Novel Ink: Blogger Tips | Tips For A New Book Blogger

Blogger Tips | Tips For A New Book Blogger

Posted on Wednesday, January 15, 2014 10:06 AM

I am not an ‘expert blogger’ by any means but I thought I would share a few things that I wish I would have known when I first started blogging.

Don’t worry about the STATs – This was one of the lessons that I had to learn the hard way. When I first started blogging I would constantly check my STATs page, and when I say constantly, I mean multiple times a day, and when I would see that I had only gotten a handful of hits, I would be devastated. It took a while for me to realize that getting followers and blog hits don’t happen overnight, it takes time for people to realize that you’re there.

Try different things – When I first started blogging I was all about reviews and memes and I quickly got bored. So I started thinking about what else I could do that would keep my blog interesting and fun. Now, I do discussion posts, deal discoveries and I’m always trying to think of new things for the blog.

Accept that blogging is hard work – I love my blog and I do not regret starting it in any way. But, it is a TON of work, I spend countless hours a week working on blog stuff and I still feel like it isn’t enough. There’s a lot of work and thought that goes into each post, especially the reviews.

Be you – Your blog is YOURS, so do whatever you want with it, don’t feel like you have to do something a certain way just because everyone else is. If you want to post nothing but reviews then do it, if you want your posts to show of your sarcastic side, go for it, if you want to write your reviews while standing on your head ~~is that even possible?,~~ then that’s what you should do, your blog should be a reflection of you.

Talk To Me

Do you have any tips that you would add? Did these help you?

Comments (13)

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readerswonderland 77p · 582 weeks ago

Great tips! I wish I had been more active when I first started and made some friends to kind of help out and give me some pointers like this post. I'm with you on the time thing-if I don't have something SUPER important to do, I'm on the blog.
My recent post ARC Review: Crash Into You by Katie McGarry

1 reply · active 581 weeks ago

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Christy · 581 weeks ago

I know, I was completely clueless when I first started out, haha. Thanks for stopping by!
My recent post Waiting on Wednesday

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Heather · 582 weeks ago

I am new, and I check my posts all the time. I just can't stop, i got my first comment yesterday, was very happy :)
Thanks for the tips, (i'm going to pretend that this post was just for me cause i am new)
My recent post Waiting on Wednesday: Love Letters to the Dead

1 reply · active 581 weeks ago

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Christy · 581 weeks ago

Yep, this was just for you ;) Thanks for stopping by!
My recent post Waiting on Wednesday

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narapanacea 99p · 582 weeks ago

Blogging is definitely a lot more work than I first realised! I think it's not so much the actual blogging (writing and formatting posts etc) but the networking side of things that takes a lot of time. I always take a freaking age to write comments on other people's blogs because I want them to be somewhat meaningful, so all of that time adds up to take out a fair chunk of my free time!

I guess the only other tip I'd put in there would be to not be afraid of networking! Reach out to other bloggers on Twitter and GR, comment on their blogs- that sort of thing :)
My recent post ARC Review: Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

1 reply · active 581 weeks ago

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Christy · 581 weeks ago

I totally agree, networking takes up a lot of my time too and I still feel like I'm not doing enough. Reaching out to other bloggers is a great tip! Thanks for stopping by!
My recent post Waiting on Wednesday

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Pam@YA Escape · 582 weeks ago

These are definitely great tips. I've only been blogging for about eight months so I'm still figuring things out. It is hard not to look at the stats or at least notice that someone else's blog has eighteen comments on a book review and I only have two. But I agree that it takes time and that you can't expect it all to happen overnight. And yes, it takes a lot of time, mostly to visit other blogs and comment (the blog part of it actually isn't that bad). Great post!
My recent post Book Review: Angel Burn by L.A. Weatherly

1 reply · active 581 weeks ago

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Christy · 581 weeks ago

I still obsess over my stats, haha. But not as much as I used to. Thanks for stopping by,Pam!
My recent post Waiting on Wednesday

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ReviewsFromABookworm · 582 weeks ago

Great tips! Blogging takes up so much of my free time now and I still end up feeling like I'm not blogging enough or posting enough. It's hard work but I love it!

1 reply · active 581 weeks ago

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Christy · 581 weeks ago

I know how you feel, if I don't post every day I feel guilty. Thanks for stopping by!
My recent post Waiting on Wednesday

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Rachel · 581 weeks ago

These are helpful hints, Christy, but I don't want blogging to be hard work, I want to strive to keep it fun and a hobby. When I start to feel like it's hard work, I usually try and pull back a little. Great post! :)

1 reply · active 581 weeks ago

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Christy · 581 weeks ago

I agree, when it starts to feel like a chore, I take a few days off or try to think of something fun to do to keep it interesting. Thanks for stopping by, Rachel.

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Ifrah · 551 weeks ago

I love these tips!

I'm a new blogger myself and I find myself and am doing the same things you were when you were starting off. I check my stats page regularly and am totally bummed that I'm not getting more than a few hits a day. I've also gotten bored of reviews and memes so I'm starting to do other posts.

I guess the trick is to just be you and keep at it.
My recent post Blast from the Past : The Truth About Forever