Armchair BEA Wrap-Up

This was a week that definitely zoomed on by. Is it really Saturday already?

I think because I split my time between Armchair BEA and BEA itself (and the lead-up

preparation to it), I didn't get to fully utilize all that is Armchair BEA, read: blog hopping. I posted with the best of them. I love me some discussion posts that unite the community but I'm afraid I don't think I fully utilized that due to time constraints.

I tried. I really did. There were a few blogs I reached out to and I tried to respond to all of the comments left on mine but I don't think I held up my end of the networking bargain like I should have. Because of that I think I failed a little. Not all the way. Just a little. It's something for me to work on, networking in general, and just getting myself out there to more blogs.

But I did meet new people and came across some great new blogs and for that I'm grateful. The ABEA organizers did a great job of bringing everything together and I hope it's even more fantabulous next year!

Armchair BEA and Blogging About Blogging

I'm of the mindset that blogging is a casual thing and unless you're actively making money from it (meaning you're getting paid by someone else for) it shouldn't be taken all that seriously. For some people blogging is somewhat of a job because of the amount of time they put into it. But that's personal. What you do with your blog, how much you do with it, is entirely up to you so if you have someone telling you to do more, or take it more seriously, I say tell them to stick it. Because at the end of the day, it's a blog. You're doing it because you want to do it. You love books and you want to share that love with others. You're not getting paid for it (although the FTC says otherwise) and in many cases, far more money is going into the blog than coming out of it.

So I just have a couple of pointers to keep from losing your mind, and losing perspective, with your blog -

Keep yourself one step removed from the insanity.

Chances are you started blogging because you loved books and wanted to share that love with other book people. Pretty soon you started getting review offers from authors or publicists and started receiving books in the mail. Before you knew it you were buried under your own TBR pile and felt like you can't keep up with other blogs that were posting eleventy billion times a day or getting more books or hit counts or whatever.

Keep it all in perspective. What do YOU want for YOUR blog? Do you actually care that you're not getting 500 unique hits a day? Do you care that you're not getting 10 new followers a day? Do you genuinely feel guilty if you decide to spend more time in your real life than in your blogging one? It's not a foot race. It's not about keeping up. Just do your thing. Trust me: people will love your site for just that. The rest that bow down into the crazy hype and do everything that everyone else is doing do nothing but blend in with the fray. You want to stand out. So do it.

If you don't know anything about SEO, who cares?

And it's not just about SEO (of which I have no idea what that is and this is me rushing out to find out what it is and how to use it). It's about networking in general. Do you have an obligation to get your book blog out there into the world? Technically no but if you started your book blog with the hopes of connecting to other book lovers, you're doing yourself a disservice by not at least somewhat getting involved in networking. But you don't have to belong to 400 networking sites to do it. Who the hell can keep track of all of that?

Being interactive on other blogs does wonders for traffic to yours alone. Twitter is another great marketing tool (one that I was really against until about a year ago when I finally caved and got one). Believe it or not, Twitter can make you human to your readers. That is if you post more than just links to your blog posts on it (which I find annoying, why use Twitter if that's all you're going to do?). I've found Facebook to be pretty ineffective when it comes to marketing but I don't pay to advertising. I just have an image on my blog linking to its Facebook site and that's it. Goodreads is another great place not just for you but for the books you promote as well. Double-posting your reviews here gets you, and the author, noticed more. Same goes for Random Buzzers.

But do what YOU want to do. It takes extra time to cross post shit all over the place. If you want to do that, go for it. If not, don't bow to the pressure. Try a few out and then look in your Blogger stats (you don't even need to go all fancy with Google Analytics, just the standard stats thing that your blog comes with) and see where you're getting your hits from and narrow it down. I get a lot of my hits from Twitter so I'm sticking with it. No sense in spreading yourself that thin if it's not benefiting you. It's about what YOU can do. Just posting a review itself is more exposure for the book. Beyond that is the extra mile.

Don't listen to anyone.

Which negates this very post. Do what YOU want on YOUR blog. Do what YOU feel comfortable doing. Don't bow to the pressure of others. Don't feel the need to keep up. Just go at YOUR own pace and things will work out. Figure out what you want for your blog and go from there.

Armchair BEA and Nurturing Relationships

Today's post is all about highlighting relationships that I've made as a blogger and giving tips on how to nurture those relationships. We are one big community of bloggers and it's important that we foster these relationships. Ironic coming from someone that's an introvert but there you go. I do what I can.

I've gleaned a few solid relationships with people from all spectrums of what I'm doing here in this book blogosphere. I've connected with bloggers like Laura over at Life After Jane, my pseudo twin. You might notice the poles start to shift if we don't agree on the like level of a book. But when we do, it's perfect peace and harmony. I'm pretty sure the diversion of the Rapture this past Saturday was our union of book souls over the Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa.

We have similar senses of humor and we tit-for-tat on each others' blogs really well. We mesh, if you will. And next year we shall drink as we indulge in all that is BEA.

I've also connected with authors. Cinda Williams Chima is one of them. After I featured The Exiled Queen

last year in my anticipation post for books at BEA, she contacted me to review the series. After I gobbled them up like Cookie Monster on a bender (a love that Sab over at YA Bliss shares with me, and with which we gush on Twitter every time it comes up), we started emailing. With the release of The Gray Wolf Throne in August, we're still going back and forth. Just recently she gave me some suggestions for my visit to Arizona this coming August (yes, feel free to call me an idiot, but the package was cheap).

Another author I've awesomely connected with is Ilsa J. Bick. After randomly clicking on a Carolrhoda Lab add from Publisher's Weekly last year, I found her debut, Draw the Dark, and requested a copy. Oh it was a spiral of love and devotion as soon as I was done with it. She credits me (and you can ask her, I swear I'm not making this up, I have a hard time believing it myself) for single-handedly jumpstarting promotions for her book. Ever since we've just gone back and forth, all developed from a love for her work. And we both agree it is a miscarriage of timing that we'll just be missing each other this year at BEA.

The common theme here that's bringing us all together? Books. Our love of books. We finally have other people with which we can share that love with and who reciprocate. And it's not hard to maintain. This coming from the loner that functions in her own bubble.

Nurturing relationships is easy. All you need is contact. Don't wait for people to come to you. It doesn't work like that anywhere. Go to people. Comment on their blogs. Send them friendly emails. Recommend a book. Join up on Goodreads. Reciprocate conversation.

It's not easy for me to go up to people and start talking to them. I'm not a big blog post commenter and I suck at returning emails. But I give myself a good slap and I just do it. I suck it up and do it. You need to get over that shyness because there isn't anyone else that's just going to up and do it for you.

The most important thing is to be yourself. Unless you're a douche. Then don't be yourself. People will pick up on your lies or if you're being disingenuous. Just be. You want people to like you for who you are, not who they think you are. Be courteous. Say please and thank you. Gush about your love of a book. Indulge in comment conversation. Just plain ol' get involved.

And keep it up. This isn't a one-time deal where you comment and you're friends for life. Just like any other friendship, it requires work. Especially in the big world of the internet where you can too easily just disappear, you need to remind people that you're there. Haven't spoken to someone in a while? Go say hi. Give them a poke on Facebook. Whatever. But keep the contact going. It's all about the contact. Just don't be a stalker. That's creepy.

Now if I could just apply some of my own tips to myself!

Armchair BEA and Networking It Up!

It's all about the interviews today! I got the pleasure of interviewing Aryelle over at Reading with the Fishes. She's a pretty new blogger but she had some great answers to my questions so be sure to read on! Thanks for stopping by, Aryelle!

So you're pretty new to blogging. What made you make the jump from plain reader to fantastic book blogger?

Although I am pretty new at book blogging, I had been following the blogosphere for about a year before I actually started up my own blog. I've always loved books, and I read probably more than the librarians in my town, so I figured why not give the whole 'blogging' thing a try. Besides, when I would finish a book, I would always tell everyone what I thought about it, and I just wanted to maybe send that message out to a few more people than I would have otherwise.

Were you at all nervous or apprehensive about starting up your blog?

Definitely! I actually had thought about blogging a few times before, but I always let some fear stop me. When my blog first went up, all I could think about was, "Are people even going to read it?" or "Should I tweak this gadget or add that one?" After awhile though, I have learned to relax and not worry about it so much.

If you could give one piece of advise to an aspiring book blogger now, what would it be?

Don't think about it too much, and just do what you want. There are always going to be people who don't like you or what you are doing, but there will always be MORE that do, so don't let that stop you.

Where do you hope to see your blog in six months? In a year?

Appearance wise, I hope it to be a little more professional looking, maybe even an actual background. Other than that though, it really doesn't matter if I get any more followers, because I love what I am doing now and wouldn't really want anything to change.

What is your genre of choice and why?

I'm actually kind of all over the place. I read almost anything, but I tend to prefer paranormal or dystopian Young Adult. I feel that Young Adult books are the most uplifting and have the greatest overall messages. Plus, I can relate to most of the characters since I am a teenager myself.

A fascist regime has totally taken over and they're going house to house and confiscating books! You can only save one from your collection. Which one is it?

I hate this question because I think of all my books like my children, so it's pretty much asking me which child would I save? Lol. I would have to say that I would keep my signed copy of Delirium by Lauren Oliver, which is an amazing book, by the way!!

Book boyfriend. Do you have one?

ONE? I have like twenty, but if I had to choose one, I would have to say it would be Peeta from The Hunger Games.

When you're not reading, you're . . .

Watching TV, probably. Or sleeping, or at school, or at Borders trying to figure out what I'm going to read next. My life really isn't all that interesting when I think about it.

Cats or dogs?

I have and love both, but I prefer kitties.

Surf or turf?

Lol. Both, in that order. :)

If you could vacation anywhere, where would you go?

Anywhere, huh? Well, I guess I would either go to Thailand or Greece. I have a weird fascination with both of those places and would love to actually see them in person.

Thanks again, Aryelle! And be sure to check out my interview over at Lisa's World of Books! Then head on over to the ABEA website and read the rest of the interviews!

Armchair BEA: 2011 Book Loves

I'm not directly hosting a giveaway for ABEA but I am one of their sponsors. If you're a participant in this year's ABEA, you'll have a chance to win a slew of awesome prizes, with my offerings thrown in the midst. I'm putting up some of last year's BEA titles so get those posts up!

So since I'm not hosting a giveaway, for today's post I'm going to talk about some of my favorite/anticipated books for this year that are being featured at BEA.

I can't have a post like this and not mention Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick -

I've already read it. It's freaking awesome and everyone should read it. It'll scare the crap out of you. The first in a trilogy, Ashes comes out in September from Egmont.

And then there's The Gray Wolf Throne by Cinda Williams Chima -

The third book in the Seven Realms series, it's currently sitting in my NetGalley queue waiting for review in August. It's such a fantastic fantasy series that has me aspiring to write. Its original release date was September but due to popularity it's been bumped up to August.

Some of the other books I'm looking forward to (and hoping to grab the day I'm there) -

The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa

Teeth by Ellen Datlow

The Vampire Stalker by Allison van Diepen

Blood and Other Cravings by Ellen Datlow

Evolve by Nancy Kilpatrick

A Touch Mortal by Leah Clifford

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Angel Burn by LA Weatherly

Shut Out by Kody Keplinger

Enthralled by Melissa Marr

Perfect by Ellen Hopkins

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Those are mine. What are yours? Be sure to check out other bloggers' best loved books for the year here!

My Name is Donna and This is How I Armchair

Hello all! If you're here for the first time, it's probably the fault of Armchair BEA and they're ability to smush us all together to party for BEA week.

This is my first year participating in Armchair BEA and originally I wasn't going to go to BEA at all this year. I had other plans but those ended up falling through, I'd already committed to ABEA but what the hell, I'll go to BEA for a day too. See I'm right outside the city so I can just hop a train and mosey my ass on in there. Ticket in hand, of course.

I first went to BEA in 2009 and was so freaking lost I didn't know my ass from my elbow half the time. It took me nearly half the day to figure Javits out (that was went the exhibitors were split over two floors). Last year I was much more organized but just as grabby with books and nearly broke myself carrying my bag. This year I'll be there for just a day again but with a ruck so I have to watch what I grab. I'm going to have issues if I can't put the ruck on my back.

So what's about me all bloglike? I review predominantly YA books of varying genres although I tend to stick more closely to fantasy of some type or horror. I like non-normal elements in my stories. Nice and escapist. But I do enjoy contemporaries. In fact some of my favorite books are contemporaries with nothing fantastical about them (except the writing).

I'm not a trend follower so if you came here hoping that I was on the pulse of all that is YA in the publishing world, you're in the wrong place. I have my hand on the pulse alright; I'm just not reporting on every tidbit all the time. I'm attracted to books that are found a little off the beaten path or don't get all that much publicity although I've been known to wade into the hype every once in a while. I'm just not always pleased with what I step in.

I'd have to say I'm known for my honesty. I don't hold back in my reviews, good or bad. Some people have problems with that. This is my caring face -

I function based on me. I don't promote books I haven't read and can't recommend to others. I don't have authors guest post unless I've already read their work and liked it. I just don't see a point in doing so otherwise. When I gush about something or put in the extra effort to get an author here, I want people to know that THIS is an author whose books you should be reading. That tends to leave me out of a lot of book promotions but I'm okay with that. And I've been okay with that for two and a half years now. I learned very early on that I can't, in good conscience, promote a book I wouldn't recommend someone read. And I've held to that. Plus it's really awkward to go all in to a book promotion and end up not liking the book.

I'm excited for ABEA overall. While I tend to function within my own little bubble, it's nice to get out every once in a while and co-mingle with my fellow bloggers. I look forward to reading everyone's posts, seeing what they're giving away and hopping around some interviews. I'll be at BEA Thursday so I'm hoping to contribute some BEA-ness to the ABEA extravaganza on Twitter. And, of course, I'll be sharing the love when I get back. It's all about the books and I hope that even though some people can't make it at all, they still feel like they're there. Bloggers are good for many things; one of them sharing. They know they're privileged to be going to BEA and they want to extend that as far as possible in any way possible. ABEA helps us do that.

I look forward to making many more blogging buddies and adding a shitload of new blogs to my reader! There's always room for more!

Check out the other ABEAers here!