Armchair BEA Day 3 : Character Chatter & Blogging 101
Happy Day 3 of Armchair BEA! Hope you all are having a great
time. Onto today's topics:
Character Chatter
Once I joined the blogging community I got really swept up into
the Young Adult Genre. I read mostly Fantasy and Science Fiction growing up so I
dived right into books like The Hunger Games,
Cinder, Divergent, Matched
and more. It was quickly apparent that female characters and
writers dominated the YA scene. It was wonderful to read an abundance of female
characters in various types of stories, but I found myself really being drawn to
YA books with male narrators.
So here are some books with amazing male narrators:
Wade from RPO and Prince Aleksander from Leviathan are both
young men with missions that they have foisted upon themselves. Both of these
boys also have remarkable women in their lives who give them unconditional
friendship and support. It is also wonderful seeing romance and all the
uncertainty that comes with it through the mail perspective.
Both Vlad & David have wonderful narrative
voices. They are both smart and often sarcastic. They also both have suffered
the loss of family members, which shapes their character and leaves them with
heavy hearts. What I love about both of these characters is their wry sense of
humor and the hope that burns inside them.
Blogging 101
Despite 5 years of blogging I always learn something new every
day. I've been fortunate to have some good blogging mentors, and have developed
my own personal code of blogging through trial and error.
Visual Tips
It’s really worth it to get a professional blog header or template
for your blog. Either study how to make the changes yourself or pay someone to
do it for you.
Don’t have excessive buttons or pop ups on your blog. I get really
turned off when I’m trying to read a bloggers post and subscribe buttons or
other widgets pop up.
Brand Across Platforms
When I started a profile on twitter I had no idea that I would be
a book blogger so I picked the name @yogikai. Now I wish my twitter profile was
that of my blog, but I won’t change it since many other Bloggers and Authors
know me by that handle. So I really suggest you use your blog name on a Twitter,
Tumbler, Facebook & Email account.
Keep Your Review Books In Check
Last Summer I had over 200 unread physical books. They were a
combination of Arc’s I picked up form Comic-Con and the ALA Annual and purchases
on my E-reader and in bookstores. I became really stressed out about the number
of unread books so I put myself on a book buying ban and as of today I have zero
book son my TBR Pile. So rein in the Netgalley binge downloads, and limit the
amount of review offers you say yes to.
Also give yourself a break when it comes to unsolicited review
books. If I find a lot of books coming in I make sure to do a spotlight post on
them where I thank the publisher and I also tweet out pictures of the books.
That way I don’t feel stressed if it takes me a while to read the books. I also
suggest sending a copy of your review to the publicity contact as soon as
possible.
Remember Why You Started Blogging
I’ve been very fortunate that my blog has stayed at a manageable
level. It is impossible to not compare your blog to others, but its more
important to remember why you blog. I blog so I have a forum to discuss my
favorite books and socialize with other readers. So that is the main focus of my
posts.
Say Thank You
If someone retweets your review or comments on a blog post take
the time to respond to them with a simple Thanks!
Hope you enjoyed these tips!
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