Tag Archives: blogger

#Blogger2BloggerAdvice

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discussion

A few days ago, I decided that I was going to make some changes to my blog.  I want to add more discussion type posts once a week.  To kick things off, today’s post is a guest post written by a blogger who I feel has become my bbf (blogger best friend), Megan at BookslayerReads.  Her blog is amazing, so please do check it out after reading this post.

Hello there, fellow readers! I am in no way a professional blogger, nor do I know everything there is to know about blogging. But in the short period of time I have been a blogger, I have learned a few things… and I’d like to share some “Blogger to Blogger Advice” with you today!

Some of these pieces of advice you may have heard before. So if you have, maybe that means we’re right! This advice is not coming from a professional, as I said, so you can take it how you want, but these are my personal suggestions for newbie bloggers!

1. BE YOURSELF

This is always the number one rule to anything in my book. Being yourself is so important. Don’t try to be like anyone else. Your own personality is what makes your blog unique and that’s what people are looking for.

2. INTERACT

Interaction is a huge part of blogging. Respond to people who take time out to comment on your blog. And don’t forget to comment on other blogs! Sparking up a conversation with a fellow blogger is a lot fun! Try it!

3. SIMPLE LAYOUTS

Personally, I’ve found that most people prefer to read blogs that are easy to read and easy to navigate. Cluttered blogs or blogs with fonts that are difficult to read are less appealing. Just keep it simple!

4. WRITE WHAT YOU WANT

This kinda goes hand-in-hand with number one… but always write about what makes you happy. Believe it or not, readers can tell if you’re writing something just to be writing it. If there’s no passion behind the writing, it’ll show. And no one wants to read something that doesn’t have a bit of personality behind it!!

5. LINK BACK TO A POST

This seems to be a real issue lately, I believe. When you tag someone, always make sure to link back to their post. If you don’t link back to a specific post, the blogger will not get the pingback and they will have no idea that you even tagged them! Which isn’t good. So always try to remember this piece of advice.

Well, there you have it! I know it’s not much, but it’s important! So I hope you guys use this advice to your advantage and found this post helpful!

Did you find this advice helpful? Do you agree with me? Are there some pieces of advice you think I missed? Let us know in the comments!

Love,

Megan @BooslayerReads

Book blogger blind date #BBBlindDate

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Blind date with a blogger was set up by Jillian over Rant and Rave About Books.  I first saw it on Twitter and though it would be something fun and different.  I also thought that it would be a great way to meet new bloggers.  I was paired up with Em over at Keystroke Blog.  Both blogs are amazing, so you should go check them out.

Em and I decided that we would send each other different questions, instead of the same questions to make things more interesting.  We also sent random facts about each other.

These are the random facts from Emma:

1. I am the second of four children and the only girl.

2. I have moved six times and probably will move some more before I decide to settle down.

3. Most recently I have been living on the Caribbean island of Dominica, which is a small island in the lower Antilles (don’t feel bad if you haven’t heard of it.. not many people have)

4. I want to be a writer, and am working on my debut novel/series called The Gravestone Chronicles

5. My favorite season is Spring, and it is closely rivaled by Fall.

6. The fastest I have ever read a full sized novel (over 350 pages) was in 2 hours while I was waiting at an air port.

7. I want to be a travel journalist at one point in my life and travel the globe #lifegoals

My questions are in black and Emma’s answers are in red.

If you could be any Disney villain, which one would you be and why? 

Any Disney villain. Hmmmm. There are so many good (well, evil) ones! I would probably be Maleficent because she can use magic and turn into a dragon. I just think that’s so cool. And, ya know, dragons.

If you could take characters from one book and put them into another book, which characters and book would you choose, and why?

This question is a lot harder than I thought it would be. The first thing that comes to mind is taking the characters from Anna Dressed in Blood and putting them in the pages of a chick lit, just because that would probably be hilarious (although they would all absolutely hate it…. except for maybe Caramel).

What is your favorite thing about blogging, and what advice would you give to new bloggers?

My favorite thing about blogging is probably the amazing people I have been able to meet and work with. The blogging community is really a wonderful group of people, and my advice to new bloggers would be to go on social media and go blog hopping and meet some of the other wonderful people on the web.

What are three book worlds you would want to live in, and three worlds that you wouldn’t want to live in, and why?

Three worlds I would want to live in are Harry Potter (obviously… I mean, who wouldn’t), Percy Jackson (cause, again, who wouldn’t) , and the Gallagher Girls (because I would kill to be able to do half the things the girls in the books can do). I wouldn’t want to live in the Hunger Games world, Divergent, or Shatter Me (so pretty much any dystopian world), because with my luck I would be the first one dead.

What houses do you belong to on Pottermore?- I know this question probably pops up a lot, but I always find it interesting to see the different houses people belong to.

I was sorted into the Hogwarts house of Gryffindor (which I always assumed I was before I took the test, so yay), and the Illvermorny house of Horned Serpent. I’m kind of iffy about the Horned Serpent house, but to be fair I don’t know that much about the different houses yet, so I’m good with it.

I had a lot of fun doing this and hope there are more of these in the future!!

Real Neat and Fangirling Awards

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I was recently nominated for two more blog awards, which I am combining into one post.  Sometimes it is easier for me to combine awards into one post.  First, I was nominated by Cara over at Periods and Semicolons for the Real Neat Blogger Award.  The second award that I was nominated for is the Book Fangirling Award and I was nominated by Ara at The Bookish Agenda.  Thank you both for nominating me.

The Rules:

▪Thank and link the blogger that nominated you.

▪Answer the 7 questions that the nomination has provided you.

▪Create 7 questions for your nominees.

▪Nominate 7 other bloggers.

Cara’s questions:

– What is your favorite food?

I would have to say Mediterranean, and being quarter Greek I love Greek food.

– How many languages do you know?

Just English, and very , very little Greek.

– Describe the last book you read using only one word.

Interesting

– What is/are the book/s you are currently reading?

Dorothy Must Die and The Crown by Keira Cass

– Of all the unread books in your bookshelf, what book has been there for the longest time?

On Goodreads it would be The Goldfinch by Donna Tart

– What is the last dream you recall?

I was getting my second tattoo

– How long have you been blogging?

I have been blogging on this blog since 2012

My questions:

What is your favorite thing to do outside of reading/blogging?

What kind of music do you listen to when blogging?

Do you journal?

What is the favorite vacation you have ever been on?

Have you listened to the Hamilton soundtrack?

Where is your favorite place to read?

Have you ever been to any book conventions?

 

Book Fangirling Award

The Rules:

Create a post to accept your award.

Answer the questions at the end.

Nominate 5 – 10 bloggers who you think also deserve this award.

Come up with your own 5 questions for your nominees.

Ara’s Questions: 

Which two characters from different books/series do you ship? (And why?)

Draco Malfoy from Celeste Newsome because they are both power hungry characters, and had mean streaks to people that were of lower statuses than them.

What was your major/current major/planned major in college?

I majored in communications with a concentration in journalism and I minored in english

What book genre got you started in reading?

I can’t pinpoint a certain genre, I’ve always been a reader

Who is the biggest reader in your family, aside from you?

No-one else in my family really reads as much as I do.

What/where is your favorite bookstore? (Physical or online)

Barnes and Noble and Google Play Books

My questions:

Ice tea or coffee?

What is your favorite place to read?

Favorite male and female villain?

Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts?

Do you read faster when reading eBooks?

I nominate for both awards:

Lilly from Lair of Books

24hryabookblog 

Mhay from Teariffic Books

Aentee from Read at Midnight

Shannon from Captivated by Fantasy

Inside my blog planner

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I thought I would do something a little different.  I recently got into planning, not the glam planning you see on YouTube, but just regular planning.  So for this post, like the title says, is going to be a look inside my planner.  The extent of my decorating comes in the form of washi tape.  For my planner I use an M by Staples Arc or Discbound Notebook.  What I love about the notebook is how easy it is to customize, how compact it is, and how perfect it is for what I need it for.

I have the Junior Arc Notebook with a really pretty floral print on the cover, and I also use the larger discs.  The notebook came with notebook paper, and my gel pens do not bleed through.  I love the notebook pages for drafting blog posts and writing down ideas.

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I made my own cover page with card stock paper and washi tape.wp-1466455407790.jpg

I bought my blog planner pages from Jessica Marie Designs Etsy Shop The Preppy Greek.  wp-1466455391834.jpg

I printed the pages on card stock, however card stock is too heavy and bulky for the notebook.  I recently bought 28lb paper from Staples that will work beautifully when I need to print more pages.  Most likely my pages won’t stay like this, I will be moving the Weekly pages over to the left side of the notebook and the Blog Post pages to the right side.

Having a planner, not only helps me keep on a blogging schedule, but I noticed that I have been blogging more since I started planning out my blog posts.

 

#LiebsterAward and #BloggerRecognitionAward

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I recently hit over 100 followers on this blog, so I figured it would be the perfect time to do these awards. These awards are the second and third blogger awards that I was nominated for, and I decided that I would combine them into one post.  I also really appreciate being nominated for these awards, and I’m really grateful for all of my followers.

Liebster Award

I was nominated by Cara over at Periods and Semicolons for this award. If you haven’t checked out her blog, I suggest that you do.

The Rules:

Acknowledge the blog that nominated you and display the award. 

Answer the 11 questions that the blog gives you. 

Give 11 random facts about yourself

Nominate 5-11 blogs that you think are deserving of the award that have less than 200 followers. 

Let the blogs know you have nominated them. 

Give them 11 questions to answer. 

11 random facts about me:

1.) I’m lactose intolerant, which is completely different than a dairy allergy. I can have some dairy, like Greek yoghurt and some cheeses.

2.) Baseball is my favorite sport to watch, the Red Sox are my favorite team.

3.) I know how to splice rope, I’m not very good at it, but I know how to do it.

4.) I’m 4’11

5.) I did gymnastics for eight years, competed for six and a half.

6.) I’ve never left the United States

7.) I’m a Gryffindor

8.) I still watch Disney

9.) I have another blog

10.) I can’t drink coffee

11.) I still fit into kids clothes, I’m 28

Cara’s Questions:

What is your favorite color? 

Yellow or pink

Say one memorable quote from a book that you love: 

“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four Privet Drive, were proud to say they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.”

What is your favorite dessert? 

Currently it is Ben and Jerry’s dairy free chocolate fudge brownie ice cream

Do you have a favorite children’s book or fairy tale?

I have too many to pick just one.

If an author gave the chance to change the fate of a book character, who would you choose?

Sirius Black

What time do you usually sleep?

I fall asleep anywhere between 9 and 11 and wake up at 7 on weekdays, weekends are different. 

What is the best thing that’s ever happened to you?

I’ve had a lot of awesome things happen to me. 

When you were a child, how did you answer the question “what do you want to be when you grow up?”

An Olympic gymnast

Name three countries you want to visit:

Greece, England and Portugal

Where do you usually buy books?

Barnes and Noble or Google Play Books

Who is your all-time favorite fictional character?

Harry Potter

My questions for the nominees:

1.) Who is your least favorite Harry Potter character and why?

2.) If you could go to any fictional school, where would you go and why?

3.) What is your favorite non bookish thing to do on vacation?

4.) What time of day is your favorite to read?

5.) Coffee or tea?

6.) If you weren’t a book blogger, what would you be blogging about?

7.) Do you keep a reading journal?

8.) How often do you use Goodreads?

9.) What is the best blogging advice you have ever received?

10.) What is your favorite season?

11.) If you could change the ending of any book, what book would you choose, and how would you change the ending?

I nominate:

Jamie Wu at Watch Game Read

Ara at The Bookish Agenda

Morgan at Happily Ever Bookish

Esther at Chapter Adventure

Bubbly Bookish Girls

Yana at Books for Infinity 

Jenn at A Tad Bit Bookish 

 

Blogger Recognition Award

Thank you Louise from Genie Reads for nominating me, I highly suggest checking out her blog.

Rules:

Write a post showing the award

Give a brief story of how your blog started

Give two advice to new bloggers

Thank whoever nominated you and provide a link to their blog

Select 15 other blogs you want to give the award too

How this blog started:

I have actually had this blog for a while, since June 20, 2012 (yes, I actually went back to find my first post).  I started my blog as a place to post my random thoughts on a variety of things. Since then, my blog has evolved into a more bookish blog, which I’m quite happy with. I feel that I still do post some random content here and there, but not as much as before. I really do enjoy the fact that my blog has more of a focus on content.

Advice to new bloggers:

My first piece of advice, your blog is yours and nobody else’s. You write for yourself and not for others. Not everyone is going to relate to the content that you post, just don’t get discouraged and take some advice from Dory, “just keep swimming, just keep swimming.” You just have to keep going, even if you feel like giving up.

My second piece of advice, you don’t have to follow every blog that follows you. While you might feel inclined to do this, it isn’t always the best idea. It is extremely important to follow blogs where the content is relevant to you or you really enjoy the content. You might feel guilty for not following blogs back, but you shouldn’t.

My third piece of advice, take breaks when you need them but still remain active.  While you may not be posting, you can still be active by reading and commenting on blogs that you follow. I took a two week break from both of my blogs, however I was still reading and commenting on the blogs that I follow.

My last piece and most important piece of advice: HAVE FUN!!!!

I nominate:

Lauren at Wonderless Reviews

Aoife at Pretty Purple Polka Dots

Giovanna at Book Coma

Vicki at Books and Strips

Heather Hobbs at Heather Hobbs A Book Blog

Liv at Curly Hair Bibliophile

Daisy at Daisy in the Willows

Angie at Thoughts of A Writer and Avid Reader

Leslie at Leslie’s Library

Shannon at Clockwork Bibliophile

Jess at Jess’s Reading Nook

Little Fantasy Land 

Layla at Baby Got Paperback

Diana at Night Train Books

Sean at Kingdom Book Blog

June Comment Challenge

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For the month of June, I am participating in a comment challenge.  The challenge was created by Alicia from A Kernel of Nonsense and Lonna at FLYLēF.  I was partnered with Mari from Story and Somnomancy to comment on 5-10 of each others’s blogs.  I think this is a great opportunity to comment more on the blogs of others.  I’m really looking forward to this challenge.

3 Days 3 Quotes

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Thank you Cara from Periods and Semicolons for tagging me to do this.

The rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated you.

2. Post a quote for 3 consecutive days (1 quote for each day).

3. Nominate three new bloggers each day.

Today’s quote is from Francona: The Red Sox Years by Terry Francona and Dan Shaughnessy (CHB)

“Sox fans were reeling from a Sports Illustrated item in which the estimable Tom Verducci wrote, “Manny Ramirez wants out of Boston.””

 

I tag:

Lauren from Wonderless Reviews

Carrie from Carrie’s Book Reviews

Giovanna from Book Coma

 

 

☀️Sunshine Blogger Award☀️

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The lovely Cara from Periods and Semicolons nominated me for the Sunshine Blogger Award and I don’t think I can thank her enough for nominating me for this.  This is my first blogger award so it’s exciting for me.

Rules:

– Thank the person who nominated you.
– Answer 11 questions set by the person who nominated you.
– Nominate 11 bloggers to receive the award and write them 11 new questions to answer.

Here are my questions and answers:

What is the meaning behind your name?
The meaning behind my name of Ashley is literally from “the ash tree clearing.”

If everyone had to pick a new name, what would yours be?
I don’t know what mine would be if I had to pick a new name. I really love my current name.

If you could read and reread only one book for the rest of your life, what book would it be?
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

If you were given 3 wishes, what would they be?
To have the library from “Beauty and the Beast,” to see Professor McGonagall perform the Piertotum Locomotor spell, to get rid of cancer forever.

If you were to receive an award that everyone would hear about, what award could it be?
A Pulitzer Prize for blogging.

If you could bring a fictional character to life for a whole day, who would you chose and how would you spend your day with him/her?
This one is tough because there are so many fictional characters that I could pick, however I am going to choose Luna Lovegood. I love Luna, she’s quirky and unique. I would spend the day showing her around my city, and what makes it unique. I would also ask her why her father believed so strongly in Harry when no one else did.

What would you do if you were invisible for a day?
I would go to the nearest airport, look at the departing flights, pick the one that most appeals to me, find out if it’s full and then sneak on the plane.

If you had to migrate to another country, where would you go?
Greece

What is the first book you remember reading?
Probably a Dr. Seuss book. I really honestly have no idea because I have read so many books.

If you had to be a lifeless object for a day, what would it be?

I would be a sailboat⛵️

If you had to write a book about your life, what would be its title?
Welcome To My Life

 

The 11 Questions:

1.)What is your favorite part about where you live?

2.)How do you find out about new books?

3.) Physical books or eBooks?

4.)Blogging or Booktubing?

5.) Harry Potter or Percy Jackson?

6.) How often do you use Goodreads?

7.) When did you start blogging?

8.) How did you discover your love of reading?

9.) Which fictional character would you summon if you were stranded on a stranded island and why?

10.) If you could take and switch fictional characters from one world (i.e. Narnia) and put them in another world (i.e. Middle Earth), which characters would you choose and why?

11.) What is your all time favorite book to movie adaptation?

The 11 I nominate:

Liam @ Panorama of the Mountains

Jenn @ A_Tad_Bit_Bookish

Lauren @ Wonderless Reviews

Angie @ Thoughts of a Writer and Avid Reader

Abbie @ Cafe Book Bean

Liv @ CurlyHairBibliophile

Alyssa @ Alyssa Is Reading

Kim Cooper @ Kimberly Cooper Blog

Leslie @ Leslie’s Library

Sean @ Kingdom Book Blog

Kirsty @ Bookworm1102

Blogging From A to Z April Challenge Wrap-Up

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I really enjoyed doing this challenge, and it really was a challenge.  The most challenging thing about this was figuring out what to write for each letter.  Some letters were easier, while others required some more thought. Another challenge was commenting on other posts.  I tried to comment on posts that I could easily relate to.  I decided not to do a theme for this challenge, I thought it would be more fun to just do posts on somewhat random things.

My favorite part of the challenge was finding new blogs to follow.  It’s always fun finding new blogs where you love the content and can relate to most of it.  I found a lot of blogs using the pinned Facebook posts where bloggers commented the links to blogs for the corresponding letter.  I felt that this was a really good way to find other blogs.  My other favorite thing about the challenge was creating mini conversations when commenting on other blogs.

My only wish, is that more people commented on my posts along with liking them.  I really appreciated getting likes on my posts, however it would have been more helpful if people commented what they liked about my posts.  I’m definitely considering doing this challenge again next year, it was something fun and different.