2016 Winter Mini-Bloggiesta Wrap-Up

Winter 2016 Mini-Bloggiesta was held this past weekend, so it is time to take a look at how I did towards my goals.

Here is the Bloggiesta ‘bucket list’ I worked from, along with comments on my progress.

• Back up blog!!!

I backed up the blog and template. I am working on manually backing up any pages I would be heartbroken to lose!

• Set up 2016 Reading spreadsheet

I have the spreadsheet set up, but I need to tweak some formulas. I’m not good at that part. If it doesn’t get done, there is nothing there that I really need. The tweaking process is more a ‘I want to figure this out’ thing that can wait.

• Finish posting 2016 reading goals

This is finished, however I just realized I want to create a page for a long-term goal I have to read a biography about each US President. This will take decades!

• Write and schedule at least 2 reviews

This is done...kind of. I have one completely done and ready to publish next week, The other I will finish after the book is discussed by my book club this weekend. There may be slight revisions, but they could be posted now if necessary.

• Write and schedule at least 2 additional blog posts

I didn’t get this one done. I have a few posts started but nothing finished and scheduled.

• Update review page to link all reviews and revise Title listing

Completed!!

• Cross post reviews to Goodreads and Library Thing

This will take quite some time as I am so far behind. I did get 3-4 reviews cross-posted but still have another 20-25 to do. The most important thing I accomplished towards this is that I created a spreadsheet with check boxes to I can see what I need to accomplish!

• Link reviews to Pinterest

Completed!!

• Start February Reading Map post

This would be ready to go if today were the end of the month, but I’m sure I will revise it once or twice as I complete the book I am reading now and begin another.

• Create one On My Radar post

Completed and posted!

• Bookmark at least two mini-challenges to complete before the next Bloggiesta

I found two that I took a quick look at and want to look at more closely later this month.

• Clean Up Your Email from Aloi at Guiltless Reading
• Planning Your Posts from Katie at Doing Dewey

• Begin removing hot-links from blog posts

This is going to be a long, s-l-o-w process, but at least I have begun. I’m just going to have to take my time and work my way backwards, month by month. One thing I did spend some time on is learning how to organize my Picasaweb photos into folders so that I can insert images into my blog posts!

• Continue with book inventory

This is another one that will take quite some time. I have books….books everywhere! I finished inventorying the books on shelves in my bedroom. I still have a family room full of book shelves (and books)! And then I can start on the boxes….boxes under beds….boxes in the basement...boxes of books everywhere! But I did make pretty good progres this weekend and I knew there was no way I could complete it in just a few days, so I feel pretty good about this one.

That’s it! I think I had a pretty successful Bloggiesta this time. How did you do? You can report your progress and check on how others did here. Be sure to block out time to participate in the week-long Bloggiesta coming up soon; March 21-27!

2016 Winter Mini-Bloggiesta

There is a mini-Bloggiesta coming up this weekend and it is just in time! I have so much to catch up on to get my blog in shape for 2016 — enough that I can’t possibly get it all done this weekend! But at least I will have a list and can work on it as I have time. As this is a holiday weekend for many, there is an unofficial ‘extra’ day to accomplish things, so that should help!

Here is my Bloggiesta ‘bucket list’!

• Back up blog!!!
• Set up 2016 Reading spreadsheet
• Finish posting 2016 reading goals
• Write and schedule at least 2 reviews
• Write and schedule at least 2 additional blog posts
• Update review page to link all reviews and revise Title listing
• Cross post reviews to Goodreads and Library Thing
• Link reviews to Pinterest
• Start February Reading Map post
• Create one On My Radar post
• Bookmark at least two mini-challenges to complete before the next Bloggiesta
• Begin removing hot-links from blog posts
• Continue with book inventory

Do you have things you need to catch up on? Bloggiesta is a great way to do it. Check out the Winter 2016 Mini-Bloggiesta post here.

Fall 2015 Bloggiesta Wrap-up

Fall Bloggiesta was this past weekend and it is time to check-in. I had a lot on my list, and didn’t quite finish — it IS still baseball season and the Cardinals ARE still in a pennant race, after all — but I do feel like I accomplished a lot. At least I’m not feeling so overwhelmed and instead feel like I may be able to get my blogging back on track!

Here is the Bloggiesta ‘bucket list’ I worked from! (See my initial post here.)

• Back up blog!!!
• Write and schedule at least 3 reviews
• Update review page to link all reviews
• Cross post reviews to Goodreads and Library Thing
• Link reviews to Pinterest
• Update my Reading spreadsheet
• Start October Reading Map post
• Schedule one On My Radar post
• Create at least one non-review post come up with topics for at least two more

And here is what I accomplished.

1. √ Blog back-up - DONE!

2.   Write and schedule at least 3 interviews - partially done
1. I have written 3 reviews but so far only scheduled one on my blog. I should be able to figure out dates and schedule the others by the end of the week. The reviews written are for:
1. Liar, Temptress, Solidier, Spy
2. Sisters of Shiloh
3. The Lives Between Us

3. √ Update review page to link all reviews – DONE!

4. Cross post reviews to Goodreads and Library Thing - partially done
1. I was much further behind than I realized. I had NO IDEA that I haven’t done this since April! I got about a half dozen reviews cross-posted and will work on the others. But I do feel I made good progress, because I now have a checklist of all my reviews posted in 2015 so that I can go down the list and check-them off as I cross-post!

5. √ Link reviews to Pinterest - DONE!

6. √ Update my Reading spreadsheet - DONE!
7. √ Start October Reading Map post - DONE!
1. I have a list of books to narrow down and plug in and then I can post. There is still a week to go this month and I’m not sure how much of my list I will whittle down before the end of the month.

8. √ Schedule on Reading Map post - DONE!
1. okay, I haven’t actually scheduled it yet, but it is written and ready to post, so it counts, right?

9. Create at least one non-review post come up with topics for at least two more
1. I haven’t actually written a post yet, but I do have a list of about a half dozen topics to write about, so I can’t quite mark this ‘done’ but it is definitely a good start!

There’s my weekend. How did you do? Did you accomplish all that you set out to do this weekend? You can check out how other Fall 2015 Bloggiesta participants fared here.

Fall 2015 Bloggiesta

Fall Bloggiesta is quickly approaching and it can come none too soon! I have been neglecting my blog this year and I have SOOO much to catch up on. Lucky for me, this is an extended Bloggiesta, beginning Thursday, September 17 and running through Sunday, September 20. I have so much to do, I will probably try to get an early start on it. Here is a list of some of the things I hope to accomplish.

Here is my Bloggiesta ‘bucket list’!

• Back up blog!!!
• Write and schedule at least 3 reviews
• Update review page to link all reviews
• Cross post reviews to Goodreads and Library Thing
• Link reviews to Pinterest
• Update my Reading spreadsheet
• Start October Reading Map post
• Schedule one On My Radar post
• Create at least one non-review post come up with topics for at least two more

That’s a good start. If I get a little extra time, I’ll work on some more reviews, and maybe look through the challenges. I'll also catch up on some of my reading. Do you have things you need to catch up on? Bloggiesta is a great way to do it. Check out the Fall 2015 Bloggiesta post here.

Winter 2015 Mini Bloggiesta Wrap-Up

Well, Winter Bloggiesta 2015 has come and gone and I feel pretty good about what I accomplished. Here is my list and what I did.

Here is my Bloggiesta ‘bucket list’!

• Back up blog!!!
• Backed up blog and imported into Wordpress using instructions from The Book Vixen. Apparently it just adds new posts to what was there from the last back-up. I DO need to back up the individual pages though. I didn’t realize that didn’t get included!
• Write and schedule at least 3 reviews
• Wrote 3-½ reviews! I still need to post them to the blog but the dates are on my calendar and they are ready to go!
• Update review page to link all reviews
• all reviews are linked to my index pages
• Cross post reviews to Goodreads and Library Thing
• my goal was only to catch up on all reviews posted since the last Bloggiesta. I still have some work to do to cross-post ‘old’ reviews, and truthfully, may never get to this!
• Link reviews to Pinterest
• DONE!
• Schedule WoW posts through through February
• completed and scheduled on blog
• Schedule Tuesday Memes posts through February
• completed and scheduled on blog
• Start February Reading Map post
• just need to make minor adjustments, depending on how much reading I do in the next 10 day!
• Create one On My Radar post
• created and posted!
• Bookmark at least two mini-challenges to complete before the next Bloggiesta
• I actually did much more with this than I expected! I did bookmark two that I want to work with later:
• Making Infographics Using Piktochart from Valeria at A Touch of Book Madness (@ TouchBookMadnes)
• Five Easy Steps to an Index Page from Jessica at The Bluestocking Society (@thebluestocking) (This is going to come in handy!)
• But I also actually worked with three more!
• Master List of Book Blogging Memes from Tanya Patrice at GirlXOXO (@tanyapatricexo) — I read through this one and it has some good ideas. I won’t necessarily participate in these regularly, but there are some GREAT ideas for future blog posts there!
• Another Pinterest Project from Suey at It’s All About Books (@SueySays) — I already have a board where I pin my reviews, so I didn’t exactly use her guidelines, but I DID create two NEW Pinterest boards; one for pinning my Tuesday Memes and the other for Waiting on Wednesday!
• How to Write More Creative Book Reviews from Leah at Books Speak Volumes (@Leah_BSV) — the timing on this one was great because it actually addressed the last item on my To Do list!
• Make a list of non-review post topics
• I bookmarked the More Creative Book Review minichallenge I mentioned just above and used it to generate a list of ideas for future posts….stay tuned!

I feel like I had a pretty successful Bloggiesta! How about you? Did you participate. Be sure to link up your wrap-up post here!

Winter 2015 Mini Bloggiesta

The holidays are over and most of us are working to get back into a routine. For me at least, that also includes my blogging. I really have let it slide since Halloween! So I am really excited that Winter Bloggiesta is right around the corner! It is a great time to play catch-up with my blogging. Below is a list of things I’d like to accomplish by the end of the weekend. However, I have a lot of non-blogging activities planned, so I know that is not realistic. Instead I will aim to get through at least the first five items and plan on accomplishing the others over the next two weeks.

Here is my Bloggiesta ‘bucket list’!

• Back up blog!!!
• Write and schedule at least 3 reviews
• Update review page to link all reviews
• Cross post reviews to Goodreads and Library Thing
• Link reviews to Pinterest
• Schedule WoW posts through through February
• Schedule Tuesday Memes posts through February
• Start February Reading Map post
• Create one On My Radar post
• Bookmark at least two mini-challenges to complete before the next Bloggiesta
• Make a list of non-review post topics

Do you have things you need to catch up on? Bloggiesta is a great way to do it. Check out the Winter 2015 Bloggiesta post here.

Fall Bloggiesta 2014 Wrap Up

Last weekend I participated in Fall Bloggiesta 2014. I crossed things off my list as I went in the original post, but I want to go into more detail about what I accomplished. I’ll do that here in my wrap-up post.

This is my original ‘To-Do’ listt

• Write and schedule at least 3 reviews
• Update review page to link all reviews
• Cross post reviews to Goodreads and Library Thing
• Link reviews to Pinterest
• Schedule WoW posts through October
• Schedule Tuesday Memes posts through October
• Start October Reading Map post
• Participate in at least two mini-challenges

As you can see in the original post, I’ve crossed everything off my list. Here are the details

Write and schedule at least 3 reviews

I wrote and scheduled 3 reviews for

I Shall Be Near To You

The Explanation For Everything (coming Sep 26)

American Blonde (coming Oct 2)

Update review page to link all reviews

This was pretty easy. I just linked up the 6 reviews I’ve posted in the past few weeks

Cross post reviews to Goodreads and Library Thing

I crossed this one off my list because I DID get the 6 reviews cross-posted. What I did not realize is that there are ‘gaps’ and I have many more reviews to cross-post. I created a spreadsheet with all my reviews listed and am in the process of checking off when I post to a site. Eventually I will catch up!

Link reviews to Pinterest

Done!

Schedule WoW posts through October

Done!

Schedule Tuesday Memes posts through October

Done!

Start October Reading Map post

I did start my post. With over a week to go before I post it, I could not really finalize it because I expect to get at least another couple of books read between now and the end of the month!

Participate in at least two mini-challenges

I got this one done. I actually finished 2 and bookmarked another to work on later. Here is what I did:

• How To Properly Write a Negative Review by April @ The Steadfast Reader. I was actually inspired to write an entire post about negative reviews AND April referenced it!
• How To Use Riffle as a Blogger by Katie @ Doing Dewey. I think I’m going to be using Riffle a lot. Take a look. I think you will like it. And if you join, be sure to follow me, and let me know so I can follow back!

I took a look at a couple of others;

• Make a Book Map with Google Maps by Aloi @ Guiltless Reading. I didn’t have time to work on this over the weekend. It will take a while to set up. But what a fun way to display what you’ve read! I really want to do this!
• How To Make Anchor Links by Allison @ The Book Wheel. I really don’t know what use I have for them at the moment, but I just KNOW the time is going to come when I wish I knew how to do that. So I saved the link into Evernote, all ready for me when I need it!

How about you? Did you participate in Bloggiesta last week? Did you accomplish all you set out to do?

Talk 2 Me: Negative Reviews

I am participating in Bloggiesta this weekend and one of the things on my list is to do two mini-challenges. This first one I am tackling is April’s challenge about the proper way to write a negative review. While the challenge is simply to leave a couple of thoughts in her comments section, I feel like an can fill an entire post with my thoughts! And here it is...

April also referenced a previous post she did on negative reviews. I link it here because I think it gives valuable background information. I completely agree with her about the importance of negative reviews. A blog that only gives happy, positive reviews isn’t really that interesting, or trustworthy, in my opinion. If I never see criticism or critique, I begin to wonder why. Does the blogger feel obligated to say nice things? Or maybe she isn’t reading the book closely enough to really have an opinion. I used to read a blog that only gave positive reviews, and while that probably made the authors happy, to be honest after awhile it got pretty boring. The reviews were a bit shallow, and didn’t entice me to read the books. I started skimming the reviews and eventually unsubscribed from the blog. So I value a negative review when it is thoughtful, honest, and well-written. April tackled the process of writing a GOOD negative review.

The first point April makes about writing a negative review is that we should never make it a personal attack on an author, and I agree. I try to remember that the author may well stumble across my blog, and I certainly don’t want to hurt her feelings. I can criticize the choices she makes in her storyline or writing style, but not her! I do feel like I have come close to the line a at least once. In my review of A Girl Named Zippy, while I didn’t specifically attack the author, the comment about the book being more interesting to the author than the audience, while meant about authors of memoirs in general, would probably be hurtful to this particular author if she were reading my review.

Another point April makes is that we need to maintain balance and find SOMETHING we like about the book. To expand on this, she suggests the ‘sandwich’ technique and points out the importance of being specific about what we didn’t like. Obviously this would help a reader know whether the book was for them, even if the reviewer did not like it. One of the most negative book reviews I ever did is for Girls In Trucks. While I was pretty specific about what I did not like about the book, I probably bashed it a little too hard. I managed to find something I liked (the cover)!, but I didn’t do too well with sandwiching idea. I’m sure if the author ever stumbled across that review, her feelings were hurt.

There are a couple of hints I want to add about writing negative reviews; things I try to do in my reviews that April didn’t specifically touch on. The first is that I try to refer readers to other reviews, particularly if my review is more negative than most. This usually consists of a simple statement near the end of the review pointing out that even though the book wasn’t for me, it is getting much higher ratings on Goodreads, along with a suggestion that they check out the reviews there.

The other thing that I think can help cushion the blow of a negative review is way you choose to word the criticism. Teachers are very good at this, so I will give a couple of examples from the teaching world. The first is this statement my child received on a report card in early elementary school; “demonstrates leadership potential”. Sounds positive, right? Well, I knew my child, and I knew what she really meant was that he had a tendency towards ‘bossiness’; heloved to direct other students and tell them what they were doing wrong and how they could do it better. But the way the teacher worded it sounded much nicer than “you have a bossy kid!” A couple of years later I got a comment telling me “does not like to lose”. I was mixed about this one, because it certainly sounds better than telling me he yelled and blamed others when he lost, but it probably would have been better to say something like “needs to learn to be a gracious loser”. Not liking to lose is actually a good thing. I mean, when is the last time your heard a coach say “I want you on my team because you like to lose!” My point is that in trying to be positive, she actually distorted her message. When we write a review, we need to be careful with our wording so that it TACTFULLY conveys what we mean.

Thank you to April for giving me a lot to think about with this mini-challenge! I will keep these thoughts in mind as I write reviews in the future!