3.23.2010

some blog updates

A blog update post is long overdue! So I'll just go over some changes happening around this blog so you won't be going 1) whaaaaaaa? or 2) OH NOES! CHOCO HAS BEEN ABDUCTED BY ALIENS!

1) Instead of the cute beagle puppy I've utilized* for pretty much the entirety of my blogging career as my profile picture, I now have a variation of my header as my picture. Which you will see when I comment on your blogs :) I think I will compensate for this by posting completely random pics of puppies at opportune moments.

BAM!




2) I've been reading some lovely posts around the blogosphere, such as the one by Becky from The Bookette, which articulated a lot of things I'm feeling about blogging lately myself.

As you may have noticed, I've stopped doing In My Mailbox, and haven't done Waiting on Wednesday for quite some time. It's because when I participate in these memes, I feel obligated to post. For me, this obligation takes away from a lot of the individuality and spontaneity of blogging since posting the same thing every week gets a bit tedious. So I'm really seeking a departure from posting memes. This is just my own opinion on the matter and I hope those of you who do participate in memes are enjoying it! I think memes are great, they're just not for me. I'll still be doing Captivating Thursday though, since I'm not ready to give up scavenge-hunting for beauty and then concocting a post every week :)

3) You may have felt my absence commenting-wise lately, and I apologize for that. But once again I've been inspired by other bloggers' posts: the Book Owl, and The Bookette. I've decided that quality is better than quantity. From now on, I'll be leaving less comments but I hope that they will be longer and more insightful and at times make you feel warm and fuzzy inside. I don't tell bloggers I love their blogs often enough--I sort of take it for granted that I follow so many amazing blogs. So I hope the quality of my commenting will improve.

4) The inner child within me--OKAY, SO I'M HAVING A MID-TEEN CRISIS---is demanding that I return back to reading more middle grade fiction. So once I clear my backlog of YA reviews (which is enormous so this probably won't happen for a long time) I'm going to be reviewing lots more middle grade books. Because to be honest, I prefer middle grade** over YA and I think MG deserves more attention.

5) Holy wowzers about the response to my "why ya romance needs to change" post. I'm a bit baffled by what happened today, and currently hoping my thoughts will settle enough that I'll be able to write a (somewhat coherent) follow up post in a little bit.

6) I STILL haven't fulfilled my New Year Resolution to have an author over for an interview. I will overcome my interviewing fear and if I don't have an author interview posted up in the next month or so, you may hit me over the head with a chocolate bar. Or something. If any authors see this and are interested in an interview, please email me at chocowrites@gmail.com . I'd love to have you.

7) I am now affiliates*** with Jenn from Books at Midnight! It happened a while ago and like the forgetful person I am, it totally slipped my mind to post about it. But anyways, Jenn's blog is absolutely fantastic. Also, she's holding a 500 followers giveaway so go check that out. Now.




*Oh dear, that sounds so clinical..."utilized." He/she was a great avi while it lasted. *sobs a little*

**I was thinking about it, and BEFORE I started this blog, 90% of what I read was middle grade fiction. Now it's more like 100% YA. And I miss middle grade, I really do.

***Nope, I don't have a good definition of what an affiliate actually
is. I'm a bit confuzzled about it myself.

BAM!

13 comments:

brizmus said...

Yay for adorable puppies! I'm psyched that they will be appearing regularly.
Becky's post really was great, wasn't it? Gave me some food for thought. . .

Audrey (holes In My brain) said...

I totally get what you mean by feeling obliged to post about the memes, for some I just decided to do one every two weeks, etc.

Love the picture :)

I really enjoyed your ya romance post, but couldn't think of something to add to the argument that hasn't already been said. Im looking forward to a follow-up post though.

And I totally understand your fear of the *amazing* authors...I myself am scared of approaching them for an interview as well! I mean..they're *authors*!! Good luck with that! :D

Shweta said...

Now for a long comment. I read your YA post yesterday agree with you on many points but the comments were going on and on so I said to myself , if you don't have anything new to add , then just shhh... So I did. Will wait for your follow up post to comment:)

Yeah for the middle grade books. I love them too!

As for the author interviews , I am sure you will do it. :) Why the fear ? They may be AUTHORS but they are friendly and approachable most of the time.No harm in trying and you won't get over the fear unless you try :)
I don't want to break a chocolate bar on your head :)

Sandy said...

I'll be missing that cute beagle pic. But your new picture IS much more appropriate for your site. (unlike mine-wtf does Shakira have to do with pirate penguins? LOL.) Blogging should never feel like an obligation so you do what you must, Choco! I've been thinking about doing a post on that myself... but I need to get my reviews up first (Oh, don't worry! I won't call you out on the review-a-day thing. But you have my permission to call ME out on it because I'm always promising it on my site. I may need someone to kick me in the pants one day and I give you full permission. Just don't do it publicly T-T;;;) OH, can I have the honor of hitting you over the head if you don't interview an author? :D I promise you, IT'S NOT SCARY. It seems like it when you ask but 99.9999% of the time, the author will say yes! They love interviews and bloggers and they'll love you even more for asking! You're always delivering great content so I'm certain they'll be delighted to work with you<3. I also happen to be affiliates with Jenn's blog and yup, it's fantastic. You two both impress me, actually :)

Oh, and what is it with us starting/ending posts with cute animal pictures? xDDD

bookaholic said...

Thanks for the updates.
Don't worry...neither do I ever keep up to my resolutions! ;)

Allie said...

You can post puppy pictures any time you want!
I am working on small improvements as well, especially when it comes to commenting. I really want to weed out the list of blogs I am following. It started to get to quantity, not quality, and that needs to change.

Shannon O'Donnell said...

Thanks for updating us. I love your new avatar, and I prefer MG books too. I look forward to your reviews. I'm relieved that you won't be changing Thursdays. :-)

Carrie at In the Hammock Blog said...

Great update!! Puppy pictures rock, keep them coming :) I enjoy MG books too, they are so insightful in ways that adult and YA books just can't achieve.

Tere Kirkland said...

LOL, puppy pirate makes me laugh!

I'm reading Percy Jackson right now. Does that count as MG or YA?

Katy said...

I've stepped back from most memes too recently--mainly because I was really busy at work--but I'm kind of liking the independence that comes from not being tied to a specific post on a specific day.

LOL I love the peg-leg puppy pic--it made me snort. ;-D

The Book Owl said...

Blog updates posts are such a great idea... Thanks for linking to my post. :] I'm glad it encouraged you. The pirate puppy made me smile -soooo cute!

Unknown said...

Hey, Choco! I am just getting back into my blogging flow. It is both cool and weird to go to another blog and see a refernce to my post. I feel rather embarrassed. I never expected it to get so much attention and I guess it just shows that although blogging can be great fun, it can also be incredibly exhausting and trying at times. It feels good to know there are other people couping with the same worries, stresses and frustrations as me.

I'm thinking doing less memes might make me a more interesting blogger because I actually have to think more about what I post.

I wish to do a toast *to freedom* and all the great blogging joy that will bring.

Lauren said...

Aaargh! I've just made my mind up that I'm going to get a kitten, and then that top photo makes me want a puppy instead. Because: *so* cute.

I know what you mean about memes. I only participate in two, IMM and Waiting on Wednesday, but I don't always post for the latter. I think memes are great if you enjoy posting them, but if you're not feeling the love for them it's definitely good to take a break.

Also: I'm finding myself wanting to read more middle-grade too. What's that about? Comfort reading maybe? Plus the lack of melodramatic romance in middle grade means the rest of the story takes centre stage, which I like sometimes. Looking forward to seeing these reviews!

Post a Comment