuff but I’ll probably also feel like actually leaving the house once in a while.

What about you? Do you feel like you’re a crew of one in your own lonely spaceship? How do you keep from feeling lonely out in the vastness of book blogging space?