As you’ve heard (just a few times), I’ve struggled this spring to keep up with the blog and finish my degree. The blog has been on the back-burner, so I’m way behind on reviews and I haven’t been keeping up with a lot of the bloggy things I love.
It’s the 6th anniversary of my blog this weekend, and I’ve been thinking about what to do with my new free time. I really missed my blog, and here are some of the ways I’d like to improve it.
Learning about blogging: I picked up a book a while back, Everything but the Posts by Becca Ludlum, that I haven’t read yet. I really want to learn more about the mechanics of successful blogging, like creating graphics. I took a workshop when I started which was really helpful. Other suggestions?
Communicating with authors and publishers: this is one area where I’d really like to grow the blog. I’ve made some great contacts with authors over the years, like Rebecca Burns, Katie O’Rourke and Donna Thorland. But I’d like to get better at reaching out to publishers, sharing my reviews and requesting ARCs. Anyone have some good advice on that front?
Networking: I’m horrible at networking. I try to post my reviews on Goodreads but that’s about as far as I’ve gotten. I like Bloglovin and that might be a good place to invest some time. I recently read about The Reading Room, a site that looks similar to Goodreads but also has review copies. What are other good networking sites? I tend to think fewer is better, for me, since I can barely commit to one of these.
Meeting other bloggers: If you’re in the DC area, want to meet up? Also I really want to go to BEA and the Bloggers Conference, maybe next year.
Writing non-reviews: I still plan to write reviews, but I’d really like to spend some time writing about other topics, either those related to reading and publishing, or not. The bookish world is full of fascinating topics, like support for women and non-white authors in the science fiction and fantasy genres, and how e-reading (or Amazon) changes how we read. I also enjoy writing more about blogging.
Obviously there are non-bloggy things to get back to. What I’m looking forward to may sound dull – getting back to working out, cooking and eating healthier, for example. I also have a long-neglected project to scan my family’s old photos.
This summer’s looking pretty full already, so it’s not like I’ll be sitting around. I’ve got at least two work trips, two family trips, and a week where family is visiting me. But it will be great to not have a thesis hanging over my head any more. In truth it’s been more stressful than time-consuming, if that makes any sense.
I’d love to hear suggestions about any of the above, and especially any great resources you can share about blogging!
For other posts about blogging, see the Discussion Challenge at Feed Your Fiction Addiction.
