Book Blogger Appreciation
Catherine Ryan Hyde
I think everybody knows that the book business is...how can I put this in fairly positive terms...unsteady, right now. And I think everybody knows that print newspapers are dying an agonizing death. I'm not sure anyone but an author would put the two together and nervously realize that print reviews are drying up just when authors need them the most.
So what do we do? How do we get the word out?
Enter book bloggers. Have I mentioned that I love book bloggers? They are the present and the future of book reviewing, the new wave. Publishers take them ever so seriously (I have never gotten anything but an enthusiastic "yes" when asking my publisher to send a review copy to even a small or new blog). Most have hundreds of followers. Some have thousands. They come to reviewing from a true love of books, as opposed to a longing for a career in criticism. (I compare this to some but not all print reviewers.) And there's another strong advantage. If a reader sees a print review he thinks others should read, all he can do is hand the paper to someone nearby. But a link to a blog review can be emailed, posted on Facebook, tweeted, retweeted...enthusiasm equals dissemination.
This lovely Sunday (actually it's raining, but I think that's lovely) I celebrate book bloggers.
In case you haven't noticed, the right-hand side of this page has a pretty good start on a list of blogs I feel deserve to be followed. Have I missed some good ones? Undoubtedly, but the list will keep growing. If you know of one you think should be included, please let me know.
To be a little more specific, I want to thank the book bloggers who have helped so far with Second Hand Heart: Chick Lit Reviews, She Reads Novels, The Worm Hole, Daisy Chain Book Reviews, Catherine, Caffeinated, Debs Riccio, Claire King, A Writer in Wheelchair, Ex Libris, Echoes of a Wayward Mind, Notes of Life, Laura Loves Reading, and The Naughty Book Kitties.
And the book bloggers who have helped so far with Jumpstart the World: BookPleasures.com, Book Chic Club, Queer YA, Becky's Book Reviews, Bonjour, Cass, Lost For Words, A Good Addiction, Read Sam, Read, The Library Lurker, and There's a Book
The Jumpstart the World blog tour is in progress, so I'll be adding to this list in a follow-up blog soon. Book Blogger Appreciation #2. I doubt I'll stop appreciating bloggers anytime soon, so more to follow.
If you're not a blogger, you can still post or tweet a link to a review you like, and I'll appreciate you just as much.
You might also want to check out my blog post on the vlog I did for MarlaMiller.com, in which I refer to book bloggers as "the new hand-sellers."