Today I celebrate the fourth anniversary of this blog. It has really been a wonderful four years, full of many changes on this blog. From the one-paragraph (gasp!) reviews to a complete overhaul to the overall appearance of my blog (darn copycats) I think this blog has come a long way.

Following are just a few of the milestones/events I’m particularly proud of:

• Remember the days of Jenn’s Bookshelf? The first “brand” I had was loved by so many that other bloggers decided to take on the same look. It was then I decided to not only change the overall look of my blog, but move to a self-hosted one as well. It was quite the leap, but the best decision I’ve ever made.

• Murder, Monsters & Mayhem-2012 will be the third year I’ve hosted an event celebrating my favorite genres: horror & thriller!

• IndieThursday! After I was lucky enough to finally have an indie bookstore open up in my area (One More Page Books), I decided to start a movement to help celebrate independent bookstores!

As with every milestone, I like to look back and reflect upon what I’ve learned. Before I knew it, I’d created a list of sorts. A list of things I wish I knew as a newbie blogger.  A majority of the “dont’s” I mention I fell prey to myself, so I really do speak from experience.

Now, just warning you. This list won’t tell you how to get more followers, or how to improve increase the number of hits to your blog, or how to get more ARCS from publishers. Instead, this list will give you a perspective on blogging only gained from experience. Originally, this list wasn’t one that I intended to share, but ultimately thought that some new blogger out there might benefit. So…without further ado:

Things I Wish I Knew As A New Blogger

1. Quality is more important than Quantity

This not only refers to the number of reviews you post, but also the number of followers you have.

No one is going to read content if is simply regurgitated information, copied mainly from promo material from the publisher. Create your own summary, unique content. Take a chance and review something you actually want to review, not something that you feel you have to review. You don’t have to be the one that reviews the book that EVERYONE is talking about. Instead, find the diamond in the rough, the truly outstanding book that no one is talking about.

Additionally, you don’t need to post every.single.day. Some of us do it, yes, because we have content every day of the week. But posting just to have a new post up won’t grow your followers, it might actually push them away. When readers get overwhelmed by content, they shut down, stop reading a blog as a whole. Instead, if you feel the need to post every day, mix it up a bit. Break up review posts with discussion posts, feature posts, etc.

Regarding follower counts-yes, large numbers always makes a blog seem impressive. But if those followers aren’t connecting with the blogger, not commenting, etc., how effective are those numbers?

2. Blog for Yourself

For the first year and a half of blogging, I was drowning in all the review copies I would receive. I’m talking 15-20 books a week, mostly unsolicited. Then, I thought I had to review each and every book sent to me, respond positively to every pitch email. When I hit a wall, when blogging became more of a chore than something I look forward to, I stopped. I didn’t read or blog for several days. It was time to take a look at where I was as a blogger and realize I had to take my blog back, make it mine.

Now: I still get a large quantity of books for review. That said, all of the books I review are books that I would have picked up on my own had I found them in a bookstore, books that I am genuinely interested in reading. Only a small portion of the books I receive now are unsolicited.

Additionally, I created an entire theme month tied around a genre I love: horror. It gives me an outlet, an opportunity to write about the books I adore. Granted, this may not be a topic matter of interest to many of my readers, but it of interest and important to me. Actually, I discovered a whole host of new individual thanks to this feature!

3. Create a relationship with the publishers you work with

This doesn’t mean you should be at the beck and call of the big publishing houses. Still blog as you like, about what you like. However, when you create a relationship with the publicists pitching books to you, you learn more about one another. You discover the types of books the publicist pitches, their goals in promoting the book. He/she learns what sort of books you do/do not review, so when you start getting pitches, they are more tailored toward the focus of your blog.

Once this has been accomplished, when it’s time to attend BEA you won’t need to stalk the publisher booths at BEA, waiting for them to set out that ARC you’ve been dying to review. You’ll either a. Have that ARC already or b. Can request the ARC be shipped to you.

Sort of going on a tangent here, but BEA is a great way for you to meet the publicists you’ve been corresponding with for months.  Set up a meeting with your contacts, hear about the books they are excited about, discover books you are interested in, and create a plan, a goal for your blog. End tangent.

4. Giveaways Shouldn’t Be Your Main Source of Attracting Followers

I’m not saying you shouldn’t do any giveaways, but don’t sign up for every giveaway offered to you by a publisher. A good gauge: if you have more giveaways on your blog than actual book content, you are doing far too many giveaways. More importantly, don’t offer a giveaway if you haven’t read the book. You should only promote a book you’ve read, otherwise you are blindly leading your followers to become interested in a book you know nothing about (other than what you can read on the back of the book) Also, my biggest pet peeve: do not force readers to follow you/subscribe to your blog in order to be entered. Or require they do some sort of action (i.e. tweet or blog about the contest) in order to qualify.  Hate it.

5. You are not obligated to review every book you receive

It’s true! Even if you accept a pitch for a book, you are not obligated to review that book. Yup, I said it. You do not have a contract with a publisher, you are not a paid employee.

6. Find a Blogging Buddy/Mentor

Other bloggers, especially those who have been around for a while, are a wealth of information. They can provide you with advice on issues that come up while blogging or even serve as a proofreader for a post you’re worried about. Lucky for me, a whole group of bloggers started around the same time as I, so we had a natural bond that we shared, allowing us to be the perfect blogging mentors for one another

7. What Happens on the Internet Stays on the Internet

Be careful what you post, be it on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Be prepared to stand behind your believes and argue your opinion. While posts and comments can be deleted, first impressions and memories cannot.

8. Don’t Burn Bridges

The nature of online communication oftentimes breeds miscommunication. We cannot see the face or hear the inflection of the person “talking” to us. Therefore, feelings can be hurt quite easily. Nurture relationships, don’t damage them. It’s okay to say you are wrong (when in fact you are wrong.) It is okay to seek forgiveness, it ultimately makes you a stronger person.

9. Be Unique

If you like the idea another blogger has come up with, don’t copy it. In this case, it is not a form of flattery. Contact that individual, request their permission to do your own spin-off of their idea. Most importantly: attribute the idea to the individual who came up with the idea.

10. Have Fun!

This is the most important thing to remember about blogging, for no one wants to read posts from a blogger who is miserable. Stay clear of the drama (there is a lot of it) and instead spend time sharing your love of books.

So, there you have it! Are there any “lessons learned” that you have? Things you wish you knew when you started blogging?