The Secret Life of a Book Blogger Tag

 

So I saw this tag over at Monstrumology and thought it looked like fun! I enjoy the tags that let you know more about the blogger behind the blog! I'm not sure where this tag originated, but I found it Monstrumology and also borrowed the above image from Louise!

How long have you been blogging?

I started my blog one day in January of 2009, the 29th to be exact! I was a fan of Rachel Vincent and was on her now deceased discussion board, The Pride. She was having a contest to win an ARC of her next book, Prey and you basically got entries for wherever you posted a review or talked about her books. The blogosphere was nonexistent at this time...Twitter, Instagram weren't around as far as I can remember. So I posted my reviews on the bookish sites (which yes, included Borders!), and then I saw her list "blog" as an option, so I looked into starting one and saw free platforms with Blogger. I started the "create an account" process and when it came to a blog name, I pretty much came up with "a GREAT read" on a whim because I thought Rachel's books were GREAT! All caps! So thus my blog with the specific capitalization was born!

At which point do you think you'll stop blogging?

I don't see a point as of now. As long as I am alive and kicking and capable, I figure I'll blog. Even when everyone stops reading blog posts and reviews...I'll still be posting them. As a reader, I know I look for book reviews when it comes to books I may be on the fence about. You can trust a picture or a tweet to tell you what a book is about.

What is the best part about blogging?

Honestly, I enjoy just being able to talk about books. I'm not good at being social. If someone doesn't want to talk about books...I honestly don't know what to talk about. So even if I end up having a conversation with myself on my blog about the books I enjoy, it's at least an outlet of some sort! I sorely need that.

What is the worst? What do you do to make it okay?

I guess the worst part is when no one visits or comments on the blog. I know the blogging world is dying once more. We're moving to Instagram, TikTok and the like. While I enjoy taking pictures of books, that's really all it is for me. Just trying to take pretty artistic pictures of books. I don't really discuss them. Though if I were to take a picture with a new book that I've read, I direct "viewers" to my blog for the review where I will tell you how awesome the book was. I guess what I do to make it okay, is try to comment on other people's blogs. Which I do when I see a book being reviewed that I want to read or read, just to see what their thoughts were.

Who is your book crush?

Well, lately I've been on a YA track and it's hard to get crushes from there. Though I do swoon a little! Lol. I guess since I just bought Bones' book (still need to read it though), I'd say he's still one of my favorite crushes!

 

What author would you like to have on your blog?

I guess I'd say Stephanie Garber! But I'd be hard pressed on what I would ask her! I still find I choke up when I meet my favorite authors...even if it's the third or fourth time! Lol.

 

What do you wear to write your blog posts?

Just whatever I had on earlier? Clothes? There's no uniform or thinking cap. Though now I kind of want a baseball cap that says "Thinking Cap!"

 

How long does it take you to prepare?

Uh...not long? I mean when I'm ready to write a blog post or review, I pretty much sit down and write it. I write my reviews right after I finish the book so I don't forget any details. If I'm writing another post, as soon as I get my prompt or idea, I just sit and write it once I've the time. So I guess in a sense, it doesn't take my long to prepare at all. I mean after I've written it all out, I go back and format things, but that doesn't take long either; that usually involves changing the font, adding links, italicizing/bolding...that kind of thing.

 

How do you feel about the blogging community?

Honestly, I still love it! I mean the blogging community is still my kind of people because we're all still booklovers at heart. I love how I made some good friends through blogging. It's just nice to be able to reach out and talk with like-minded people. Growing up, I was never really around people who enjoyed reading or particularly enjoyed reading paranormal books. So having found those people through blogging has made me think fondly of the community.

What do you think one should do to create a successful blog?

I feel like this is another loaded question. I wouldn't call my blog successful. I'm not sure which blogs are really successful. When I started out blogging, there weren't a lot of book blogs to follow. You had to have a name for yourself, several years of blogging behind you to even be considered to receive an ARC of any sort. Now, none of those rules apply. New bloggers are already successful and receive all the ARCs. So the success as I see it doesn't seem to follow any rhyme or reason now. I guess what I will say is to always enjoy blogging. Don't let it become a job for you, I've watched many a blogger leave the community because it became too overwhelming for them with obligations and such. Perhaps going unnoticed all these years, I never felt that obligation. I just enjoyed reading what I had or received and writing my reviews...talking to myself in posts and such. Blogging should always be fun. Write the posts you want to read, write the review you enjoy reading, read the books you want to read...just have fun with it! Then you'll be successful for yourself (and yes, I realize that last bit sounds cheesy, but as I've said here on my blog before, I like cheese! Lol.).