Book Blogger Hop No. 96: The Most Fun Aspect of Book Blogging

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This Week's Question

What is the most fun part/aspect

of being a book blogger?

(Submitted  by Kristin  @ 

Lukten av Trykksverte)

My Answer

As with other questions of a similar nature posted in previous weeks, I really can't isolate just ONE aspect about book blogging that I think is the most fun. I LOVE it all -- writing articles, finding AWESOME books (whether on Goodreads, Amazon, or other book blogs) reading and then reviewing them, interacting with other book bloggers, putting posts together.... ALL of these activities are a LOT of FUN!!

Another activity I greatly enjoy is participating in blog hops such as this one! It's SO interesting to "hop around" and see how each participant has answered the week's question! Since every person is different, no two answers are exactly the same, although there are frequently some common points shared by all of the hop participants. 

I also love participating in blog tours, because through them, I can introduce books to my readers and visitors.  Creating this type of post is usually time-consuming, but I do enjoy every minute! Some time ago, I came up with the idea of including a mini-review in blog tour posts that feature an excerpt from the book being promoted. This mini-review is of the excerpt, not the whole book. I decided to start doing this because some book bloggers, and visitors in general, consider blog tour posts to be spam. Wordpress doesn't allow their bloggers to publish such posts, for instance, for that reason -- they consider these posts to be spam. I totally disagree! These posts bring new books to the attention of book lovers everywhere. However, including my mini-reviews does insert some of my own original content into such a post, which then makes it unique.

Yet another thing I have a lot of fun with is hosting my own giveaways, although I must admit that it's better when I join a giveaway blog hop, because my blog gets more exposure, and thus, more visitors. Hosting my own giveaways, though, does give me the freedom to create my own Rafflecopter options, whereas, with a giveaway hosted by other blogs, I do have to follow the rules of those other blogs. 

Reading challenges are another very enjoyable activity, although I have stopped participating in them because I simply got tired of visiting other blogs, commenting on their challenge reviews, and then not getting comments back on my own reviews.

When I first started blogging, I had a GREAT time working on my blog design (with the help of the Blogger software, of course, lol). I picked out the template, chose the background, the post background color, the font I wanted for my post titles, etc. I did quite a bit of experimenting back then, and learned SO much! I also learned from visiting other blogs, as well as from a book I bought -- Blogger For Dummies. That was back in 2010. And then, after creating and discarding several headers, I met a VERY talented web designer named Jennifer Johnson. She designed my present header, which I ADORE! It fits PERFECTLY with my blog's theme! You can find Jennifer listed in my sidebar.

I also get a lot of enjoyment from interacting with other book bloggers, both here on this blog, and on theirs. My only disappointment is, again, not getting comments back when I go and comment on other blogs..... However, I must say I have gotten to know several VERY nice bloggers who DO comment back! We've become friends, and frequently visit each other's blogs to exchange viewpoints, reactions to new books, and to support each other. You can see the book bloggers I regularly interact with listed in my sidebar.

Book blogging is a very exciting, rewarding hobby, and I LOVE every single aspect of it! It's the type of activity that I will willingly engage in without ANYONE pushing me to do so. Unlike some "real-life" jobs I've had in the past, I actually look forward to blogging about books every single day! I don't get paid for doing this, of course. The most I will ever get is free books from blog tour companies, or books I win through giveaways on other book blogs. It would be WONDERFUL if I got paid for doing this! I would be lying if I didn't wish that, lol! But I will ALWAYS LOVE AND WANT to blog about books, just because I feel SO HAPPY when I'm engaging in this activity! Aside from the sheer enjoyment, the whole idea of being free to post pretty much whatever I want is totally exhilarating!! No one is looking over my shoulder, criticizing every move I make. No one is telling me what to write, or how to write it. Aaaaah, BLISS!! If a visitor doesn't like what I post, they can just move on. This is REAL FREEDOM. 

So I will continue to enjoy every single facet of book blogging for as long as I possibly can! (Heck, I'll probably still be at it when I get into my nineties! Lol.) Hope you'll all stick around, too!!  :)



 

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