Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books and Dani @ Literary Lion. This week’s topic was suggested by Rukky and is How Do You Create Bookish Content.
What’s your posting process?
My posting process is pretty simple. I utilize the draft and scheduling system of WordPress extensively, partly because I have a pretty bad memory sometimes and partly because I’m a Virgo moon and Thrive on Organization haha. I always title each draft so I know what it’s intended for and add my personal header for whichever type of post it is (review, book list, bookish talk, etc.) and add in my usual formatting if it applies such as the way I add a quote to the beginning of every review. I often will write notes to myself in the draft as well as a way to get my thoughts down. If it’s part of one of the weekly memes I participate in, I like to copy + paste the prompts for each week into the draft so I’m able to start working on them immediately when I have time. Nearly every post you see that appears on this blog was written weeks ago and then scheduled for the day that you see it, including my book reviews. For instance, I’m writing this post in the evening of April 24th when it doesn’t release until May 21st. This is also why I’m sometimes slower to respond to comments or appear active when I’m actually not. I get on WordPress a couple of times a week, depending on my schedule and mental health status, so some days I’m extremely active in liking and commenting on others’ posts and sometimes I’m a ghost for a few days at a time. And by “mental health status” I mean that I have a mood disorder which affects me certain parts of the month worse than others so I actively cater when I write my posts and reviews to my “good time” because I’m extremely unproductive during my low days and want to still be able to put out consistent content despite my health.
Do you write posts based on spontaneous ideas or do you follow a schedule of topics?
A mix of both I suppose. I have a draft saved with all of my brainstorming for posts for the blog so those are spontaneous. Eventually I’ll write each of these ideas and release them when it feels best for each topic or when I don’t have a book review ready so that’s sort of a schedule. I really treat my blog as a fun hobby and I don’t want to be too strict with myself and morph it into something stressful so I prefer to be a bit more casual at the moment.
How do you decide what and what not to post (maybe you feel like some things are too controversial or “out of date”)? Do you tailor your posts based on reader interaction/views, or do you just focus on what you want to talk about?
I’m not really afraid of controversy but I 100% fear that some ideas or book reviews would be considered too boring or “out of date.” I’m sure readers would prefer to read a review of a new release compared to something like Twilight which has been out for ages. So far I haven’t had to consider this yet since I’ve been reading newer releases and books for review but I’m likely to still post things that may be considered out of date in the future. Which brings me to that I tailor my posts based on what I want to talk about and what I like seeing on other blogs. Book reviews may not be as popular as some other things in the book world but I still want to share my thoughts on the books I read. I enjoy seeing posts from others on their most anticipated releases or on books in a genre they’re eager to read, so I make posts about that as well. At the end of the day, I’m running this blog because it makes me happy and I feel like I would end up squashing some of that happiness if I aimed all of my posts to please other people since we all have such differing opinions and I’d never be able to make every reader happy. So far I’m having a blast working on this blog and I hope it continues for a long time to come.
I’m so eager to read everyone else’s posts to see what their processes are like! Happy reading, everyone!
wings and fables 
I also love to schedule my posts ahead. I’m so much more at ease when everything is all planned out!
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Yes, definitely! I think it’s essential if you’re someone prone to anxiety or easily stressed out. Having consistent content already planned out is so helpful! 😊
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It was fun reading about your process, Wren! Oh and I fully support reading books that aren’t brand new releases, but maybe that’s just me 🤷🏼♀️
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Haha definitely not just you! I have so many older releases I still need to and want to read and I personally like reading reviews for those books too. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so quick to assume. 😂💕
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I found myself agreeing with and nodding along to your views on why and what you blog. The only difference is I’m neither organised nor terribly creative, so I tend to write a week or two in advance, at most. I rarely have “inspirational” ideas of things to write about, but am gaining confidence is borrowing ideas/topics I see elsewhere (with permission and giving credit to the originator) to share my own views. And that’s what I love about the book blogging world – the generosity of sharing ideas and inspiring others.
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I love that so much! I completely agree that one of the best parts of the book blogging community is being able to inspire and be inspired by others. And I have to say I love seeing the variety of posts that are in the blogging world. I love being able to read book reviews that are in the usual format as well as ones that are more just like “15 Thoughts I Had While Reading This Book.” It’s such a nice community go be a part of. 😊💕
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I LOVE how organized you are. I usually sit down and create a post the day before or the day that I publish it. You are weeks ahead of schedule! You rock! One day, I aspire to be like you lol 😁
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Thank you, Cheryl! 😭💕 I admire the bloggers who are more spontaneous because I feel like you’re more creative and free thinkers. Like it’s really cool you just let what you want come out and post it. I have to plan it first. 😂
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I’m always in awe of people like you who manage to schedule their posts in advance, because mine are always written at the very last minute 😂 I might save a draft or two with a post idea in the heading, but I think there have only been one or two times when I’ve written anything more than a week ahead of when I posted it…
And as to book reviews, I actually prefer when the books have been out for a while! I very rarely read reviews for books I haven’t read yet – I like to go into new books knowing as little as possible and love having more indepth conversations about books I have read in the comments. So if the book is older, there’s a much bigger chance I’ll have read it and check your review out 😉
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Haha thanks so much! I admire the spontaneous bloggers though since you guys are able to just write what you want and post it. It feels like you’re more creative and freer thinkers. I have to plan it all ahead. 😭😂 Ah I totally get where you’re coming from with older book reviews. I personally skim new release reviews if I haven’t read the book yet just to get a feel of what the person thought but I like reading in-depth reviews for books I’ve read before because I want to see if we have the same opinions or if they saw something in a different light than me. Maybe I spoke too soon with older releases! 😊💕
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Well, I’d actually argue that the last minute scrambling to get something on the page can also stifle creativity 🤣 But it is definitely nice being able to decide very spontaneously what I want to post!
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😂 I can definitely see that happening too! I would be that blogger that would have no idea what to write if I needed to post in just a hour. 😊
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omg i love scheduling my posts too, because it just takes a weight off my shoulders! procrastination is practically my middle name, and my time management skills suck, so i’m barely ready with my posts on time! hahaha, i envy you for being able to schedule your posts months in advance, you’re a role model for the rest of us! i love this post so much! 💖
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Thank you, Ahaana! 🥺💕 Being able to schedule posts is a lifesaver for me I feel. I love that I don’t have to worry about it and it feels like a weight off my shoulders like you said too. There is kind of a rush to finishing a post right before it needs to be up though. 😂💕
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so many valid points here! i feel like a lot of bloggers don’t review older books as it’s “out of date”, and won’t give the stats that a new release book could potentially give.
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Definitely! And I think sometimes we feel like everything that could be said has already been said by other reviewers for an older release compared to a new one. 😊
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It’s so interesting to hear about your process! I’m definitely a fan of reviews (despite their low-engagement reputation) as well, and of reading and reviewing a couple years out of date––only because it’s so thrilling to see a review of a book it seems like everyone has stopped talking about, and discover that its magic is alive and well.
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I completely agree with you on reading reviews for books that are older releases. I always like to read them when they appear on my feed and see if my thoughts and feelings are the same as the reviewer. I sometimes even get the urge to reread the book if this happens haha. I’m thinking maybe I was too hasty in my thought process about older releases after reading some comments. 😊💕
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