Busting the Newbie Blues

Last year I had the chance to participate in Busting the Newbie Blues - an event hosted by the ever awesome Small of Small Review, whom I have had the pleasure to get to know ever since. The aim of this event is to help and encourage new bloggers sharing their experience and doubts with bloggers that have been doing this for a bit more time.

The event is happening again and if you want to check out more details i definitely recomend you CLICK HERE and go visit Small Review.

Anyway, these are my answers to the Busting the Newbie Blues!

When did you start your blog? 

In 2008!! I'm going for my fourth year!

Do you ever still feel like a newbie?

Yes! Mostly when blogger is trying to mess with me and plotting my demise. LOL!

More seriously, yeah, of course I do. There still are certain in an outs of the blogging world that I'm a bit clueless about. Some Do's and Don'ts of ARC's, for example, still elude me.

What has been the biggest challenge you've faced so far?

I guess my biggest challenge right now is my TBR pile, I've gotten a little over my head with the e-galleys I request from NetGalley and it has generated me a lot of guilt! A lot of time I feel like I should be reading a head or at least keeping up with the most recent releases, but it's very hard.

Plus, blogging is very time consuming, and sometimes I let it take away reading time, which puts me even more behind!!

Did you make any mistakes new bloggers can learn from?

Aside from the techie part of it all, and the fact that SEO still baffles me? I think the most recurrent mistake is that sometimes I let blogging become such a big thing that it makes reading a bit of a chore, which makes me so so sad because reading is truly one of those things I do to feel alive.

And it has been very hard to balance the blogging and reading times, particularly after I got a job -at a library, of all places! - and that's another big time drainage! But I'm learning to let go of the 'shoulds' and just do what I can.

What did you find most discouraging about being a new blogger? How did you deal with this?

The lack of company, really. At the beginning I didn't know much about stuff like directories or networking and I'm a very shy person by nature so I was afraid to reach out. I remember the first time I asked to be included in a directory I wrote like five drafts of the email and put off sending it for three days! 

Blogging can be very lonely and honestly, I still get a little sad when I post a review and it gets no comments -which still happens and probably always will - but, again, I'm learning to let it go and to find a balance between running the blog I'm proud of and networking.

What do you find most encouraging?

How sweet other bloggers are. Honestly,the book blogging community is made of some of the kindest, nicest people you'll ever met. And just how pleasurable it is to talk books with others, and how it spills into other aspects of your life. 

I've loved getting to know other bloggers and learning that we like the same TV shows and movies and just talk about life and books and everything. 

If you could go back in time and speak with your newbie self, what five bits of wisdom would you tell yourself?

1. Comment on the blogs you like! Do it now!

2. Find a review format that is you and that it works for you, It'll help you to make your reviews more consistent in style and form.

3. Don't be afraid to ask and learn.

4. Make sure to proof read! Even when you're tired. 

5. Scheduling is your friend!

What do you like best about the blogs you read? Have you tried to replicate this in your blog?

I love the unique point of views and the humor. Humor is so important in life and in blogging! I'm always up for reading something funny. And I also admire bloggers that have a way with worlds - I love cleaver ways of describing stuff, playful turns of phrase, and if anything at all I try to, maybe not replicate but to incorporate in my blog is a word play, definitely. 

What do you dislike about blogs you've seen? Do you try to avoid this?

Totally personal preference but I don't like blogs that are too busy or too dark, I find them hard to read, that's all. So I do try to keep the blog's layout streamlined and not to go too crazy with buttons and images. 

Also... too many memes! it puts me off sometimes. Though i do like them, I just sometimes feel like there are a lot of them out there. 

How did you bring your blog to the attention of so many people? 

Part of it was blog hopping, though I have since stopped doing it, mostly because it was very time consuming, but it was mostly commenting on other blogs I think and just actively trying to interact with other people. And, trust me, a good comment goes a long way. 

When and how did you get your first ARC (or first few ARCs)? 

First ARC ever was ghostgirl by Tony Hurley - lovely book and with such original artwork! Then it was a bit of a dry spell until NetGalley came along. Now I've become a NetGalley addict! I think the last physical ARC I got was Meg Cabot's Insatiable - which is awesome - and it does have a place of honor on my shelf.

Well, those are my answers!

Thanks for dropping by!