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Backstage Blogging: Part 4

Welcome to the Backstage Blogging!

So what is Backstage Blogging... well it's a way for you to see behind the blog, to find out what makes a blogger tick. More or less, why exactly we do the things that we do. (Plus it's also a way for me to promote some awesome blogs in the process!)Backstage Blogging was inspired by and developed with help from Susan of Waterpaper Prose.)

I know as a book blogger I want to be a perceptive blogger. I want to know the easiest and most comprehensive way of doing things. I want to learn from my peers and have my peers learn something worthwhile from me. Essentially I want to get into the mind of another blogger and by doing so, I think we can all learn something from each other. It's not just the bloggers that have been blogging for years that have all the answers, the new bloggers are just as knowledgeable at times.

In the past few weeks I asked 30 newbie bloggers: "What do you hope to accomplish with your book blog beyond sharing your love of literature?" You can see the answers here; Part 1 & Part 2. So many different opinions... it was great!

Last week I featured 15 bloggers that have been blogging for over six months. Today I have a new group of 15 bloggers and their responses to share with you! This will conclude the first section of Backstage Blogging.


"As the operator of a well-known blog, how do you put your star power to good use?"

I'm not sure I would call my blog well known, ha ha, BUT I think there's so much I can do with my blog and already do to put my star power to good use. I participate in the on-going PoC reading challenge. I'm not PoC but that does not stop me from reading and blogging about PoC books. If I can make people aware of and pumped to purchase a PoC book, I see that as putting my star power to good use. I'd like to eventually post about some GLBT books, too. I think as someone with an audience as large as what I have, I can use that to blog about underrepresented books, which is so awesome.

-April of Good Books & Good Wine

My blog is my outlet from the world to share my love of reading, which is about the same story as every blogger out there. When I started out, I kept my real life and my blog very seperate, but as I've started to blog they've melded together and made me a stronger writer, and I've made great friends. I wouldn't really call it star power I have, but I hope anyone who reads my blog would be able to take away some of what I feel towards reading and that I come off happy and welcoming to anyone who needs help with anything.

-Erica of The Book Cellar

I ask myself "how can I make this post and my blog fun and useful for everyone who reads it?" You can't really please everyone, but you can be conscious of your audience. I take every opportunity to be innovative, and I encourage others to do the same. I'm always willing to try something new and always willing to lend a hand when others want to get creative and need someone to talk out an idea or problem solve with. I'm also a big fan of partnership and spreading the word. After all, we (bloggers) can have more of an impact together.

- Susan of Wastepaper Prose

I'd hardly consider myself a "well-known" blogger, but I do try to help out new bloggers. One of my closest friends in the community is a fairly new blogger that I've helped as much as I can. There was also a feature on our blog called 'What We Wish We Knew' where I had bloggers share anything they wished the knew before they began blogging or just advice for new bloggers. It was really well received and I would love to bring it back!

-Julie of Bloggers[heart]Books

I don't really believe I have star power, but I do like to think I've gotten my blog's name out there. And I use that small popularity to do what I love doing most - promoting books & the authors that write them. Writing reviews, making fan art & letting others send theirs in, posting covers and interviews - it's what the majority of bloggers do, but as any blog's following (and star power!) increases, I feel like everything positive that is posted can be good promotion for a book.

-Katie of Sophistikatied

The number one thing that I try to do is promote books that I like that aren't well known or didn't get a huge amount of publicity during it's release. There have been so many books that I probably never would have looked at for various reasons (specifically My Invented Life by Lauren Bjorkman or The Quest of Dai: The Eroe by Vivian Marie Paris) if they hadn't been suggested to me - but someone reached out and suggested them and I ended up loving them! So I just try to pass on the same to others. I also try to help out in any other ways I can generally, whether it be someone needing an opinion, a widget for their book, or help - specifically with something to do with the design of their site. I'm lucky to get to do something I love for a living (web design) so I try to help out when and where I can!

-Anna of BooksNerds.net

When I first jumped into the book blogging world, I was surprised to find I was welcomed with open arms. Bloggers like Lauren from Lauren's Crammed Bookshelf and Jenn from Book Crazy were so willing to help me out. I hope to be there for new bloggers as others were for me.

Blogging has also introduced me to smaller publishers and a few self-published authors. I am so happy I have found books like Rising Shadow by Jacquelyn Wheeler and Return the Heart by T.K. Richardson. I try to review a variety of well known, and not very well known titles.

-Jami of YA Addict

I certainly do love to spread the word about great books, however I also love being a site where people can have discussions about bookish topics and just have a fellowship of a common interest.

I also receive quite a few books for review and when I'm finished, I donate them to the local schools, whose budgets have recently been cut to almost nothing for library materials. I've definitely boosted their collections with my review copies! And if helping get books into kids' hands is what comes out of my "star" power, I'm happy with that!

-Amanda of A Patchwork of Books

I put my "star power" (love that term!) to good use by helping new bloggers learn the ropes. When I started blogging I didn't have the slightest inkling about YA review blogs, the blogging community, or even how to work Blogger. I learned everything the hard way. Because of this, I now try to help out new bloggers any way I can. It's both fun and rewarding. Plus I get to learn about tons of new, awesome blogs!

-Jessica of Chick Lit Teens

First of all where can I get this star power of which you speak?

On a small scale - from the beginning of Persnickety Snark I decided that I wouldn't promote a product that I don't believe in. I don't interview authors I don't enjoying reading, I rarely conduct competitions and I keep my blogroll to blogs that I read frequently. When I choose to put my support behind a book or blog by highlighting it, my readers know that I truly believe it is something they should check out. This year I've really turned an eye to putting some attention on books that were published awhile ago or didn't receive the attention they deserved upon their release (eg Love You Hate You Miss You) and I've gotten some great feedback from that.

On a larger scale the most recent project has been the Top 100 YA Novels poll which has hopefully brought many quality forgotten or overlooked YA novels back into the public eye. IChanneling the influence PSnark possesses isn't really something I put a huge amount of thought into outside of encouraging readers to buy quality YA. I really just try and focus on being honest in every aspect of my blogging. Honesty is the best use of your influence whether you are on your first or thousandth day of blogging.

-Adele of Persnickety Snark

Even though we are a fansite dedicated to books, music, movies, and TV, Eve's Fan Garden (EFG) is rapidly becoming known for is focus on the written word.

Those of us on the EFG book club team are dedicated to not only share our love of the written word, but to also support and promote authors - new and established.

Through the use of technology we are able to get the word out for upcoming releases, awesome books we have read, and share author news! Our talented and diverse team uses blogging, Twitter posts, and Facebook groups, events, and status updates to accomplish this!

Our blog features a variety of genres spanning across children's literature, YA, and even adult literature (coming soon) and we work with everything from debut authors to NYT best selling authors. And by popular demand, we try to feature one classic novel each month that matches our "theme".

In addition to the monthly book club, we also write book reviews. Often we are contacted by publishers or authors asking us to read their book and review it. Even the simplest of reviews can catch the eye of new readers!

Through EFG and the Book Club, book reviews, author and book chats, and give-a-ways we strive to build a following or a fan base for the books and authors we have come to know and love (or even just discovered!). Because for us, this is ultimately how we use our "Star Power" - if we can bring together new readers and new books we have accomplished our goal!

-Donna of Eve's Fan Garden

Well I didn't know I was well known, but that's nice to hear! My goal it to spread the word about as many books that would interest teens as possible. I do that by not only reviewing the books publishers send me but random library books and purchases as well. I also try to get as many people to love reading as possible. I want them to know not every book is as boring as the books you are forced to swallow in school, (cough, cough... The Iliad).

-Ashley of Books Make Great Lovers

I like to bring good obscure books to the forefront. For instance, a lot of people might not have heard of Two Moon Princess by Carmen Ferreriro-Esteban, but I try to recommend it when I can because I think it's excellent. And the Bloody Jack books, which aren't nearly as popular as they should be, I featured over an entire week. So I like to talk about more obscure books and pimp them out! Really, my goal is to just write about what I read and hopefully get some other people reading it, too.

-Chelsea of The Page Flipper

Wow, this is a hard question. Personally, I just try to stay grounded and be as helpful as I can. I know when I first started out there were about a million questions that I had and really no one to answer them for me. So, when I get an email from a new(ish) blogger, I try to help them as much as I can. I try to respond to their questions as quickly as I can, and just keep following up with them until I feel like they have a firm handle on whatever they emailed me about.

In addition, I try to support as many authors as I can. I have come to realize that I cannot accept every novel that I get review request for. In the beginning, this bothered me a little because I want to help out the "little" guys as much as the "big" boys, so it was hard to turn down those that are Indie authors / publishers. Now, I just try to do what I can.

Also as a blogger that has been around for a while, I have come to realize how much simple words like "Please" and "Thank You" mean to authors, publishers, and even other bloggers. I believe that it is important for us with "Star Power" to set a good example. And it is easily done by showing respect to those around us.

-Kate of The Neverending Shelf

Honestly, I could do more.

I like to use my star power to bring awareness to the IBWB readers. If I notice a book related charity that I think my readers could help then I post about the details (http://inbedwithbooks.blogspot.com/search/label/charities). Literacy is a powerful tool. There are those who chose not to read. That’s incomprehensible to me, but it is fine because it’s their choice. But people have a right to a basic education, and that includes the ability to read and access to knowledge. If I can convince one person to donate a book or to write a letter to Congress regarding funding, well then I’ve done something good with my blog.

I also like to do things like participate in Body Image Week, which the ladies of MyFavoriteAuthor organized in 2009. I consider myself a feminist, so I like to highlight certain issues in my reviews and avoid loaded language. Modern girls face way to much body snark; I don’t want to contribute to that. I pay close attention to power dynamics in stories. I don’t want to promote anything with an Edward-Bella situation going on. I’m not sure I’d call that “using my star power,” but I feel that it’s important to blog responsibly, especially if your blog is more established. The older blogs set the tone of the community and the YA blogosphere needs to stay awesome.

-Liviania of In Bed With Books