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| Design credit: Nina of Nina Reads |
Today is day five of Armchair BEA and we are discussing how we keep our blogs real, fresh and fun.
The prompt for today is: How do you keep your material fresh? How do you continue to keep
blogging fun? How do you not only grow an audience, but how do you keep
them coming back for more?
I started this blog as a hobby and way to share my love of books and I plan to keep it that way. I read the books I want, when I want. I tend not to follow all the hype on certain books – if I want to read it, I do when I’m ready. For the most part, I stick to posts related to books, because that is the focus of this blog and that’s the course I plan to stay on. Every once in a while, I might add some personal information about my daily life – you can see this in my ‘Month in Review’ posts and in my ‘It’s Monday…What Are You Reading?’ posts.
As far as keeping it fresh, I find that I constantly am evaluating how I write my review posts. Since I started, I’ve changed the format – added some things, stopped including some things. I think as long as I stick with writing reviews, this will be an area of evolution.
Recently I’ve joined some online book clubs. I did this for a change of pace. I like having a group to discuss a book with – whether it be on someone’s blog or via twitter. Rather than just writing the review, there are discussions and debates about our opinions…hopefully this is something I will continue to do. And, I plan to incorporate these into my reviews if possible.
I think for me, the most important thing to remember is that I started doing this for fun. As long as it remains fun, I will keep doing it. When I get stressed or overwhelmed, I take a break and I’ve come to realize that that is as important as getting posts up. If I don’t enjoy this or I start to feel that it is becoming a chore, then the posts reflect that and no one is going to want to visit. I really believe that if someone is following me, they will be there if I take a short break, and if they decide that my lack of posting bothers them, then they weren’t loyal followers to begin with. We all need a break every once in a while!
What about you? What do you do to keep it real, fresh and fun on your blog?
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Previous ArmchairBEA 2013 posts:
- Day 1: Introductions
- Day 1: Genre Discussion: The Classics
- Day 2: Blogger Development
- Day 2: Genre Discussion: Genre Fiction
- Day 3: Giveaway Day
- Day 4: Ethics in Blogging
- Day 4: Genre Discussion: Non-Fiction
Are you enjoying the online books clubs? I do the one on She Reads, but have been looking to adding another.
Kerri @ Turn the Page Reviews
Yes, I am. The Book Lovers Unite Online Book Club is more of a read-a-long…you should check that one out. We just started.
Kristin
I didn't do this post because I haven't been book blogging long enough. I find your post refreshing and real! I like that you know why you blog and what books you want to read and stick to that. I think writing book reviews is my learning point. Still feeling my way.
Your point about taking a break is important too, so that you can come back fresh. I enjoy your blog because you are yourself, it feels real! You do a great job.
Kathryn
I really love what you said about taking a break when you need to, or else it shows in your posts that it has become a chore. I think we all tend to forget that our readers aren't going anywhere if we need to take a day or two off for other things 🙂