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Is this not a great writing prompt? Who is this person? Where is he going? Is he hiding behind the glasses and the hat? Hmm. The creative juices are flowing. Now type away!
Showing posts with label bloggers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bloggers. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
We're All in This Together by Jessica Scott
Today we have a guest post by author, Jessica Scott. She has written two contemporary romance novels, titled Because of You and Until There Was You. Please help me welcome Jessica Scott as she shares her wisdom on how we as authors, bloggers and readers can hang in there together in this literary world. Make sure and leave her a comment. :-)
Bio: Jessica Scott is a
career army officer, mother of two daughters, three cats, three dogs and two
escape-artists hamsters, wife to a career NCO and wrangler of all things
stuffed and fluffy. She has commanded two companies, served in Germany, Korea,
Fort Hood and Iraq, and been lucky not to get fired. She is a terrible cook and
an even worse housekeeper, but she’s a pretty good shot with her assigned
weapon. Somehow, her children are pretty well adjusted and her husband still
loves her, despite burned water and a messy house.
It seems like every other week, there has been a huge dustup between authors and bloggers or readers and authors or bloggers and readers. It’s rather sad and depressing because I think - or at least I’d like to think - that we’re all book people.
I’m an author but I’m a reader first and foremost. Nothing hurts my heart more than picking up a book I thought I’d love and having it lose my interests. But what do I gain by going on Goodreads or Amazon and telling the world how another author couldn’t write their way out of a paper bag? What I try to do instead is figure out what didn’t work for me. I don’t need to tear another author down because, here’s a little secret: we’re all crazy. :-) I don’t need to make another author crazier by telling people why I didn’t like their book. Posting something on goodreads is not the same as working with another author to beta read their stuff.
Constructive criticism vs public flogging. See the difference?
So in the interest of talking about something positive, let’s talk about what authors, readers and bloggers can do to work together to build a community around what we all love: books.
Authors:
The first thing we authors need to do is accept that everyone is not going to like our books. Nora Roberts said it best at RWA 10: Person A is going to love your book for the same reason Person B is going to want to burn it. Get over it (that was me not Nora). At the end of the day, don’t try to defend your book. It’s cool if people enjoy your book. If someone writes a review, feel free to like that review. But do not, I repeat do not, go on Goodreads, Amazon or any other site and take on readers.
Do, however, try to interact with your readers. Pick a forum. Pick an venue. But do something to interact with the people who buy your books. We’re not simply a means to a sale. We’re all people, looking for good stories to share.
Bloggers:
There is nothing better than finding a book blog that shares what they love about great books. A blog that helps foster community. If you like an author the best thing you can do is tell your friends because in the age of noise of scioal networks, the best way for authors to break out of the pack is to help them be heard.
Readers:
If you love an author, write them a note. Not everyone can answer an email but speaking for myself, when I get an email or a tweet or a facebook post, I do my best to answer it. It makes my day. Another great way to support your favorite authors: write a review. if you truly enjoyed a book, tell your friends. Share the good book awesomeness because ultimately, it’s what my friends tell me about a book that they enjoyed that makes me pick it up.
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Jessica's current book Because of You is available now and her upcoming book, Until There Was You, is available October 8, 2012 and available for pre-order. Jessica is currently running a giveaway on her website for a $25 Amazon gift card and free signed copies of her books. Please stop by and enter TODAY! Click HERE to enter.
You can find her
online:
It seems like every other week, there has been a huge dustup between authors and bloggers or readers and authors or bloggers and readers. It’s rather sad and depressing because I think - or at least I’d like to think - that we’re all book people.
I’m an author but I’m a reader first and foremost. Nothing hurts my heart more than picking up a book I thought I’d love and having it lose my interests. But what do I gain by going on Goodreads or Amazon and telling the world how another author couldn’t write their way out of a paper bag? What I try to do instead is figure out what didn’t work for me. I don’t need to tear another author down because, here’s a little secret: we’re all crazy. :-) I don’t need to make another author crazier by telling people why I didn’t like their book. Posting something on goodreads is not the same as working with another author to beta read their stuff.
Constructive criticism vs public flogging. See the difference?
So in the interest of talking about something positive, let’s talk about what authors, readers and bloggers can do to work together to build a community around what we all love: books.
Authors:
The first thing we authors need to do is accept that everyone is not going to like our books. Nora Roberts said it best at RWA 10: Person A is going to love your book for the same reason Person B is going to want to burn it. Get over it (that was me not Nora). At the end of the day, don’t try to defend your book. It’s cool if people enjoy your book. If someone writes a review, feel free to like that review. But do not, I repeat do not, go on Goodreads, Amazon or any other site and take on readers.
Do, however, try to interact with your readers. Pick a forum. Pick an venue. But do something to interact with the people who buy your books. We’re not simply a means to a sale. We’re all people, looking for good stories to share.
Bloggers:
There is nothing better than finding a book blog that shares what they love about great books. A blog that helps foster community. If you like an author the best thing you can do is tell your friends because in the age of noise of scioal networks, the best way for authors to break out of the pack is to help them be heard.
Readers:
If you love an author, write them a note. Not everyone can answer an email but speaking for myself, when I get an email or a tweet or a facebook post, I do my best to answer it. It makes my day. Another great way to support your favorite authors: write a review. if you truly enjoyed a book, tell your friends. Share the good book awesomeness because ultimately, it’s what my friends tell me about a book that they enjoyed that makes me pick it up.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jessica's current book Because of You is available now and her upcoming book, Until There Was You, is available October 8, 2012 and available for pre-order. Jessica is currently running a giveaway on her website for a $25 Amazon gift card and free signed copies of her books. Please stop by and enter TODAY! Click HERE to enter.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Friday, July 20, 2012
5 Top Affiliate Programs for Bloggers
A few things to remember before you begin.
- Keep in mind what your goal is. Do you plan to do this short term, long term? Are you using affiliate marketing to supplement your income or do you plan to make this a full-time job?
- Describe the product you are promoting. Don't just add a photo or link haphazardly. Make it purposeful.
- Promote what you use. Doing so will lend credibility, instill integrity in your endorsement and increase your sales.
- Share how the product impacts you, give examples and share your experience.
- Put content before promotion. No one wants to see a page full of ads. Your readers still need to get something meaningful from your blog.
Top 5 Affiliate Programs
According to The Online Advertising Blue Book, here are some of the top rated Affiliated Programs.
According to The Online Advertising Blue Book, here are some of the top rated Affiliated Programs.
- Linkshare: The largest affiliate network with over 10 million affiliate partnerships. You can manage your own affiliate channel or have them manage it for you.
- Commission Junction: The largest in North America. Offer self management or company managed option, in addition to a pay per action program.
- ShareASale: Number three for top 20 affiliate networks with over 2,500 merchant programs. Rate high in customer service and ease of use in retrieving payment.
- Amazon Associates: The most popular program for bloggers because it's easy to use and can be integrated easily into blogs using plug-ins.
- Google Affiliate Network: This is a pay-per action program that pays its affiliates for sales and leads. Requires a Google AdSense account to post ads to your blog.
Do you use an Affiliate Program? If so, which one do you recommend for bloggers?
Monday, March 26, 2012
Answers to FAQ for Bloggers
How do you keep your readers interested in what you write?
I don't know if I can answer this thoroughly, it's probably best suited as a question to my readers. But I would like to think it's a combination of being informative, personable and sorta funny on a good day. :-)
My advice to bloggers...be interesting. Be odd if necessary. But don't be mediocre. Offer your readers something. That something can be updates on current trends, news or reviews. It can be giveaways, contests or information about giveaways or contests on other blogs or websites. It can be funny joke to brighten their day, a picture that puts a smile on their face or even a rant about current trends or something that ticked you off that we can relate to on a daily basis.
How long should my blog post be?
However long it needs to be. But shorter is better every time. Readers come in a combination of skimmers, voyeurs and hungry word consumers. I'm a combination reader. I look around like a peeping tom and then I skim til I find something interesting and then I read the complete post if it keeps my attention. So the shorter the better. But whatever the length make every word count, so I would say one to two paragraphs. And don't forget to add some photos. Readers love visuals. We want to know how the photo relates to the post. It also helps readers decide if the post is something we are interested in reading in the first place. Think of it as a book cover.
Can you tell me where to go to get free photos for my blog posts?
Use your camera. Try Getty Images for royalty free photos, Picnik (Picnik will be free until April 19th. After April it will be taken over by Google Creative kit.) You can also use the Creative Commons search tool, FIST (Free Image Search Tool for Wikipedia) and Instagram.
What are some ways I can get more visibility for my blog?
Try guest posting. Guest posting gives you an introduction to new readers, provides backlinks to your blog and it's a great addition to your blogging credentials in the blogging community. To get a guest post, research blogs that may be similar in content to your own. Introduce yourself to the blog owner via email and politely ask if they'd be interested in hosting you as a guest blogger. Make sure and provide your blog URL, the theme of your own blog and the topic you had in mind. Or you can be open and state that you'd be happy to write according to what their own theme may currently be. Bloggers are fairly protective of their blogs, so make sure you have something to offer when approaching a blogger. Have some great ideas handy.
Another way to gain visibility is to visit other blogs, frequently. I personally believe you should visit other blogs more than you visit your own to foster a community of blogging and relationship with other bloggers. Once you make your post for the day, make a list of blogs that you will visit each day or every other day or weekly. Whatever the frequency is, just be consistent.
How do I get more comments on my blog?
Simple. Ask. Don't publish your post without asking a question, asking for feedback or ask the readers for help with a current task or future post. Also, remember when I said, visit other blogs? Well, when you visit other blogs, leave a comment. Hopefully, they'll reciprocate.
How can I grow my blog?
One post at a time. If you get involved in the blogging community, you will learn something from other bloggers. You'll find out about new gadgets, informative blogs to visit, innovative blog designers, new books being released or you may find a post on how to fix a particular bug on your own blog that you've been trying to figure out since day one. But you must be active. Every time you leave a comment on a blog, you leave your calling card...basically your blogging profile for others to see or visit, which in turn leads them to your blog. So tell the world in a meaningful way who you are. They don't know you have a blog if they don't know you exist.
Have questions or advice for other bloggers? Please share.
Monday, January 2, 2012
In Review: Best of Lena's Blog 2011
Lena's Tidbits
- Top 25 Blogs for Writers
- 10 Do It Yourself Book Gifts and Ideas
- Interesting Facts About Authors and Books
- Best Gift Ideas for Book Lovers
- Writing Habits of 21 Famous Authors
- Could You Write Over 700 Books?
- 5 Things I Learned From the Smurfs
- And Tango Makes Three: Banned
- May 21st, The Rapture: The World is Ending, So Here's What You Need to Read
- My Lordt Hammercy Moment
Author Interviews
Book Reviews
Memes
Guest Posts
Contest/Giveaways
- Author Wayne Zurl
- Author Barbara Kyle
- Author Katina Walton: Book Review of How To Get Out of Your Own Way by Tyrese Gibson
Contest/Giveaways
Do you have a memorable post from my blog?
Friday, September 16, 2011
BBAW: 10 Tips for Bloggers
Today is the end of the BBAW. It was so much fun. I met some new bloggers and learned a lot from their posts. So I decided to make my last post for the BBAW practical and easy by making a list of ten things of practical tips and tools for blogging.
Tried and True Practices and Blogging Tools :
- Comment on other blogs ~ As I said before in my other post (How Do You Find Community), be reciprocal and leave a comment when you visit a blog. I read on some other blogs that comments should be thoughtful, meaningful and blah, blah, blah. But really just say, "hi, I am new to your blog and was lurking around and decided to comment" or whatever you feel like saying. I prefer a brief comment over no comment. And sometimes people just don't know what to say. If they say nothing, I don't know they exist and I can't reciprocate in commenting.
- Be Consistent ~ Try to be consistent in all your blogging and posting. Blog as often as you can. And set a minimum and maximum number of posts you will do each week. And then let your readers know that's how often you will be posting. I for instance blog 3-5 days a week. Generally 3 if I'm not participating in a hop.
- Be Present ~ Even on the days you don't make a new post on your own blog. Use some of that time to visit other blogs instead. You may not have anything new for them to come back to and comment on but they will remember that even on your off days, you made the effort to come by their blog and visit; that's how you nurture relationships.
- Following and Gaining Followers ~ Don't feel obligated to follow blogs if you aren't truly interested in them. If you join a blog you likely won't go back to, all you really did was make your list longer in your feed or add to the amount of email you'll get. Secondly, don't get swept into the hype of needing large amounts of followers. If you comment and participate, they will come. But don't feel like you aren't productive if you don't have a lot of followers. For instance, have you ever visited a blog that had over 1,000 followers but not a single person commented on any of their post that week or the week before? It's usually because the blog owner dropped the ball somewhere and didn't nurture the followers they received. When I say drop the ball, I mean they didn't reciprocate. They didn't follow the people that followed them. They didn't comment on other blogs, they didn't reply to comments on their own blog or they weren't consistent in posting. Now I have been to blogs with 50 or 60 followers and they have a healthy 10 comments or so on each posts. That's a healthy blog. The owner is nurturing her blog in some form or fashion and her followers are receptive of that attention or he/she has something really important to say in their posts. As I said before I'd take a quick comment over no comment at all.
- Ask a question ~ If you want comments, ask a question at the end of each post. Some people don't comment because they don't know what to say because you said everything already, you didn't pose a question or you didn't challenge them to come up with something different than what you already stated.
- Great tools to use ~ Twitter, Facebook, Hootsuite, Goodreads, Shelfari, Book Blogs, Google Reader and StumbleUpon. I use each of these. But I consistently use Facebook, Twitter, my Google Reader and StumbleUpon. Now I don't actually use the Twitter site often, I use Hootsuite instead. It allows me to access my Twitter account and view it in an easier format. It also lets me schedule my tweets weeks in advance. So if I know I'm running a giveaway for a week then I will schedule my tweets for that entire week in advance. How to: After I make my posts, I'll schedule my tweet to post every hour on the hour for the entire week (you can also schedule every fifteen minutes). It lets my Twitter feed look up to date and I can concentrate on just replying to tweets instead of plugging my links. I admit it takes a little time, about an hour to schedule all of them for the week. But once it's done I can concentrate on other things. StumbleUpon lets you find other interesting articles or blogs as well. It also allows you to upload your own post from your blog so others can "stumbleupon" them. I would like to utilize technorati and digg. I haven't gotten the hang of them yet, but I'm trying to use these more consistently. But I also know I can't spend all my time visiting social sites. So it hasn't been a priority yet.
- Give blog love ~ Whenever possible, spread the blog love around. Tell your followers about other great blogs you visit. This can come back to you in ten fold. Linking to another blog increases the chances of that blog returning the favor in the future. It also increases traffic to your blog. Also update your blog roll or blog feed. We like to see which blogs you like, but don't list blogs that haven't posted in 3 months or so.
- Participate in hops, memes and giveaways ~ I find that I have garnered most of my followers through events like the (Armchair BEA), hops (such as the Literary Giveaway Blog Hop) and my own personal giveaways and other blog giveaways. I don't usually gain many followers through memes when I have participated. But some say it works for them. Some good memes would be In My Mailbox Monday, Feature and Follow and Waiting on Wednesday. I normally stick to hops and giveaways. You can find giveaways and hops by visiting other blogs by looking in their sidebar for buttons and announcements. Go to some of the blogs in their blog roll and see what's going on there. You have to search out other blogs to get info.
- Be you ~ Be yourself. Don't try to imitate another blogger. Just let people know the authentic you and if they like that person they'll stick around. But if you try to copy other bloggers in design, concept, etc, eventually you will burn out. It's always easier and better to be you even on a bad day, then it is to be someone else on a good day.
- Guest posting/ blogging: Try asking other bloggers if you can guest post on their blog and vice versa. It's a great way to gain new followers, get a new perspective on your blog for a change and it's nice way to get a break from posting even if only for a day.
- Bonus Tip: * Balance* ~ When it comes to blogging there is no such thing as balance for me. It's all about prioritizing. To say balance would mean making all things equal or giving each thing equal time. And that doesn't work for me because that's not how I live. I have a list of what's important and what goes at the top of my list. Blogging is not at the top of my list. At the top of my list is God, my family and my writing career. So I make decisions based on that and I fit blogging in where it needs to go. If I can't do something related to blogging, I just don't do it. I've found if you take a break and let your followers know your going on hiatus, they'll respect that and most will jump right back in where you left off once you return. So don't stress about it. And don't forget to enjoy yourself. Blogging should be fun.
Do you have any practical advice, tools or tips to share for blogging?
Monday, May 23, 2011
Armchair BEA 2011 Let's Get it Started!
This is the first day of the Armchair BEA. I'm so excited and thrilled to be participating. The BEA conference is for book bloggers from the comfort of their favorite chair. Those of us who aren't able to attend in New York for Book Expo America (BEA) or the Book Blogger Convention, are celebrating with a conference of our own.
Who are you and how do you do Armchair BEA?
I'm Lena. I love reading. I love writing more. But what way to have a medium where I can do both. I blog about just about all things books, reviews and interviews. I love having giveaways and finding book bargains for other readers. To do Armchair BEA, just go to the blog and sign up. Follow the daily discussions and post on other blogs that are participating. It's a great way to network with other blogs.
What is your favorite genre?
My favorite genre to read would be mainstream fiction. I will review just about any form of fiction aside from children's or middle grade. And I never review non-fiction. I am now loving dystopian and mystery novels; an affection I got from visiting other blogs.
Tell us a little about yourself aside from blogging?
I am a writer and a poet. My first contribution in book form debuted May 21, 2011 called "The Poetic Lounge."
It is a complilation of 20 poets from around the world. I am thrilled to be apart of it. I also have my own book due this fall titled, "Waiting on Heaven." I am also a wife, mother of five and a political scientist. I love watching C-Span (I'm probably the only one watching but eh). Tell us an Interesting fact about yourself?
I own nearly 750 books. So I'm glad I recently got an Ipad to store new books. My favorite app is Flipboard and my favorite games are Jeopardy and Angry Birds (I feel an addiction coming on.)
If you could put a book in anyone's hand, which book would that be?
"Sugar
" by Bernice L. McFadden. That book is the first novel I read non-stop as an adult. It made me think, it kept me awake, it fueled my desire to be a writer. It was literally the first time I said, "I wish I had written that." I've since read it a dozen times and bought it half a dozen times to give away as gifts.Do you have any special meme's or themes?
Yes, I do a Friday's Free Books for Kindle. Every Friday I list books that are free for Kindle, and you don't need an ereader to read them, you can download the Kindle app to your computer or cellphone and still enjoy the free books.
What can we expect from your blog in the future?
Videoblogging is next. I hope to feature my first video blog from Youtube this week. So look out for it. And hopefully continuing the same path of dedication to books, readers and writers, while switching it up occassionally. For example, some Fridays, I may not do a Free Kindle because I have something interesting to post like a giveaway, contest or writing tips. But one thing I don't do is stagnation. I get bored easily, so I have to have fresh ideas and I love it when readers help me decide what to blog about.
What's the best thing about blogging?
Meeting new people. I've met some great bloggers that I've had the pleasure of connecting with. I've yet to meet them in person, but I want to. It's like a sisterhood. I can't go throughout the day without checking my google reader and commenting on their blog. It's the first thing I do every morning and the last thing I do at night. I want them to know, I'm thinking about them and I care about what they have to say and what they have to offer. Blogging is time consuming and it's nice to know the effort put into it has an audience, even if it's an audience of one. It matters.
If you could have dinner with any author, who would it be?
That's a hard question. But I can narrown it down to three. Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou and Terry McMillan.
Below are some photos of me, the first is with some friends from The Alabama Writers Conclave and the other is from a wedding I just attended.
Please let me know if you are doing the Armchair BEA, so I can stop by your blog. If you are not, then just tell me something about yourself so I can get to know you better.
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Also don't forget to check out the current book giveaways. We are giving away three bestselling novels. Click HERE for more details
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Armchair BEA (Book Expo of America)
Unfortunately, I couldn't attend the Book Expo of America or the Book Blogger Convention. I was a little bummed, but all things happen for a reason. So I'm planning early, which will hopefully lead to a better experience next year. However, I will be participating in the Armchair BEA of 2011. The Armchair BEA is an online book blogging convention done from the comfort of your own chair. It runs from May 23rd -May 27th of 2011. It is put on by a team of bloggers.
Team
Team
The schedule is posted on the blog and I will be participating. So stay in touch and I will keep you updated or you can go there yourself and join the fun. There will be daily themes, panel discussions, interviews and giveaways.
If you plan on participating (or not), leave me a comment and let me know so I can visit your blog. Hope to see you there.
Also don't forget to check out the current book giveaways. We are giving away three bestselling novels. Click here for more details
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