Hi friends! I’m so excited to finally introduce you all to the second installment of Book Bloggers Talk! In case you missed the first one, I’m inviting book bloggers to share their thoughts on different topics related to book blogging. Today’s topic is the assets of a book blog, a.k.a, why book blogs are absolutely amazing. You know how strongly I feel about this topic, don’t you?
In case you missed it, we talked about the future of book blogging in the first post!
Book Blogging in 2021: does it still matter?
In a world where social media is king, especially when it comes to book influencers, it’s so easy to feel like book blogs don’t have any weight, any importance or any strengths at all.
It’s easy to feel like starting a book blog isn’t worth it. I’m so happy to share my platform with 4 lovely bloggers today, here to tell you that, yes. Book blogging has SO many advantages, so many incredible possibilities for you to explore and, most of it all, the community on blogs is the kindest. I hope you’ll enjoy reading these as much as I did!
Let’s hear book bloggers talk!
A million thanks to Anika, Ash, Charvi and Lili for sharing their thoughts on the topic. Please take some time to check out their wonderful work and support them!
Anika, from the blog Chapters of May, says:
I started talking about books on my blog because I love sharing reviews, recommendations, and bookish content with like-minded readers.
I think one of the biggest advantages of having a blog is the total creative freedom that comes with that kind of platform.
On social media, everyone’s profile follows the same format or layout, even if the content is different. But through a blog, you don’t just get a standard page. You get an entire personality. Everything between the header and the footer represents the nature of the blog owner, and that’s what makes them so special. They also have an accessibility and relatability that social media may lack. While social media has a tendency to be a highlight reel, which has its upsides, blogs have a more grounded feel.
Book blogs have played a major role in the book and publishing community for years, and I truly hope more recognition comes their way.
I think many people underestimate the influence book blogs have had bestseller lists as well as the content we now see trending on social media. I still rely on book blogs for honest reviews, charming content, and inspiring writing. Sure, I may find the blog through Instagram or Twitter, but I return because of the blogger behind it.
To me, book blogs will always be important. I think a lot of publishers value book bloggers, especially those sharing engaging reviews with a good readership. But the subject of payment has been an on-going discourse that is often brushed under the carpet because it’s “taboo”. In my opinion, book bloggers should be paid. They work, they create, and they influence. So I firmly believe that effort should be compensated. If publishers see the importance in blogs, I hope they believe it too.
It’s no secret that social media dominates the web, but I always think it’s worth creating a blog. It’s your own corner of the internet, you can enjoy the process of creating, there’s no set rules – what is there to lose? There are countless opportunities that can come your way when you have a blog as well as social media. The bigger the presence the better!
Plus, there are plenty of skills that can be learned when it comes to blogging and creating content for your own platform. For example, without my blog, I wouldn’t have learned the basics when it comes to HTML and PHP. I wouldn’t have learned how to design graphics for other platforms, promote content across social media, or create SEO-friendly articles. And I wouldn’t have learned half of the photography skills I now possess, which help me to earn money doing what I love.
So I believe the hobby will always have its benefits and is worth pursuing. You never know what opportunities it’ll present, or what it’ll teach you about yourself along the way.
– Anika @ Chapters of May ☂️ Find Anika on: Blog | Instagram | Goodreads | Twitter
Ash, from Starlight Strands, says:
It’s no secret that the book blogging community is much less popular than every other bookish community out there. And as bookish platforms on Twitter, Instagram and Tiktok skyrocket while interest in book blogging decreases, it can be hard to find motivation to stay.
However, every time I think of how much easier it is to consume and create content on other platforms, I realize that I don’t think I could leave book blogging behind, because it has such a special place in my heart.
I was initially drawn to the book blogging community two years ago after going down a rabbit hole on the internet, and I thought it was too good to be true, especially when seeing how positive everyone was towards one another. This paired with the fact that I could publish my own opinions on books and even interact with other book lovers online led me to start a blog of my own, and looking back to where I’ve come ever since that very first time I clicked “publish” on a post, I’m so glad I made that decision.
While I am on other platforms like Twitter and Instagram and I enjoy posting on them, there are so many skills that I’ve picked up solely from having a book blog.
My writing abilities have improved through the process of drafting countless posts and also reading the amazing work of others in the community, I can use sites such as Canva to design graphics that accent my posts and blog theme, I know what HTML and SEO are and use them to format my posts, I can pinpoint what exactly it was that made me love a book so much, and write a review that will hopefully convince others to pick it up as well. And while I’m grateful that diverse books are being supported more and more on all platforms,
I think the first time I was able to actually discover books that represented me was through the work of book bloggers, because the blogging community does so much to promote marginalized authors.
I could go on and on with this, but I’ll end with arguably the best thing that has come from me starting my book blog: all the friends I’ve made in this community. As someone who had still thought the internet was filled with dangerous and hateful people a few years ago, I was reluctant about publishing my own thoughts for anyone to see. But when I started to interact with other bloggers in the community, I was blown away by how kind and welcoming everyone was.
While I love interacting with others on all social media platforms, I think there’s something much more pure and personal about leaving a long comment on a friend’s blog post rather than retweeting something or liking a picture, and comments from others never fail to make my day.
While the future of book blogging is still uncertain, I know that it is such a wonderful platform to be on—I took my first steps into the online bookish community through my blog, and I wouldn’t change that for the world. There is still so much value in keeping a book blog today, and I think that’s what makes it worth it to keep going.
– Ash @ Starlight Strands ☂️ Find Ash on: Blog | Instagram | Goodreads | Twitter
Charvi, from Not Just Fiction, says:
Having a book blog can be an asset in so many ways! A lot of people say blogging is dying due to social media but I believe they’re both totally different.
Social media can never replace blogging because it caters to snippets and pictures whereas if you want in-depth knowledge about something you always go to blogs. People are able to put out so much more of themselves on a blog rather than social media because there are no pretences or filters and a much larger space to say what you want.
If you like to write you should definitely start a blog because there’s only so much you can do on social media.
I see people posting stories full of texts on instagram but I don’t always read them because on Instagram I absorb content with the intention of it being quick, pretty and to the point. But if I’m on someone’s blog they have my full attention. I can get to know more about the blogger and I love leaving comments to communicate with them.
And as someone who is on social media and has a blog, people who follow me and interact with me on my blog will always have a special place in my heart.
It takes so much more to keep my blog alive and I appreciate all the love I get on my content there.
– Charvi @ Not Just Fiction ☂️ Find Charvi on: Blog | Instagram | Goodreads | Twitter
Lili, from Utopia State of Mind, says:
One of the biggest things I love about the book blog is having everything in one place. I can easily post links to Booktube videos, Photos on Instagram, or even Tweets. It has this home base feeling to it.
At the same time, there’s no denying that blog posts, and book blogs, have the advantage of space.
This gives posts and ideas rooms to grow, it allows me to place a summary next to a review and not have to have people scroll down a long instagram post. In general, I think that each social media platform has a unique angle, a unique place, and a better way of engaging.
For example, on Bookstagram a lot of people don’t read the caption and so the picture is a thousand words. Whereas on Twitter, it’s about condensing your thoughts nicely (or hooking someone quickly). But on blogs, I love making this longer list recommendation posts or even just book reviews where I have a bit more to say.
I was on a panel the other day and I mentioned that I like to compartmentalize my social media. For example, you’ll see Instagram stories of what I eat in a day and makeup progress shots. On Twitter you’ll see my random ramblings and weird dreams. And on booktok you’ll see my taste in music, and me acting goofy (as well as mini book reviews). For the blog, you’ll find my most ‘well thought out’ content.
Content that has the space to grow and expand into more nuance than I, personally, am able to put on other social media platforms.
I still think of my blog as my primary platform. There are so many advantages, and nuances, and quirks to all the social media platforms and while it may be interesting to experiment with, it can also get exhausting! But I think they are definitely worthwhile. They can provide “Listicles” or good articles or discussion posts. I also love being able to go straight from a review to a book page/purchase site! It’s also lovely to see fun added extra content on blogs as well.
– Lili @ Utopia State of Mind ☂️ Find Lili on: Blog | Instagram | Goodreads | Twitter
You might also be interested in these blog posts about book blogging:
- BOOK BLOGGERS TALK #1: Thoughts On the Future of Book Blogging
- Why i believe book bloggers should get paid
- Shining a light on book bloggers’ work: what do we really DO?
📌 Pin Why Book Blogs Are an Asset Today on Pinterest!
Why do you think having a book blog today matters? What are some of the perks of a book blog that you can’t have on other platforms?
I’d love to hear your thoughts in comments!
Twitter ☂️ Bookstagram ☂️Goodreads ☂️ Bloglovin’ ☂️ Support the blog
I love this! Reading other bloggers’ thoughts on having a blog makes me all warm and fuzzy and I definitely agree that it’s a really different platform to social media and offers very different interactions and longer, more detailed posting. Great post Marie!
Ahh thank you SO much Kate, so happy you enjoyed this! <3 I love how endless the possibilities are on here :D
I agree this is so comforting! It kinda feels like we’re rallying and cheering each other on because sometimes it feels like we’re alone in our own corners ♥
This is such an informative blog, as someone who only recently started a book blog, it’s nice to have this post as incentive to keep going. Thanks!
Ah yay! This makes me so happy,thank you so much 😀
I couldn’t agree more on how awesome this community is! That’s one of the main reasons I’m staying. I’m sure that if I didn’t get such sweet comments on my posts and had 0 interaction at all, I would’ve been LONG gone!
Thanks for this post, It’s so lovely to read that other bloggers share the same feelings 🙂
Ahh yay! I’m so, so happy you enjoyed this post, thank you so much for your sweet words! <3
My book blog was massively helpful to me when I was applying for funding for a PhD. My university really liked how it enabled me to “go behind the scenes” of the YA community, and how it helped me approach my thesis in a different way to just doing close reading analysis of the texts I picked out. They specifically said when I was awarded the funding that the blogging was one of the main areas of interest for them. So it’s not just great for fun, it also can help build careers!
Ahh that’s SO amazing to hear, wow and congratulations to you!! 😍
Aww thank you <3
This was amazing. Loved reading thoughts of all bloggers participating here and I agree with all of them. Blog gives bigger space, a place to be yourself and talk about books as much as one want without any limits in words or content size and they are more creative.
I’m so happy you enjoyed this!! 🙂
What a great post! I loved reading the expressions from others bloggers too. Plus, now I have new blogs to add to my reading list 🙂 Thanks for having me, Marie!
Thank you so, so much once again for sharing your thoughts, it’s an honor to have you on my blog! <3 <3
it feels surreal to see my words on the blog of a blogger i admire so much, thank you again for having me 😭💖and this was such a fun topic to discuss! i’m so glad that everyone agrees that blogging is such a personal and amazing bookish platform to be on. i can’t wait to see more of this series in the future!!
Of course, thank YOU so much again for wanting to participate, it means so much! 🥺🥺
I too keep seeing the comment that blogging is in decline because it’s been overtaken by Twitter and IG. They have an appeal I suppose because they’re much easier to do – it takes a lot more effort to write a blog post than to fire off a Tweet. But that’s why I prefer blogs, they are more in-depth and thoughtful.
As for book blogs, they’ve become a far more important element of the marketing mix for publishers now that so few newspapers carry book reviews.
I’m glad you agree! Book blogs are so wonderful 🥺
This post has me feeling soft 🥺 Blogging gave me my people as I like to call my friends and close friends I’ve found via blogging, our love for books and blogging allowed our paths cross. Then we were able to form friendships because of this and I will always be grateful for my blogging friends, they’ve been a constant light in my life. Social media has always been moving at a lightning speed, which is alright if you’re only after quick snippets and glimpses into people/things etc. But when I need to take a break from social media you’ll probably find me reading blog posts from my fav bloggers because nothing brightens my day quite like seeing a new blog post from them. Even now I’m on a hiatus and I can not stay away from blog hopping, from interacting with the friends I made.
Having a book blog matters today because it’s a way to discover yourself. Challenge yourself, your abilities, make friends in a totally different way than how you would on social media because blog posts lend themselves to insightful and informative posts. They gently whisper for you to question things and they can spark a flame inside of you to want to voice your own thoughts. Like Anika mentioned, blogs are as unique as the bloggers themselves. I often say a blog is the reflection of the blogger/s behind them. You can see them evolve both in terms of content and visually as the creators find their footing. You don’t get the same feel for social platforms. It’s more uniformed and you are subject to copyright strikes, getting your content taken down for god knows what made up reason etc.
I think the biggest perk, for me anyway, is that blogs have the most freedom. Don’t like that post anymore? You can delete it, redo it, make it private etc. With videos you can’t redo it and update it, you’d need to upload another video which quite honestly, that scares me a little. That lack of control of not being able to go back on old videos that I may be proud of but have learned more skills and no how to execute things better and redo them BUT still keep the original stats and everything. You can do that with a blog post which is wonderful. You can quite literally reinvent your entire blog without having to lose any stats if you don’t want to.
Another thing I love about blogs is commenting on other peoples posts, I’ve always found it awkward to comment on videos on YouTube and on instagram I can be struggling with what to comment too. Social media interactions often feel less genuine to me as well, almost like people are only interacting to get something back. It’s easier to fall down that hole too of taking photos and posting content that will get you those stats. I think whilst going that route has crossed most book bloggers minds at some point, many of us are like ‘no, my blog, this is me and you can take it or leave and find another fabulous blog you vibe with better.’
I’m gonna stop my comment here before I go off tangent but I adored reading this post so much Marie 💜
Your comment makes me feel so happy and so soft and ahh thank you so much!! 🥺 I so agree with you. I love how a blog really can be 200% you, both in terms of design, content and just, it’s something that’s entirely yours and that you can make at your image and reinvent always. I love it so much.
I get that feeling so much with social media, too! I feel like it’s a constant race and that we’re sometimes a little guilty of commenting just for the sake of it. I know it’s not everyone’s experience, though and for people loving it, great! I know I like social media… with measure.
Thank you SO much for your comment and for always supporting my work. This means so much 🥺
What a lovely, heartening post. I absolutely love the book blogging community and this post just highlights all the reason it’s here to stay 🙂
Ah thank you so much, I’m so happy you enjoyed it 🙂
What a lovely post, everyone had great points about blogging! I just started my blog about a week ago and I’ve definitely felt a kind of freedom writing that I don’t get from posting on social media.
Ash mentions how leaving long comments on someone’s blog is much more personal, and I have to agree. I love how any post can become a discussion in the comments!
Thank you so much, so happy you enjoyed it! 🥺 I agree with Ash so much, it’s always wonderful to be able to chat in comments like that, I always love it so much! 🥺
ahh i loved reading this so much, thanks for doing this blog series Marie!! ☺️ it’s so great to read about everyone’s different thoughts and love for book blogging <3 even with all of the different social media platforms that the book community is on, book blogs will always be my favorite bookish platform because of its uniqueness and versatility! there's nothing quite like writing a 2,000-word blog post to share all your thoughts and screaming about books haha, and you can't really do that on other social media platforms. i also love how book bloggers always leave long & meaningful comments on posts, and ofc i enjoy doing that as well hehe :)) lovely post as always <3
Ahh thank you so, so much Dezzy, I’m so happy you enjoyed this post <3 I also love that so, so much about book bloggers! How passionate they are about their books and it just shows in every endless blog post and long comments, too. It's the best! <3
I appreciate each platform in some way, but I have to echo Lili’s thoughts about there being so much more room to grow on a blog. Honestly, I nodded along with what many of these bloggers had to say.
I’m so glad you agree! <3 Thank you so, so much Sam!
I love that you got other bloggers’ thoughts for this post! I 100% agree that book bloggers are still an asset today.
Thank you, Nicole, I’m so happy you agree 🙂
I feel so warm and fuzzy reading this — all the book blog love makes my heart SOAR! I know we get the bad end of the stick in the bookish community but I love how supportive and kind our community is for one another and uplifting marginalized authors’ work.
Yes! I love that about our community so, so much as well. <3
I agree with everything that was said in this post! Blogs just have a different energy than other platforms, and that’s what makes them so great!
In a way, I kind of like that book blogs are more niche. The people who follow our blogs truly value our thoughts and opinions and get to know us on a very different level than they would just by following us on Twitter on Insta. There’s more discussion, more interaction, and so much respect and friendship that comes from blogging. I’m quite proud to be a blogger, and it warms my heart that so many others feel the same way!
Malka, your comment warms my heart SO much, thank you! <3 I so agree with you, it's wonderful to see how close we are and passionate about our little niche, too. I love it so much! :)