As an ardent booklover who had wondered for a long long time if book blogging is for me and finally took the plunge this year, I’m here to unequivocally announce to everyone – YES BOOK BLOGGING IS FOR YOU! What’s more, I’ll even give you a list of reasons why you absolutely should start a book blog!
Here are 10 reasons why you should absolutely start a book blog!
#1: You have an outlet to talk (read rant) about your bookish thoughts, obsessions and fantasies
If you are like me, your friends and family would have already been fed up of your near-constant talking about books you are reading, books you love, books you detest, books on your TBR, books you are anticipating….and so on.
Well then, welcome to the club! The book blogosphere is full of weird bookish people like you (and me), who want to scream from the rooftops about their undying love for that fictional character and that another book that tore them apart. You will never run out of space to talk about your thoughts and feelings, and what’s more, you will definitely have people who might be sitting a world away but exactly get what you are saying. Isn’t that just amazing?
#2: You own a piece of internet and have a voice that carries across the oceans
I think this applies to blogging in general. There is something so satisfying in owning a platform and being its ultimate ruler. You decide how it looks and what you want to convey. You are actually shaping opinions with your words!
#3: The loving and supportive community of crazy and weird book nerds
If you think you are weirdly crazy about books, wait till you enter the bookish community. We are one weird bunch.
For every book you are fangirling about, you will find tens of others who are even more weirdly obsessed than you. You can have friends across the globe to discuss, laugh, cry and obsess about the same things. The bookish community is a wonderfully supportive and there can never be a dearth of people to connect with.
#4: You improve your writing skills
Well…this is an obvious one! True to blogging in general, but even more true for book blogging.
Let me explain.
It is not easy to dissect and analyse a book you gushed, cried, agonized and grieved over. It is absolutely not easy to give words to exactly why you want to die for those characters. Even when you don’t like a book, you can’t just sign-off with “hey, this book was atrocious..don’t read it!“, right? Giving words to those roller-coaster of emotions you went through is definitely going to challenge your articulation and grammar.
#5: Free Books! Did I say it loud enough? Free Books!
There! I said it. I know that one shouldn’t start a book blog for free books. But that doesn’t mean it is a not an irrefutable perk of being a book blogger!
OK they are not actually free – you get free books in return for the service you do. You review them, spread the word about new releases and support the sales of those amazing books. And of course, it will take some time before you build enough following to be able to get your hands on the books you actually want to read pre-release.
That being said, there is so much happiness in being one of the few people who are able to read a book before its release, especially if it is one you are highly anticipating !
#6: Never ending book recommendations
Do you ever wonder how do book bloggers stay updated with the latest new releases or how do they just know which books to read? They surely couldn’t have read that many books, right?
The answer is, once you are a book blogger and are constantly interacting with other people in the bookish community, you are bound to read tonnes of recommendation posts, come across the buzz and excitement surrounding a new release, receive newsletters from publishers about their planned releases and lots more. In short, you will be able to talk about books you have and haven’t read.
And you will have a TBR pile to last you seven lifetimes ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
#7: It is a great conversation starter
How cool is this! You have a hobby you can actually brag about. Oh, you know, I just blog about books in my free time. Yeah, I actually talk to authors and publishers send me free books before release to review them.
#8: You will smash your reading goals
This might sound counter-intuitive, right? You might spend less time reading and more time blogging…how in the world are you going to read more??
But the matter of fact is, it just happens. Once you start getting all those book recommendations and ARCs, your reading just shoots through the roof. I was reading 3-4 books every month before I started blogging, and have been reading a whopping 16 books a month for the past 3 months! And its not just me. Almost every book blogger has experienced this.
So even if you are a newbie bookworm looking for motivation to read more and a place to record your thoughts, book blogging is for you! Which brings me to my next point.
#9: Your critical thinking improves
A lot of book bloggers started out merely to have a space to critically analyse their reads and have a platform for keep a track of their reading. Writing book reviews is an amazing way to really think about why you liked or disliked a book. As you continue reviewing books, you will notice how the different components of a book such as writing, world-building, characters and pacing come together in way that makes or breaks the book.
#10: It can serve as a launching pad for a future career
Whether you are an aspiring author, or you are planning to start a blog tour company of your own – book blogging provides the perfect launching pad for your career. You get to build a solid network, practice your writing skills, and interact with a wide variety of audience including authors, publishers, blog tour organizers and readers. Even if all you want to do is gradually turn into a lifestyle blogger and make a steady income from blogging, book blogging provides you with enough hands-on experience to see if it is your cup of tea!
Have I convinced you to take the plunge and start your own book blog? I hope so, because I am soon coming out with a series of book blogging resources and a few expert tips and tricks I have learnt over time!
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Lifestyle Whiz 