Armchair BEA - Blogging About Blogging

Today is the last day of the Armchair BEA event, and I've really enjoyed being involved this year.  Today's topic is "Blogging About Blogging," and the gals have come up with several questions about the blogging process - so here goes ...

• How do you utilize social networking in relation to your blog? What may be the pros and cons of doing so?

I use Facebook, Twitter, BookBlogs, Goodreads, etc. with my blogging for many different reasons. One, to get word out about my reviews I've posted or special events I'm involved in; and Two, because i enjoy the social interaction.  It's not for everyone - I just happen to like it!

• Share some of your favorite blogging technical tips.

Blogging Techniques - hmmm...I sit down, I read the book and then I write what I think about it in a blog post.  I guess that's my technique. :)

• Create a "rule list" of things you should and shouldn't be doing on a book blog. 

Rule 1. Read lots of good books and if you love them, tell people about them.
Rule 2. See Rule 1.
Rule 3. HAVE FUN!!!! 

On the serious side, in my own personal opinion, I think that a book review blog should deal with books and book related items. I see a lot of product reviews on some blogs, and that's fine for them, but on my own - I try to limit the products to something book-ish.

• What are your tips for balance life and blogging?

See Rules 1, 2 and 3 above! 

• What genre do you blog about and why?

I read a wide variety of books - but my favorite genres are women's fiction, cozy mysteries, romances, memoirs, cookbooks, gardening books, and crafting books.   Why do I blog about these types of books?  See Rules 1, 2 and 3 above!

• How do you keep your blog fresh and interesting to your readers & yourself?

I like to change my background around quite a bit - to keep it looking fresh and interesting. I add what I think are interesting widgets on the sidebars, and I participate in fun events, like giveaway hops and book blog hops. I also have occasional giveaways.

• There are quite a few book blogging events out there. Which are your favorites and why? How do they affect your blog directly?

I participate in several weekly memes.  "It's Monday, What Are You Reading" by Sheila at Book Journey is a great one; I like Teaser Tuesday by MizB at Should Be Reading; Waiting On Wednesday by Jill at Breaking The Spine is a lot of fun and a source of great book ideas; and Jennifer at Crazy-for-Books' weekly blog hop is fantastic fun!

How do they affect my blog - well, it brings traffic by, but I've also made some great friends among the bloggers I've met through these memes.  Sometimes I neglect visiting and posting comments, but I do love to read the various blogs to see what others are up to!

So there you go, my "advice" on blogging, Armchair BEA-style.  I hope you've enjoyed this week of reflections and opinions - I know it's been fun on my end. 

Now go forth, find good books and read!!!  That's the reason we are all here - cause we love to READ!!!

Armchair BEA - Topic of the day: Nurturing blogging relationships

The one thing I have probably enjoy best about blogging about books is the interaction and relationships that I have encountered and built with fellow bloggers, authors, and publicists.

When I started book reviewing, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, there wasn't any real social media - Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter were a long way off, so communication was limited to book publicists from the major publishing houses.

But now days, with instant communications, the relationships between reviewer, publicists and authors can become as intimate as any of the parties want. 

I know there are a lot of people who say "oh, you can't be impartial if you become friends with an author!" Pffffttttt, I say!  Personally, I count among some of my dearest friends authors that I have reviewed, including Beth Hoffman, Rebecca Rasmussen, CurtissAnn Matlock, and Sarah Jio.

There have been publicists who have helped me along with way and have become friends, including Seale Ballenger and Pam Jaffee at Harper Collins, Nancy Berland of Nancy Berland Public Relations, Dorothy Thompson of Pump Up Your Book Promotion, and Crystal Patriarche of Book Sparks.

And as I noted yesterday, fellow book review bloggers are high on my list of favorite people - we give each other advice, help with blogging problems, give tips on new books coming out ... and just have a great time talking about our favorite subject - BOOKS!

In short, the whole purpose of book blogging, in my opinion, is to have fun and to share your love of reading and books!  So ENJOY!!!!!

Armchair BEA - Networking Armchair BEA style!

Today's Armchair BEA topic is your favorite book bloggers! (Since I didn't sign up in time for the interview portion!)

Wow, that's like choosing your favorite child - but here are a few that I absolutely adore, and I think you will too!

Sheila at BookJourney - http://bookjourney.wordpress.com/

Mary at Bookfan - http://bookfanmary.wordpress.com/

Lori at Dollycas's Thoughts - http://dollycas.blogspot.com/

Sweet Reagan at Miss Remmers' Reviews - http://www.missremmersreview.com/

Jennifer at Crazy-for-Books.com - http://www.crazy-for-books.com/

My Friend Amy - http://www.myfriendamysblog.com/

Jennifer at Rundpinne - http://www.rundpinne.com/

These are just a few of the many blogs I've encountered, and bloggers I have become acquainted with!  I hope you will check them out too!

With Arrmchair BEA I hope to meet many more!

Happy Reading, Ya'll!

Armchair BEA - The Best of 2011 - so far!

Today's topic for Armchair BEA is What are the best books of 2011 so far. 

Wow, what a hard one, at least for me!  There have been so many good books this year so far, and I know there are still tons to come.  But in the interest of playing along, here are some of the books that I have adored so far this year ...

And my absolute favorite this year, so far, is ...

Be sure to check out the Armchair BEA's website to see what other bloggers are saying their favorite reads are, plus some pretty terrific giveaways today!  http://www.armchairbea.com/

Happy Reading, Ya'll!

Armchair BEA - Welcome to my Blog!

Good morning! Welcome to my humble little blog here!

I'm thrilled to be participating in the 2011 Armchair BEA!  This is a special event for all the bloggers and readers who aren't able to travel to New York this week for the big Book Expo America, but want to participate in some of the fun and excitement of the week.  There will be a different topic every day that will be addressed by hundreds of bloggers, and promises to be a lot of fun!

Today's topic is "Who Are You And Why Do You Armchair BEA?"

I am Sharon Galligar Chance, and I have been a book review blogger for going on 3 years now. But I have been reviewing books for the past 15 years for my local newspaper, the Wichita Falls Times Record News, and for several print and online publications, including the Las Vegas Review Journal, Ventura County Star, and FreshFiction.com.

I am also a freelance entertainment journalist. I've written well over 2,000 articles covering everything from concert and movie reviews to museum openings to interviewing some of the top musicians performing today, including members of Bon Jovi and Guns and Roses.

But my true love lies in the world of books. A voracious reader from a young age, I began reviewing books at the urging of my sister-in-law, Sue Chance, who was a big fan of the Oprah Winfrey Book Club. What began as a simple fun attempt at sharing my views of books I enjoyed has developed into a work of passion, and I consider myself very lucky to be able to devote my life to reading, reviewing, and sharing my love of books.

A bit of trivia - I am a distant relative of the great Edgar Allan Poe on my parental grandmother's side of the family.

Why am I not at BEA?  Several reasons, the foremost being that I am still caring for my mother who fell and broke her hip this past winter. She is recovering nicely, but I just didn't feel comfortable about being gone that long from her right now.  But I plan to enjoy the Armchair BEA as much as possible, and one of these days I'll make it to the actual event in person!

So, take a look around. I'm glad you've stopped by!  Follow if you'd like - I am on Google Friends Connect, Networking Blogs, and Twitter (SharonChance). There's always something fun going on with giveaways, author interviews, and reviews!