On a Book Bender

Amanda Reviews: The Small Army Strategy by Srinivas Rao

Amanda @ On a Book Bender — Wed, 22 May 2013 05:00:27 +0000

Forget numbers. Forget popularity. Get armies.

The Small Army Strategy by Srinivas Rao

Genre: Non-fiction
Format: ebook
Read: 4/17/2013
Srinivas Rao – Website | Twitter
The Small Army Strategy on Goodreads

Synopsis

We’ve entered a fierce battle for attention. You won’t be the next Tim Ferriss, Seth Godin or Chris Brogan. The world doesn’t need more copycats. It needs you to be you. The only way you’ve got a shot at winning this war for attention is to give all yours to the few that matter. The most important people in the world are the ones who show up for you. Take such good care of them that they have no choice, but to recruit a small army. That’s what this is about. It’s about building an army, no matter how small that will show up and fight with you every single day to win whatever battles your fighting. You could be battling the demons of depression, career catastrophes, or the loss of love. This is about about building an army that will help you fight those battles and much more.

This book isn’t about how to get more traffic or increase the number of subscribers to your blog. Those things are potential byproducts , but not the goal. The goal is to treasure and nurture the attention you already have.
-from Goodreads

My Thoughts

The Small Army Strategy is a book that I picked up because it was April’s book for my business book club. At $2.99, it was easy to pick up. It reads like one long discussion post, so it’s easy to read, too. Though it’s geared toward business people who are bloggers, the main point is easily applicable to any blogger.

The Small Army Strategy’s main point is quite simple. It’s quality, not quantity, that you want. In the business world, your email list is gold. (In the book blogging world, most people seem to regard their follower count similarly.) What’s important to your email list (or follower count) is not your numbers, but your ENGAGEMENT.

What’s the point of having 1,000 followers if there are only five people interacting with you on your blog?

What’s the point of having 10,000 subscribers to your email list when your open rate is only 10%?

You want engagement.

When someone subscribes to your email list, Srinivas Rao says, respond to them directly. If you’ve subscribed to a newsletter before, you might know that many people have autoresponders set up to send you a welcome message. Srinivas Rao takes this one step further and takes the time to personally send an email.

Establish a connection.

Ask people, “How can I help you?” Take the time to follow through. Your best advertisement is word of mouth–not any ad you place or link you share. Trust me. If someone else shares a link to my post, I generally get more hits from that link than if I were to share the post. When someone vouches for you like that, it’s a built in testimonial or recommendation.

Srinivas Rao didn’t necessarily tell me anything I didn’t already know (though I will be using the respond to email list subscribers directly from now on), but it reinforced the beliefs that were already starting to form about interacting with your followers.

If you’re interested in building a stronger fan base, The Small Army Strategy will help you develop a good belief foundation to move you in the right direction. It’s short and sweet. Plus, it may even help you to shed that desire to compete with the big bloggers.

(Be you. Connect with your followers. That’s what counts.)

Top Off Tuesday [102]

Amanda @ On a Book Bender — Tue, 21 May 2013 05:01:29 +0000

It’s that time again — Tuesday! — which means I attempt to brighten your day with half-naked men. Read on at your own risk. Top Off Tuesdays was started by Felicia, Christi and me. It is where we (and you!) share the book covers that make us swoon. Head over to Felicia’s blog to share your Top Off Tuesday link or to see what everyone has posted.

Muscles, tattoos, and armpits. What more does a lady need from a man?

Pirate’s Woman by Paige Tyler
To honor the debt her family owes Slayter Cardona, beautiful Teyla Dunai agrees to let him sell her as a sex slave in the markets of Arkhon. Determined to bring as much value as she can on the auction block, but inexperienced where men are concerned, she asks the handsome pirate if he’ll teach her how to pleasure a man. Intrigued, and more than a little attracted to the lavender-eyed beauty, Slayter agrees. As he initiates her into the world of bondage, spanking and out-of-this-galaxy sex, though, both Teyla and Slayter find themselves falling for each other.

But Slayter has a responsibility to his crew, and Teyla knows it is her duty to pay off her family’s debt. With the deal already agreed upon, there doesn’t seem to be any way for their story to have a happy ending. Until Teyla is kidnapped…and they reach the slave auction house…and Slayter has to find a way to reclaim his own “sex slave”.

Scarlet Tear by B.J. McCall
Captain Wytt Sann is given the mission of a lifetime. Impersonating the notorious pirate Kirxx, Wytt must participate in a zap tournament sponsored by the pirate king. Wytt’s objective is to play the bloody game, beat the competition and win the prizes—a beautiful Glacidian woman and the coveted scarlet tear gem.

Ceyla is offered as a prize in a tournament and embroiled in the pirate king’s vengeful scheme to steal back the gem. Refusing to spend the rest of her life as a prize, Ceyla plots her escape.

Ceyla is drawn to the handsome pirate who fights like a warrior and fires her Glacidian blood. Seducing Kirxx is the key to winning her freedom, but will she lose it all in the process? His true identity could tear this lusty couple apart.
-from Goodreads

Kelly Reviews: Operation: Endgame by Christi Snow

Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal — Mon, 20 May 2013 05:00:37 +0000

Danger, heartache, and hot sex! RAWR!

Operation: Endgame (When the Mission Ends #1) by Christi Snow
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Christi Snow – Website | Twitter | Facebook
Amazon – Paperback | Kindle
Add it to Goodreads

Synopsis

It’s been six months.

Six months since Jake Madsen let Chris Robertson die.

Six months since the passion between Jake and Cassie, Chris’ sister, stepped over the line.

But now Cassie’s being stalked and it’s time for Jake to swallow his guilt, grief, and lust so he can save her life, even if it’s a life without him. He owes it to his dead friend and he owes it to Cassie. He’s fallen in love with her, but she doesn’t have to know that for him to keep her safe.

My Thoughts

What is it about big, strong military men who try to do the right thing but the right thing isn’t really the right thing and when they eventually see the light things come together in a glorious explosion of heaving body parts and danger?

*blisses out on the thought* Man, does it work!

Jake-y boy definitely *thinks* he knows what the right path is for him and Cassie. Good thing Cassie’s stalker forces his hand and puts the two of them back in revolution around one another. Because those two have sparks and to deny that would be a crime. For shame, Jake. For shame.

After round 1 of Jake and Cassie Get Sweaty and Jake bails on her, Cassie shores up her defenses and does the strong woman routine. Which means that she tries to get on with her life while not telling anyone about the stalker she has. Which is… so wrong, Cassie. What good are friends if they can’t help you when someone’s leaving you creepy gifts? Once things escalate, she does come clean but it takes a lot to reach that point. Jake’s reappearance in her life throws her for a loop. In a good way.

This is, coincidentally, when round 2 of Jake and Cassie Get Sweaty begins. *high five*

Nicely naughty with enough danger to keep me on edge and the theme of family and the bonds of friendship running throughout, this book left me happy. The Robertson siblings have a lot going for them and a lot still to get through. I am intrigued.

Blog | Twitter | Goodreads

Clock Rewinders on a Book Binge [103]

Amanda @ On a Book Bender — Sun, 19 May 2013 05:01:54 +0000

Clock Rewinders on a Book Binge is where Tara @ 25 Hour Books and I shamelessly plug each other, share the fantastic posts, giveaways, or whatever else we’ve found and loved by other awesome bloggers (or authors!) during the week, and talk about the books we plan on reading in the coming week.

On a Book Bender Recap

Amanda Reviews: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (8) — Intrigue lasts long after book closes.
Top Off Tuesday — Wherein the penisk was born. (Thanks, Jenny!)
Jenna Reviews: Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsen (6) — Dystopian war in the Australian bush
Discussion: Recommend Your Favorite Audiobook(s) — Loving all the recommendations on this!
FNBLT: Amanda Reviews Foundlings by Diana Peterfreund

Meanwhile, in Amanda’s World

Holy wow. We had a final tally of 507 people join us for the Bout of Books read-a-thon. That completely trashed our previous record of 245. I am seriously impressed and I’m happy to say that I think Bout of Books 7.0 was a smashing success. On the back end, Kelly and I are feeling good too. We organized, we established systems, and we’ve kept everything under control. All of this is good.

I’ve been working hard on my new business website. I’m really loving what I’m doing. I’ve also made some changes that I think will benefit everyone involved… but more on that later.

Around the Book Blogging Community

Celine (Nyx Book Reviews) shares five tips to help us schedule posts.
A picture of Maureen Johnson and her cat…because MAUREEN JOHNSON AND HER CAT.
Jennifer Lane talks about how editing has made her crazy. And I completely relate!

Search Terms

book bender meaning — It means I go on benders. That involve reading.

do thea harrison’s series need to be read in order — Her Elder Races series is better when read in order.

why blog — Why not?

why have a discussion blog — Because discussion posts ROCK.

picking a place to eat — As my boyfriend will attest, I am incapable of doing this.

what to read after scorpio races — I don’t know. More Maggie Stiefvater books?

Goodreads Stats

Read in 2013 (42)

Foundlings by Diana Peterfreund (9)
- This was just…fabulous!
NightDrake by Lara Adrian (6)

Currently Reading (2)

Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg
- Really loving this so far.
Bad Behavior by Jennifer Lane

If you want…then you should read…

If you want PNR with sexy werewolves and vampires, read Bound by Blood by Cynthia Eden {Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal}

Discussion: Recommend Your Favorite Audiobook(s)

Amanda @ On a Book Bender — Fri, 17 May 2013 05:00:49 +0000

This post was inspired by a Twitter conversation (thank you, Sharon aka @starsaloft) about getting audiobook recommendations for my boyfriend’s brother, who started a job that required him to spend more time in his car. Being the true Shofbrarian that I am, I suggested audiobooks and started him on the Iron Druid Chronicles by Kevin Hearne (narrated by Luke Daniels) because he’d already started the series.

Also, it’s a FANTASTIC series on audio.

But then he finished those.

And because I’m not commuting anymore (thank goodness), I stopped listening to audiobooks (boo).

So I asked Jess @ Gone with the Words for audiobook recommendations, because she (along with Felicia) is one of the first people I turn to when it comes to audiobooks.

Between Jess and an addition of my own, this is the list I came up with for him:

The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
American Gods by Neil Gaiman (full cast edition)
The Curse Workers series by Holly Black
Legend by Marie Lu
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
The Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa
The Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer

But that’s not where this post ends. The list above provides me with a good starting point for even MORE DISCUSSION ABOUT AUDIOBOOKS.

Now I want to know about YOU. What are your favorite audiobooks? Are they on this list already? Are they missing from the list?

TELL ME EVERYTHING.

Jenna Reviews: Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsen

Jenna — Wed, 15 May 2013 05:00:36 +0000

Dystopian war in the Australian bush

Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsden (The Tomorrow Series, #1)

Genre: Young Adult, Post-Apocalyptic/Dystopian
Format: Trade Paperback on loan from the library
Read: April 7-12, 2013
John Marsden — Website
Tomorrow, When the War Began on Goodreads

Book Order

1. Tomorrow, When the War Began
2. The Dead of Night
3. The Third Day, The Frost
4. Darkness, Be My Friend
5. Burning for Revenge
6. The Night is for Hunting
7. The Other Side of Dawn

Synopsis

When Ellie and her friends return from a camping trip in the Australian bush, they find things hideously wrong — their families are gone. Gradually they begin to comprehend that their country has been invaded and everyone in their town has been taken prisoner. As the reality of the situation hits them, they must make a decision — run and hide, give themselves up and be with their families, or fight back.

from Goodreads

My Thoughts

Tomorrow, When the War Began starts out as a journal. The narrator/journal’s author is Ellie. She’s been elected by her group of friends to be the one who writes down what has happened to them so far so that, should anything happen to them, the world will know their story. And the story begins with a camping trip or, what the Aussies call “going bush.”

Ellie and her friend Corrie decide that they are going to organize a group hike with their friends through the bush and into a place dubbed Hell: “a cauldron of boulders and trees and blackberries and feral dogs and wombats and undergrowth.” It’s the Christmas holidays and they want to skip the Commemoration Day show (something, from what I can gather, is akin to a county fair here in the States) in favor of this outing. Ellie and Corrie enlist their friends Robyn, Fi, Kevin, Lee, and Homer. They pack up a Land Rover with supplies and set off.

Now, these kids have some amazing foreshadowing powers because, while they’re away, they talk about how the Commemoration Day show would be the perfect time for an invasion or a war to begin. Think about it, they postulate. Everyone’s left their farms and ranches and gone to the Show Grounds where they are all together. Which is exactly what happens. When they return home, they find Ellie’s dogs dead and the house abandoned. Same holds true for the others’ houses and pets. And then the adventure begins.

The story carries on as the group of friends organize and pull off reconnaissance missions, gather more supplies, fight off roving groups of invading soldiers, blow up bridges, and, of course, fall in love with one another. There’s a lot of geographical description that, personally, I found distracting; but, I never was good at that spacial thinking and forming a topographical map of the story in my brain as I read. And there’s a hell of a lot of luck that is on these kids’ side!

It’s an okay book; I didn’t dislike it, but I’m just not sure that I liked it enough to commit to the full series. In fact, I’m not even sure I’m curious enough to even pick up the second book.

Top Off Tuesday [101]

Amanda @ On a Book Bender — Tue, 14 May 2013 05:01:28 +0000

“What fine eggs you have there. Let me whip them for you.”

The Marquis de Bond blogs about cooking and kinky sex. While it may be easy to blog about sensual domination, applying it in real life has challenges. Recipes for love don’t follow plans. New ingredients show up unannounced, other ingredients turn stubborn and refuse to be what they are.

Sarai’s free-spirited submission drives Bond crazy but captures his heart. Sarai doubts the survivability of a relationship forged in fantasy. To prove her wrong, Bond invites the one man capable of stealing her away to join their sex play.

Now all three will discover if two dominant men are a recipe for love…or war.
-from Goodreads

Amanda Reviews: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Amanda @ On a Book Bender — Mon, 13 May 2013 05:00:01 +0000

Intrigue lasts long after book closes.

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Genre: YA, Fantasy
Format: ARC
Read: 4/7/2013 — 4/10/2013
Maggie Stiefvater – Website | Twitter | Facebook
The Scorpio Races on Goodreads

Synopsis

It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.

At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.

Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.
-from Goodreads

My Thoughts

Though The Scorpio Races was not my first introduction to Maggie Stiefvater, it is, perhaps, the first book of hers that I fully latched onto. Her stories are lyrical and deeply intriguing, forcing you slow down and savor rather than rushing through—even though you must know what happens.

I am fascinated by this world where the Scorpio Races happen and capall uisce are feared monsters. Nothing is a given—not for Puck and not for Sean. The two of them are driven to enter into the Scorpio Races, each for their own reasons and each desperately fighting for survival in a world set against them.

Thisby is not a place one can survive in. If you’re not lost to the bloodthirsty horses, you’re escaping to the mainland. Staying isn’t for the faint of heart; you must love the challenge of a world set against you as much as you love the island. But against all odds (literally, in Puck’s case), both Puck and Sean attempt to make a go at it, drawn to each other by their similarities.

The Scorpio Races leaves me oddly unsettled even now, after finishing. But it’s the kind of the unsettle that stays with you, bringing the story back in your memory again and again, enticing you with its lyrical quality and haunting world. I want more.

Amanda’s note: I wrote this review while on a plane to SF. A week later, as I work on formatting this post, everything that intrigued me about The Scorpio Races is coming back to the forefront. I want to stick my fingers back into this world.

Clock Rewinders on a Book Binge [102]

Amanda @ On a Book Bender — Sun, 12 May 2013 05:01:53 +0000

On a Book Bender Recap

Jenna Reviews: Above All Things by Tanis Rideout (10) — Haunting story of love and obsession
Top Off Tuesday — Everyone wanted to be grabbed.
Kelly Reviews: Remnants of Magic by S.A. Archer & S. Ravynheart (9) — An intriguing end to season 1!
Discussion: I know my why…now what? (Plus a checklist of blogging items you need!)
FBNLT–Amanda and Kelly review: Bigfoot Fucks Sisters

Meanwhile, in Amanda’s World

Hello, my pretties. I am deep in Bout of Books planning and BUSINESS THINGS. Last week, I told everyone that I have super secret news. This week, I shall tell you what that news is: I’m changing my business name.

And it’s pretty darn awesome.

On Tuesday, I’m revealing the name and logo to my newsletter subscribers. If you’re not signed up to receive my emails, you’ll have to wait until I officially launch everything, which won’t be until the end of this month.

PS. I also give writing tips and grammar tricks to my newsletter subscribers. You won’t find those tips and tricks anywhere else–not even on my business blog. And if you’ve ever wanted the inside scoop to what I’m doing business-wise, my newsletter is the only place to get it.

Around the Book Blogging Community

COMING ON FRIDAY! Stacey from Hit the Mic Marketing is offering a FREE webinar about the when, where, and how of social media. If you want up your social media game, you DON’T want to miss this.
Our very own Christi Snow reveals her next writing project.
The Bloggess gives us rules for life. As always, she’s brilliant.
Maureen Johnson does a coverflip and talks about gendered book covers.
Veronica Rossi explains her writing process. Very cool insight about how difficult it can be to be a writer and write books.
Felicia (Geeky Blogger’s Book Blog) explains a bit about the new FTC rules and how they may affect book bloggers.

Search Terms

too many options — I love how many times “too many options” or “too many choices” pops up in my search terms. I AM NOT ALONE.

im erotica — You’re erotica?

sexy scottish highlanders — The McCabe trilogy, anyone?

why blog? — Why not?

essay for why i should read divergent — I feel like if you need an essay to convince you to read a book, you probably shouldn’t.

what happens in through the ever night book — THINGS.

karina halle is on facebook — Yes, she is.

Goodreads Stats

Read in 2013 (40)

Game by Barry Lyga (9)
- LOVE.
Winterblaze by Kristen Callihan (7)
- LOVE THIS SERIES.

Pending (72)

Wicked in Your Arms by Sophie Jordan

Discussion: I Know My Why…Now What?

Amanda @ On a Book Bender — Fri, 10 May 2013 05:00:04 +0000

Blogging is HARD. If you’ve ever searched for a road map only to come up empty handed, you’re not alone. (Re)Discovering the Basics chronicles one blogger’s (Gaby’s!) journey to finding her own way in the online world. Together, we’ll open the discussion on how we blog and what both new and established bloggers can learn from each other.

Amanda’s note: Today Gaby will give you items to include on your blog. For your convenience, I’ve made a pdf file that you can download of these items–and why they’re important. If you’d like to read the reasoning behind this discussion series, you can check out my interview with Gaby.

Last time we discussed WHY people blog. Now that you’ve got your reasons, let’s talk about all of the things you might want to consider when creating a blog (book or otherwise).

First and foremost, you have to pick a blogging platform. A LOT of people have written posts about Blogger vs. WordPress. I also know people use wix. Some bloggers just use Tumblr. There’s also the question of self-hosting. And guys? There’s no one right answer. Different things work for different people, but you should definitely do some research, ask around and decide what best suits you.

Once you’ve picked a platform, you need a blog name. The most important thing to remember is: BE UNIQUE. There are SO MANY blogs out there these days, so when you sit down to make your blog, consider your blog title carefully. Make sure it’s something that will stick in your reader’s mind – whether it’s catchy, it rhymes or it’s just really cute and clever. Then make sure no one’s already taken it. This may require lots of googling, but it’s worth it.

Also, most importantly: make sure your blog title is something you can live with. This blog is your baby and for branding (and other) reasons you shouldn’t change the name a ton of times. In my case, there was already a book blog called “Gabby Reads” and even though that’s not how I spell Gabby (G-A-B-Y, for the record), it doesn’t really matter. So I looked deep into my inner quirkiness and found Queen Ella Bee Reads, which is really a private joke I turned into royalty and a blog title. Do I feel silly sometimes? YOU BET. But I own it (I think?).

So you’ve got a unique blog title. The next step is to try and create a similarly unique design. Blogger and WordPress have a lot of preset designs and a lot of them are GREAT but they’re PRESETS. You don’t have to have a ton of design know how to mix it up a little. You can download new fonts from dafont, look for a more personalized background on Subtle Patterns and Google around for different images you can alter on PicMonkey. I also downloaded GIMP (it’s FREE!), but that’s a little more advanced. Truth? I didn’t really know what I was doing when I cobbled together my blog’s look, but these approaches really worked for me. I really did do a lot of Googling, so be prepared for that.

With that all said and done, it’s time to consider what features/widgets you want to have on your blog. What do I mean when I say features/widgets? I’m talking about your menu bar (which might include About Me and Policy pages), social media icons, different ways people can follow your blog (email, Bloglovin, etc)… All of those little bits and bobs that make getting around your blog easier. You can look around Amanda’s blog or even hop on over to my blog to see what I’m talking about, but here’s a short list of things I think are important.

A Menu/Navigation Bar

Blogger calls this “Pages”. It lets you create multiple static pages on your blog such as an About Me, a Policies Page and so much more. About Me and Policy Pages are great because they let your readers know who you are, what you’re doing and what the rules of your blog are. Furthermore, a lot of book bloggers I know (including myself) find a Review Archive really handy when it comes to finding past reviews.

Blog Archive

Similar to a Review Archive, a Blog Archive will list everything you’ve written on your blog in a handy drop-down menu. This is really great if you haven’t been blogging very long, but it gets a little cluttered the longer you’ve been blogging. Either way, it definitely cuts down on the scrolling!

Social Media Icons

These make it easy to put links to all of the other places on the web your readers can find you. You can Google for free ones or even go on Etsy and buy custom ones. Either way, you can link up to your Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube and about a dozen other places you might want to be found.

Search Bar

Want to find something on any given blog? Easy. Plug in a search term and VOILA!

Blog Following Options

GFC is on its way out, but there’s still about a million other ways to alert your readers about new blog posts. This is to help your readers but also to help YOU maintain readership.

Contact Info

Personally, I just have a social media icon that will open an email with my address in it. I know some people don’t like this because it can lead to spam. Either way, you should have some way your readers can contact you if they need to, whether with the aforementioned social media icon or with a built in contact form that doesn’t give away your email address.

Blog Roll

If a reader loves you lots, they might want to know who your friends are, so help them out!

These are just some things I find useful on my blog, but don’t just take MY word for it. I’ve asked 3 of my blogger friends to let me know what they think the most useful feature on their blog is, both for themselves AND for their readers!

Cassie @ Books with Cass

for ME – I need my review archive! It allows me to see everything I’ve reviewed and I can get a general sense of what I want to read more of – and even less of from that one page.

for MY READERS – I think the following/connect widget is most important. It allows people to find you everywhere.

Alexa @ Alexa Loves Books

for ME – It’s my review archive. I consider it important because it helps me when I’m writing reviews for books in a series (since I link up to old reviews), first of all. Apart from that, I generally get an idea of which authors I like to read (based on how many books I’ve read from them).

for MY READERS – It’s most likely the social media icons. I think it makes it easier for them to contact me through various means — and I hope they actually use it!

for AUTHORS/PUBLISHERS – Review policy, hands down. That way they know what they can expect from me.

Rachel @ Rachel Reads

for MY READERS – I think review archive is most important for readers

for ME – Social widgets are most valuable for me because it’s an easy way for me to let all the places I’m available be known.

There are no RULES to blogging, so if you don’t have one or more of these things happening on your blog, DON’T WORRY. But if you spent this post nodding or shaking your head at any of this, be sure to let me know your thinking in the comments below!