In the spirit of making this blog more personal and engaging, I thought it’d be nice to write more discussion posts. Here the first one about the use of writing book reviews. So, I share with you why I decided to write book reviews. A bit of my story, if you will. I’d love to hear if you think book reviews are valuable, if you write and/or read them, or any other opinions you have on the matter.
Why I started writing reviews
The most obvious reason is, naturally, that I love to read. Ever since I knew how to read, I’ve been reading pretty much all the books I could get my hands on. But that’s not the initial reason I started doing reviews: you can enjoy reading books without writing reviews, right?
For a couple of years, I’ve been getting really serious about following my dream as a writer. I’ve been working hard on my two writing projects, and so I wanted to take things up a notch—make an author website.
So, that’s what I did. I build this website and put it online to put myself out there and build an email list of potential readers. But what to put on the blog, then? Of course, I can write about writing. Which I also do. I love to share whatever knowledge I have with others, even though I’m by no means a full expert; there’s always more to learn. But, writing about writing attracts an audience of other writers, which is neat, but not really what I wanted to accomplish. So, that’s when I decided to post book reviews, as this would bring an audience of fellow book lovers who enjoy reading the genre I write in.
I will say, while it started like that, the more I got into writing book reviews, and the ‘book blogging world,’ the more I enjoyed it and wanted to expand. I got hooked! And here are some reasons for that!
Talking about books
Not many of my friends enjoy the same kind of books that I do, so being able to discuss my favorite books on several platforms has been great! I thoroughly enjoy the discussions on bookstagram and Goodreads, and to read reviews by other book bloggers as well. The book community is just a lovely community, and I’ve been amazed at how kind people are here.
Helping authors
Sure, my blog isn’t yet that big, but it’s growing more each day. And with that comes more influence on suggesting books to read. I love the opportunity to help authors get the word out about their books, especially indie authors. There are so many great self-published books out there that hardly get the recognition they need, and I think by posting a review and getting it out in the world is a step in the right direction for these authors, no matter how small. Writing a book is a huge accomplishment, and I’d love for them to get the recognition they deserve.
Helping readers
With the many, many books out there, it can be tough to know what to read, or when certain books release. I like to read reviews myself to see if it’s a book I’d enjoy and if it’s worth spending my money. ‘Cause, let’s be honest: books are expensive! It sucks to buy a book and then end up disliking it. So, by writing my honest opinion in the reviews, I hope to help other readers to find the next book they’ll love.
And that’s why I write reviews
So that’s it. Those are the reasons I started and why I still write reviews. They’re not always the easiest posts to write, as they require careful thought and consideration. And not to mention the time it takes to read the book thoroughly before you even get to write the review. But, I do think the effort is worth it, even if just one person finds a great book or only one author sells more books because of the review.
How about you?
Do you write book reviews? Why do you write them? Or do you read reviews before you buy a book? I’d love to hear your opinion in the comments!
