Comments on: Blogging for Books

By: Linda

Linda — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 01:41:29 +0000

Hey Maria, THANK YOU for letting me pontificate about a subject I’m pretty passionate about. And thanks to all of you who are inspired to buy and review books. As writers, we need to remember to support each other in this tough publishing climate. Serena, I’m thinking about starting a whole new blog featuring poetry and some of my favorite poets. Maybe this summer… John, great idea about cross-posting in Amazon. I don’t but I should. Lisa, it IS a tough balance between reading/critting and writing, but I am selfish – every bit of reading and reviewing makes me a better writer because these acts make me more aware of what works – and what doesn’t.

Peace, Linda

By: Tumblemoose

Tumblemoose — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 21:15:37 +0000

So very cool. I absolutely believe that you get in return what you put out there. Ok, I am inspired. Off to find an indy new author book.

Cheers!

George

By: AVR

AVR — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 15:10:36 +0000

Great post. I had been thinking about doing this and I definitely will now. Thank you.

By: Greta Igl

Greta Igl — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 21:58:13 +0000

Linda, I admire how you walk the talk. This is a great idea for my own blog and a terrific excuse to visit my local indie bookstore.

By: Lisa Logan

Lisa Logan — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 21:05:40 +0000

Good advice, and admittedly that aside from brief “Should I read this?” commentaries on Shelfari I haven’t been doing much reviewing. I spend all my time reading incoming submissions and going over my own work, so my personal reading time is somewhat limited. Thanks for pointing out why this is worth MAKING time!

By: J.C. Towler

J.C. Towler — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 20:42:15 +0000

Well said, Linda. I particularly like the part about authors supporting each other. Your monthly indy-purchase is admirable, and in the end what does it cost? A couple cups of coffee, maybe? (Okay four for a hardback).

On a side note, I wonder if you (and others) also paste and post your reviews in other venues (B&N or Amazon, for example) where they might enjoy an even broader audience. If you included a link back to your blog, that would have the potential of increasing your own readership.

–John

By: annie

annie — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 19:28:32 +0000

I started reviewing on my blog back in the fall and I quite enjoy it. I’ve met some interesting people through their books and learned a bit more about writing. And it’s fun.

By: Kimberly Zook

Kimberly Zook — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 18:29:01 +0000

This is good advice! Thank you. Reading and writing reviews may help me to expand past what books I’d normally choose to read to try out different genres as well as think more critically about the book as I read it.

By: J. M. Strother

J. M. Strother — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 17:48:29 +0000

Nice piece, Linda. I think what you’re doing is fantastic. Good karma indeed. And thanks for the list to other interesting web sites. I’ll be sure to check them out.
~jon

By: Serena (Savvy Verse & Wit)

Serena (Savvy Verse & Wit) — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 17:12:26 +0000

great advice for writers…I started doing this about two years ago and just love it. One tip, don’t let the review books squander your writing time. It can be tough to find a balance.

I’ve started adding more poets to my review list since I write poetry and want to support my colleagues.