It's only Day 1 of Bloggiesta, and I have most definitely have NOT been participating in siesta. I've accomplished quite a lot today partially because I am woefully behind on reading a few books and need to get back to it (if you are curious, I am reading Middlemarch by George Eliot in an informal read-a-long at Literary Lollipop, and I'm also trying to finish up The Pacific by Hugh Ambrose--non-fiction always takes me longer to read).
Here are the things I've accomplished:
- Thought about the goals for my blog and have made a short-term and long-term list of goals. I have to admit that I am not super driven to chase down 1,000 followers, but my general goal would be to get people regularly reading and commenting on my blog (and not just memes--I like it when people read my reviews...hehe).
- I have added RSS subscription and e-mail subscription to my blog on the right hand side of my sidebar at the top as well as changed my Twitter icon to something a little bigger and hopefully more noticeable.
- Added Google Analytics to my blog
- I organized my bookshelf and can now find all the books I haven't actually read yet (It's a lot! Does anyone else have this problem?)
- I have asked someone to do a guest post on my blog and hopefully I'll hear back from her soon.
- I have come up with an idea for an International Book Blogger event that I am going to organize. If you are interested, please comment here and I will add you to my list.
- I only need two more followers to do my first giveaway (it will be books off my shelf and will be open to anyone in the world).
- I have found a few new book bloggers to follow (especially because I'm looking for bloggers outside the U.S. for the event). If you have a Twitter account, let me know. Recently, I've been finding it is much easier to read people's reviews if they post links on Twitter (and I like to comment on reviews!)
Still on my To Do List:
- Need to write a few backup posts for lazy days. I've come up with a few ideas, but if you have suggestions, please leave a comment!
- I still need to come up with a post that I can do on a regular basis...not a meme, but something that has the same theme from week to week.
Write the post about fixing my feed URL problem. Apparently other people using Blogger have encountered this problem and I can now tell the world how to fix it (thanks to someone else who posted it first of course)!Look into doing business cards. I am not sure I will get this done this weekend, but I would like to consider doing it.Look into doing a gravatar and a favicon
Mood Music
...AND, I can't leave out something for your listening pleasure! Here's a song I grew up hearing my family sing at just about every family party I went to:
Posts
15 comments:
Hi! Check out etsy for business cards. I've seen some very pretty ideas.
I will sign up for your RSS feed.
You've gotten a lot done for far. Good job.
Love the mood music! Fun!! You've gotten a lot accomplished so far. Great!
Wow, you are doing much better than I am but I'm distracted by the beautiful weather. I should only do these things when it rains. :)
I just bought Moo Cards and I love them. I posted them on my blog this week.
@Kristin - Oh Etsy! Why didn't I think of that! I am planning on trying to buy Christmas presents off of Etsy this year! I am following you on Twitter now too!
@Natasha - I am so excited that you love the music. Thanks for the shout out on Twitter! I never imagined Bloggiesta would be so fun. Posting music with my blog entries has been so much fun. Takes me back to my childhood! Thanks so much for running this!
@Chris - Oh...if I lived in a place with nice weather, I'd be outside too. It's just hot and muggy where I live so I'm getting my blog on! Oh, I just noticed that you live in the Maritimes...yes, I would be outside too. Enjoy! Nova Scotia--so beautiful and best people in the world! I'm going to go check out your Bloggiesta post and your Moo cards now. :)
Wow you've done a lot so far! I was thinking about getting business cards, but I'm not sure who I'd hand them out to, I feel a bit weird trying to get people I know in real life to read my blog. They'd be useful for sending with giveaways and stuff though.
P.S. I'd definitely be interested in an international book blogging event. :)
You've been busy! Wow. This week has been crazy at work so I am a little behind on my posts; i should put together a "to do" list like this so that I stay more focused.
fill me in on the international blogging event you're think of :)
my trick to keep track of which books i still need to read is to place the books i've already read vertically and the ones i still need to read horizontally
I love Middlemarch! I hope you're enjoying it. Have fun with the Bloggiesta!
Hi Cat! I'm copying the reply to you that I wrote on my blog concerning the intl blogger event you'd like to organize:
Earlier this month/end of May I’ve read a post from someone in Europe wanting to organize a book blogger convention (of sorts) on our continent — also open to non-Europeans :) — but lacking the skills to do so… Been wrecking my brain trying to remember who it was! Maybe something you could try to find out (google/twitter)? She was actually looking for someone to pick it up!
Good luck with day 2 of the bloggiesta!
Every reader I know has a substantial number of books in their home that they haven't gotten finished/started reading yet. That's why I don't buy books anymore, I couldn't stomach how much money I was putting into books that I wasn't reading and loving.
@Kat, @LiteraryLollipop - I've added you to my list. I'll write up a post this week about the event for international bloggers. It's going to involve having a book travel the world (hopefully)--I hope to make it a more personal thing so that people are exposed to bloggers outside the U.S. and we get to know you guys a little better!
@gnoegnoe - I think you are talking about IrisonBooks. I remember her posting something on her blog. I believe (and correct me if I'm wrong), but you, leeswammes, and IrisonBooks are all Dutch bloggers. Leeswammes also has something in the works for you guys. I've asked her to do a guest post on my blog to talk about her plans. I'd really like to get to know the bloggers from other countries!
@Carrie - That's a good idea! I'm sort of there with my bookshelves. I'm running out of space so I've had to start stacking them two deep (it made me weep a little on the inside--it's time to reduce my book collection). I dedicated a shelf (and a half) to my TBRs, but I may actually switch to your idea because it would give me more space in my shelf. Thanks for passing on your method!
@Shelley - I am enjoying it! It's pretty dense, but well written and a good story. I will say all the characters are pretty hapless so far (oh Casaubon...how I loathe him).
I thought the exact same thing when i cleared up my bookshelf! I think i have two full shelves of unread books and i keep buying more!
Always good to have some mood music! Especially after hours of sitting at the computer... need something peppy to keep you going! Good find. :)
@Wallace - Thanks! All the songs I'm posting are songs I grew up hearing (with the exception of Rodrigo y Gabriela. That's a recent find). I definitely need some music to keep me going. It's been a long computer day! Going to check out your blog right now!
@toothybooks - I have the same problem. I have finally banned myself from the bookstore. Even when I drive past one my blood pressure goes up with anticipation. I'm not a shopper, but books are really my only compulsive shopping habit (well, Bath and Body Works semi-annual sale too).
My readership has taken a nose dive since my blogging break and moving blogs, but one thing that used to work for me to get comment interaction for reviews is to pose a question at the end of the post. This works for any post, really. I found that people are more apt to comment if they have something specific to comment on.
Good luck with the rest of the tasks! And love the mood music! :)
Post a Comment