Let's Talk About Blogging

Three years ago when I began this wild roller coaster ride of self-publishing, I had no idea what a blog was. Sure, I’d heard about them, but I had no idea that blogging would be such an integral part of the writing and publishing process.

It’s taken me a while to get in the groove of blogging on a regular basis. When I began, I stupidly thought I could put out a few blog posts each week and it would be easy. And if that’s all I was doing, it probably would be. I finally realized that I needed some sort of schedule and a dedicated plan for my blog posts. Since I don’t work my “regular” job on Thursdays, that became MY day.

Over the past year I’ve perfected my planning and posting, and currently I have blogs scheduled to post at least two months ahead of time. The scheduling part is easy. The writing part…not so much. What exactly am I supposed to write about? My writing? Well, that’s a no-brainer, but really…how many times can I convey how time consuming and difficult self-publishing is? How many, many times can I tell you that writing is a calling for me, as much a part of ME as the blood in my veins? I started a Recipe of the Month blog and that has been received well. I get calls and emails all the time from folks telling me that they made one of the recipes or are planning to. I suppose I’m on the right track after all.

When I began writing my posts, I had NO idea the influence a blog could have. Not mine, exactly, but definitely posts from book bloggers….those tasked with reading and reviewing a book. Recently my book Breaking Roman was “on tour”. At the time I coordinated this with Giselle, the guru at XPresso Book Tours, I didn’t know what a blog tour would entail. She graciously detailed out what would happen, but I think even then I only had a minimalistic idea it. Once I sent out ARC’s though (advance reader copies of the book), I had a pretty good idea that I’d be jumping off a cliff without a parachute. I was asked for book excerpts. I was sent interview questionnaires to complete, which is always super fun. I love to talk about my books. Myself…not so much.

My expectations of the tour were minimal: hope that I do okay and don’t get any reviews that say, “this book sucks!”. Thankfully, that did not happen. Not really, anyway.

What did happen was my newfound appreciation for the job of a blogger. These folks who took the time to read and review my book, do the same thing for hundreds if not thousands of other authors. They do it without being asked, and simply because they love to read. The reviews they write are thoughtful and detailed, and even when they aren’t in love with your book they take the time to point out the areas where it was lacking. I will admit, I was a bit butt-hurt when I read one of the first reviews (FYI…I don’t usually read reviews). But after I got over myself, I read it again. And I heard myself saying, “You know what, she’s right.” You see, bloggers are teachers too. Another thing I never realized before.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank ALL of the bloggers who spent time reading and reviewing my book. Whether your review was not good, somewhere in the middle, or a 5-star, I am grateful for YOU! As with my editor, you folks are an invaluable part of this entire process.

I consider my first blog tour to be a big success. The truth in what we do is that as with all forms of art, reviews and opinions are subjective. That said, I would never dismiss a bloggers opinion…good or bad. I learn from them and I also gain powerful insight into the mind of a reader, which is priceless.

Please join me in thanking these amazing bloggers: