September 2010

In celebration of Book Blogger Appreciation Week we have a treat, an interview with fellow book blogger Aths at Reading on a Rainy Day.

Don’t you just love the image of curling up with a good book on a drizzly, gray rainy day?

How did you come up with the name of your blog?

Someone asked me this question recently, and I have to tell you that I honestly don’t remember entirely. I know that nothing humongous or memorable happened for me to choose this one, but I did consider a lot of names before arriving at this. I do remember though that at the time, I was in LA and it was *no surprise* raining! And I’ve always loved reading when it rained, in fact I would sit at the window and read. So, everything considered, I kept returning back to this name each time.

What do you find appealing about book blogging?

I LOVE book blogging. What I love about book blogging is that it is not a professional or paid medium to dish out opinions on books. Not that I have anything against professional reviewing, but book blogs are more personal and you can almost hear the voice of the person who authors the blog. I love the networking aspect of book blogging. We are one HUGE circle of bloggers, and every day, I come across some new blogger. I also love the fact that no matter where we are or how varied our lives and ages are, we all share one common interest about which we talk almost every day.

I love how your blog is organized. Do you have any tips about organization, or blogging in general?

Firstly, I am terribly OCD about organization. I spent and still spend a lot of time on my layout and ways to enhance the look of my blog.

As for organization, I like to keep it simple – just enough items to keep a visitor engaged and not get lost. I don’t like adding widgets that stick out. I strongly believe that your blog should be all about content. And anything added to the sidebars or headers should not distract a reader. At the same time, they shouldn’t be too obscure that readers have to search for what they want. The basics are review list, archive, follower/subscribe widgets and a search button. Anything else should be kept to a minimum.

Do you ever feel like there is a sea of book bloggers and it is hard to define a niche?

I do feel that there is a sea of book bloggers but to me that’s a good thing. We are also beginning to be taken much more seriously and many a time, we are categorized along with Media.

What are your three favorite books and why?

Hmm, this is hard! But I’ll go with the entire Harry Potter series (seriously, I can’t pick one or even three), the Lord of the Rings series (hehe, I sure seem to be cheating here) and The Help by Kathryn Stockett.

Since I’m interested in children’s books, I just have to ask:  What children’s books do you remember reading? Any favorites? Do you still own any favorites?

I don’t much remember the books I read during those years, but I do remember reading and re-reading the fairy tales like Snow White, Cinderella (which girl didn’t grow up reading those?), etc. Later, I read a lot of Nancy Drew books. I don’t know when I started reading them, but I did devour those books like crazy. I still have those fairy tale books and Nancy Drew mysteries, but they are at my parents’ home.

You just defended a thesis, got a new job, and moved. How do you keep a blogging schedule when life creeps up on you?

I’ve struggled with my schedule a lot during the last couple of months. I’m so much a routine person, that an upset to that can make me struggle. I took a two-week off of blogging when I knew that I needed a break to recoup. I write one post each night. (I wish I could write all my posts by the weekend, but that never happens.) And now I’ve learned to let go – if I find one day to be too busy, I don’t worry about my blogging. I just let it go. And relax.

If I may ask, why did you sign up to be interviewed?

Like you, I love the idea of knowing a fellow blogger, a little “intimately”. The interview can also be an excuse to start a conversation with someone, something like a pen-pal. Besides this is BBAW week! What better time that this to celebrate book blogging and reinforce that book blogging is not just blabbering about books but knitting even closer our whole community!

There you have it, raindrops of wisdom and experience from Aths at Reading on a Rainy Day. Be sure to go visit her blog and take a look at some of the interesting books she reads. And, while you are at it, check out other interviews at Book Blogger Appreciation Week.

Aths, thank you for making this interview so much fun. I appreciate the tips about blogging you gave me.