Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is Ways in Which My Blogging/Review Style Has Changed Over Time (submitted by Susan @ Bloggin’ ’bout Books)
It's hard to believe but my blog is 20 years old later this year. It is fair to say that things have changed a lot over the years. Here are some things that have changed, and some that haven't changed.
Ten things that have changed!
- I started my blog back when online forums were still a thing. They are still around now, but nowhere near as popular. In fact, my first ever book review on my blog points to a historical fiction forum. I also met quite a few people in the Oprah's book club forum, some of whom went on to start blogs. A couple of those are still around, but not many. There are so many great bloggers who are no longer around :-(
- I used to read only paper books. I got my first e-reader in 2010 (it was a red Sony Touch). Even though I loved it, I didn't read that much on it. I got a Kindle maybe 5 years ago and now I read probably 80-90% of my books on it.
- For a while there I tried to review every book I read, but that contributed to a bit of blogger burnout for a while because I always felt behind and pressure to catch up. My goals for this year are to review anything I commit to as part of a blog tour, anything by Aussie authors and any historical fiction I review. Anything more than that is a bonus!
- I have flirted with different formats for reviews over the years. Some with the synopsis included. Some without, some times with links to other reviews of the same book.
- I used to use Google Reader and I still miss it even though it was discontinued back in 2013. I used to try and visit every blog in there and leave comments in order to build relationships. I have a different one now but I don't often look at it. Now I try to visit people who are participating in the things I am participating in, like Top Ten Tuesday for example. I do find that the blogging community is different than it used to be, and I feel on the edge of things a bit now.
- I am so old that there was no such thing no such thing as Bookstagram or Tik Tok when I started. Oh, and the internet was dial up!
- I used to use the library a lot more than I do now. The library system I was part of allowed you to have 60 books checked out at a time, and up to 20 books on request, and I was constantly juggling return dates and renewals. I have gone back to the library a little bit over the last few months but I can't see myself ever getting back to that level of borrowing. Way too stressful, especially when you add in other commitments. I even hosted a weekly event called Library Loot for a number of years! That event is still going, hosted at The Captive Reader and Real Life Reading.
- My blog template has changed several time over the years. I mostly love this one, although it does have a couple of issues I would love to be able to fix. One day.
- These days I host Weekend Cooking where you can share any kind of foodie post with other food and book lovers. Book reviews, movie reviews, recipes, you name it! There's not as many people participating in it anymore, but I always have more ideas for Weekend Cooking than I have Saturdays to post them on, so I will continue with it for a while. I also host the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge here.
- Sometimes I look back on my blog and find posts that make me so proud of what I have posted in the past. Other times, there were so many rubbish posts that make me think what I was I thinking. These days I pretty much have a set routine of posts. Monday is my This Week post, Tuesday is Top Ten Tuesday, Saturday is Weekend Cooking, Sunday is one of several posts, and then if I fill in the gaps with reviews I do, and if I don't, I don't!
Two things that haven't changed
- I still wonder about how to create engagement and think I should be better at this blogging thing by now!
- I still love books, talking about books, and blogging.
I will be very interested to see other people's posts on this topic!
I wish I could figure out the engagement issue, too. I am fairly sure every book blogger wishes more people would interact with them, but then they in return don't turn around and interact with others. It is mind boggling to me. // I didn't blog on the prompt today because I have finally decided my blog is mine and for me and sometimes I want to write about things that are special to me. Today it is my MOM.
ReplyDeleteYes, I find that too, which is why I at least make an effort to visit people who are participating in the things I am doing too! Thank you for leaving a comment!
DeleteHonestly I have only been blogging since 2021 and the changed in social media with regards to engagement is really sad. I literally feel like I am posting to no one. I don't have time to properly look at anything anymore and some of my posts I question because you have to be seen to post. Here on my Blog is the best engagement and I love this Top Ten Tuesday meme!
ReplyDeleteI need to get back to the library. The library was redecorated in February and we haven't been back since. I have overloaded myself. I have a list of Netgalley and Blog Tours that cover June and one book in July.
I remember dial up internet. I used to do my homework on that!
Anyway, have a great week!
Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog
My post:
https://budgettalesblog.wordpress.com/2025/05/13/top-ten-tuesday-ways-in-which-my-blogging-review-style-has-changed-over-time/
Now I feel old! I was doing homework before the internet was even a thing! lol
DeleteI used to use my library weekly before blogging. Now the only books I get from the library are audiobooks, though I do have a list of books I want to borrow from there. If I could only have the time to read everything I want to read.
ReplyDeletePam @ Read! Bake! Create!
https://readbakecreate.com/the-ls-have-it-ten-titles-starting-with-l/
I miss online forums! There are far fewer of them these days.
ReplyDeleteI started blogging back in 2011, then quit for a long time and have recently come back. Like you, I feel like I should be better at the engagement thing. I also used to read exclusively on paper. I rejected the e-readers when they first came out--I didn't want to pay for ebooks because it didn't feel like I was getting as much value as when I bought a physical book. Now, I read almost everything on Kindle and, if I loved it, I'll sometimes buy the physical book for my library.
ReplyDeleteBlogging has come a long way over the years. I think your template is great. And 20 years is a quite a feat and a great run. I'm not sure what has changed most for me .... but like you -- I still like talking about books with others and having reviews for a reference ... so i guess I'll keep on going.
ReplyDeleteYou mention a lot of relatable things! The majority of my reads used to be physical but now 90% of my reads are ebooks! I also feel like blogging and social media has changed so much over the years and I've pretty much stopped trying to figure out how it all works and how to get more engagement because I don't think I ever will 😂 I'm glad that despite that, I still enjoy it enough to still want to keep doing it because the community really is great!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on 20 years! TikTok and Instagram didn't exist when I started my blog either. :)
ReplyDeleteYou have had a lot of changes, and that's good. I still use the library a lot, but like you, I don't have enormous amounts checked out at a time (we can have 100). When my kids were little and we all shared a card (and we homeschooled), we would easily have that amount out.
ReplyDeleteThe last two! Yes!
ReplyDeleteYou've been blogging for one year more than I have, so I totally remember how things were in the "old" days. So much has changed and, I agree, there are still old blogs/bloggers that I miss. Same with Google Reader. That's what I used to keep up with blogs. I don't have a feed reader anymore. What do you use??
ReplyDeleteHappy TTT!