Sunday, December 5, 2010

Busting the Newbie Blues

Hosted by Small Review
This event is designed to:
  •  Put new YA book bloggers on the map
  • Increase blogger interaction
  • Start a discussion by sharing our experiences as a new bloggers
  • Learn about what it was like for all those impressive established bloggers when they were newbies

So how does this work? Simple:
  • Select the questionnaire that best applies to you (there's no "wrong" choice, so just pick whichever one you feel most comfortable answering)
  • Create a post on your blog with the questions and your answers
  • Grab the banner above or the button below to include in your post or sidebar
  • Link back to my post here
  • Sign the Mr. Linky below so we can all come and visit your post!
  • Spread the word! 
New Blogger Questionnaire:

Pick this questionnaire if you if you feel you're still getting your "blogging legs" and could use some advice and awareness brought to your blog, whether you're a brand new blogger or even if you've been blogging for over a year. 
  1. When did you start your blog?  I started the blog in June 2010 but didn't post anything until July.
  2. Why did you start your blog?  To make myself write better reviews for the books I read.  Before the blog I was lucky if I wrote a couple of sentences about each book.  I like writing reviews for myself because it helps me remember books.  It's embarrassing when someone asks you what you thought of a book and you can't remember (especially if you only read it a couple months ago).
  3. What has been the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?  Writing reviews.  I put too much pressure on myself to write the "perfect" review so it usually takes me at least two days to write one.  Before I publish a review I have tweaked it at least six times.  I get a little anxious before I hit "publish". 
  4. What do you find most discouraging about being a new blogger?  I know I shouldn't compare myself to others but it is a little discouraging when I see some blogs who post multiple reviews a week.  How do they read so fast?  I'm lucky if I am able to get one review up a week.
  5. What do you find most encouraging?  When people leave comments!  It's nice to know that someone took a minute or so to leave some feedback.  All of the book bloggers I've talked to so far have been so nice!
  6. What do you like best about the blogs you read? Have you tried to replicate this in your blog?  I like how all of the blogs are different.  Yes, we're all (mostly) book blogs and we all review the same books sometimes but there's always at least one unique thing about each blog.  Plus, I love how everyone's personality is reflected in their blog.
  7. What do you dislike about blogs you’ve read? Do you try to avoid this? I hate it when the blog design and layout is too "busy".  Sometimes it's hard to concentrate on the blog post you're reading because everything flashing on the sidebar.  I definitely avoid this on my blog!  I like nice, simple, "quiet" layouts.  Oh, and I don't like it when music starts to play automatically.  That usually scares me!
  8. Any advice for other new bloggers?  Participating in memes is a good way to meet other bloggers and to gain a few followers.  Just try not to only post memes and you don't have to participate in them every week.
  9. Anything else you’d like to share about your experience? Be prepared for your blog to take up a lot of time.  I did not realize how much time I would spend working on my blog (there are still parts 'under construction'), writing reviews, participating in different events, visiting other blogs and leaving comments.  It takes a long time! Also, there are times when I have to make myself not participate in a meme.  I see so many fun ones come through my Reader but I'd only have memes on the blog if I joined in every one that looked interesting!
  10. Is there anything you’d like to tell us about your blog? I'm still trying to find my blogging "niche" and I'm trying to become more disciplined with posting.  I want to try to set up some type of blogging schedule for myself but first I think I need to have a handful of reviews saved as drafts so I can plan it out better.

9 comments:

Small Review said...

Thanks for participating! Your answers were great to read. I think what's coming out is that we all have so many worries about what we're putting out there. It's also funny, because we all also recognize how nice the YA blogging community is. Whenever I worry, I try to remind myself of that second part.

I told another blogger my secret to posting multiple reviews a week and now I'll tell you: I have a backlog. I had about 100 reviews already written before I started blogging, so when I'm busy I post up an older review.

On a great week I might read four or five books, but on a more hectic week I might not even finish one. It's really your own pace that matters. :)

You are so right about blogging taking up a lot of time. I didn't realize how time consuming it would be!

Thanks again for participating!

danya said...

I know what you mean about stressing about finishing/reviewing books...I sometimes have the same worries and have to remind myself that it's just for fun :)

Also good call on the music! LOL I totally forgot about that but it's another thing that can distract me a lot when I'm visiting a blog.

Anonymous said...

Oh yes, you hit the nail on the head with those answers. It takes me an age to write my reviews. Quite often I go totally blank and stare at the screen for ages before I write a first line. It's certainly not as easy as it looks.

It drives me mad when I hit on a blog and music starts blaring. Sometimes it can take a while to find the source and turn it off. I find it really distracting whilst I'm trying to read.

The main thing is though that we're enjoying it!

Sniffly Kitty said...

Seems like a lot of us new bloggers dislike the busy designs ^.^

I write my reviews in advance and also put up reviews of books I read in the past so far (especially when I finish a book that's not the first in a series)... I doubt I'm going to be able to keep up the pace at some point heh~~

Sniffly Kitty
Sniffly Kitty's Mostly Books

Jen said...

Small Review: I wish I would have thought to write a bunch of reviews before I started blogging!

danya: Lately I've been reading all young adult books because I know I can read them faster and get a review up quicker.

The Slowest Bookworm: Half the time I write the title and author of the book and then I draw a blank! The past couple of books I reviewed I wrote up outlines for and that helped a little bit!

Sniffly Kitty: Busy, loud designs are the worst!

Ashley @ Bookaholics Anonymous said...

Ok first off I have to say I love the blog name. I'm guilty of using ( and this ) alot. It's part of how I write. Hum.

Anyways, I agree with the whole tryin to make the review perfect. I see so many blogs that have written awesome reviews, and mine are just kind of..well they don't compare at all. I try to tell myself that I do this for myself, and if others can take something away from the reviews then that's awesome if not well at least I tried, and i enjoyed doing it. :)

A Canadian Girl said...

I'm not a fan of the music either. It's even worse when my volume is at maximum and I switch to another tab because I hate waiting for pages to load. Mini heart attack!

Aylee said...

Hello! I love your blog name! I'm only just now getting around to ckecking in on the other blogs participating in this event.
I'm totally intimidated by blogs who put out multiple reviews a week, too! How do they do it?

T.B. said...

Loved your answers!

I feel the same way when I see blogs who post so much in a month or a week. But there's no reason to get discouraged, each blog is different. You're doing a great job!