This question has been running in my head for a long time now. As I post and consume bookish content, I have a lot of thoughts. But this is the one that stands out the most, along with related questions.
Are book reviews enough for book blogs? What do people like to see? What posts work better in the long run? What content helps form more relationships?
I've been wanting to write on this topic for several months. Also, everyone talks about reviews getting less traction compared to other posts, but few talk about why. I want to talk about that as well.
So grab a drink and sit down with me for a bit to discuss this.
disclaimer
I've been reviewing and blogging for well over five years now. While I've never had a pure book blog (I never stuck to a niche), my content has always been majorly bookish. And my blog is categorized as a book blog by most people.*
Hence, please don't come at me like "you're not a pure book blogger so you can't discuss this properly". I agree that I may not be the best person to talk about every facet of book blogging, but this post is just me sharing my opinions. It is based on what I think when I post and what I look for when I visit other book blogs. If you'd like to, feel free to write a post on this with your thoughts.
This is in no way a guide or a reference. This is just a chill post where I say things and provide the comment section so that we can have a discussion.
*I actually go through a crisis every month where I feel like an impostor and question this blog entirely, whether I need to stick to bookish content, if I'm even worthy of being in book blogger spaces, etc. but that discussion is for another day.
from a blogger's perspective
Honestly, I question this because of stats.
While I'm generally okay with my statistics and try not to give them too much attention, I definitely look at them and find patterns. I'm a nerd, okay? One of my favourite monthly activities is to look at my blog's statistics and make a report. I write down all the numbers along with my thoughts on what helped and what didn't.
I started questioning book reviews two to three years back when I noticed (on my old blog) that my book reviews got way less traction compared to other posts*. I was considering stopping posting book reviews entirely. Also, I love comments and talking to people over mutual interests. Reviews were not encouraging much discussion.
I paused reviews for a month or so and was focusing on other posts when I realized that my old book reviews were getting tiny bits of traction consistently. It was not a high number to be noticed enough when compared to my other content, but it was consistent. Over the months, they grew due to search engines and ended up being my most popular posts one year after I posted them. Book reviews are evergreen content.
BUT. Though they received more views, they still had very less comments. And while I look at views, I consider comments as engagement. Book reviews still fell short on that.
So, what should we focus on? For a book blog to "do well", what do you look at more? Long-term growth and view count or higher short-term engagement?
*If you're a new blogger and you don't know this, book reviews are known to receive less attention compared to other posts. I got a bunch of comments on an older post where I mentioned this from new bloggers saying they didn't know this and worried about their content. Well, here you go. It's not just you.
from a reader's perspective
I will be very honest with y'all here: I don't read many book review posts.
I try. I promise you, I do. But a lot of the time, I just don't want to read book reviews. I'd rather read discussion posts on the books, book rec lists, or ANYTHING else. The only times that I read all book reviews by a blogger is if I really like their reviewing style.
Book reviews are just not as appealing and interesting to me. They are not chatty and don't feel like a conversation with the blogger. There are very few people whose reviews I like.
On the other hand, I absolutely love other types of content and will read them all. Reading blogs after work or in the morning is a relaxing activity for me. Other blog posts where the blogger chats (which is almost all other types of posts) are what I want.
Another reason that I don't read book reviews is that I don't want to get spoiled or influenced before I read the books. I'm influenced quite easily. The hype and general opinions on social media make an impression on me. Reviews are worse. Either I know too much before going in, or I expect the wrong things because what I notice in a book is different compared to others.
Reading a ton of reviews before picking up a book reduces my enjoyment of the book. So I prefer to read one or two reviews from trusted bloggers (whose review styles are fun or who have similar tastes as me) and go into the book without knowing too much.
I like to read different reviewing styles as well. Instead of regular reviews, I like reading "reasons to read" or discussions on the books. Basically, the formats where the bloggers chat more with the reader. They are less formal.
Another time that I go for other posts is when I visit new blogs. Whether I follow a blog is totally dependent on whether I vibe with the blogger or if I like their voice. It is not easy to discern that through reviews. So I go to any other types of posts and see a couple of them. Sometimes, I don't read any reviews.
If a blog only posts reviews, I'm much less inclined to subscribe. It doesn't give me much opportunity to converse with the blogger or know them. I like to know the people behind the blog. Not just the books.
as a blogger and reader...
I'm very conflicted about book reviews. I understand why my reviews don't receive as much love, especially because of my reading preferences, but it still doesn't feel good!
On one hand, I love reading chatty book reviews and unique formats. On the other hand, I can't execute them myself! No matter how much I want to make reviews less formal and more generic, I cannot. It is a BOOK review. Of course, I have to mostly talk about the book. It's not easy to make them appealing.
This leads to me not wanting to post a ton of reviews myself. As of now, I only review books that I have a lot to say about. Yes, this means that most of my reads are not reviewed. But I don't mind that.
I KNOW that reading ARCs and going with the hype is not a requirement for being a part of the community. But it's a little hard to be able to converse about books when I've not read the same books. Everyone's talking about The Jasmine Throne now and I'm in a corner with my random reads which I don't even review.
Last month, I decided that I wanted to post more book reviews. I felt left out because I was not posting book reviews like everyone else. I was having another crisis with respect to my place in the community, so I reviewed a little more. The engagement noticeably reduced.
And immediately, I felt out of touch with y'all. With my blog readers. There were lesser comments and lesser discussions. Less chatting. Comments on book reviews also tend to be about the books. It's not about the people behind the usernames.
So from now on, I'm going to post book reviews only when I have a lot to say about a book. I'm going to post book reviews for me, simply to let my thoughts out. It might not be fun or interesting like what I like to read. But it's okay.
so, are book reviews enough for book blogs?
For me, they are not.
From both a blogger and a reader's perspective, reviews are not enough for me. I am dissatisfied on both sides.
Reviews don't bring in as much engagement and don't encourage conversation in the comments. Writing book reviews is also not fun for me. I love writing chatty posts like this discussion or my monthly wrap-ups. I love writing how-tos and lists.
These posts take me multiple days to write because I have a lot to say and I need to proofread and cut down before publishing. Book reviews take me days because I have to think about what to say at all.
So as a blogger, reviews are not enough for my blog. Both for satisfaction and engagement.
As a reader, book reviews are not appealing to me. They don't give me enough of the blogger's personality and whether I can see myself being friends with them.
If I visit a new blog and they have no posts other than reviews, it puts me off. If someone I follow posts only reviews for a long time, I may not engage with their content as much.
And as I said before, reading reviews reduced my enjoyment of the books themselves. Hence, it's a no from me.
should bloggers stop posting book reviews completely?
Absolutely not!
I still read reviews myself and like to write them sometimes. There are tons of blog readers who love to see reviews. If you want to post reviews, you should!
The only reason for this post is to share my thoughts and to explain in case any bloggers are wondering why their book reviews don't receive as much attention. A lot of bloggers accept it as a fact but no reader has come forward to say why they don't read book reviews, so I decided to do it.
But don't consider me as a blueprint reader. I'm one in many. Others have very different opinions and preferences.
Don't stop posting reviews on my account or anyone else's account. Do what you want to do, post what you want to post! Your content shouldn't be completely directed by stats. Especially if blogging is your hobby.
The only thing you should be considering is whether YOU like to write book reviews. If you do, go ahead and write all of them! If you don't, you're not obligated to write them. Your blog, your content, your rules.
alternative blog post suggestions
Because I'm me and I try to be helpful wherever I can, I have to include some solutions to the problems that I mentioned.
Here are some blog post ideas through which you can gain more engagement while also directing traction towards book reviews. You can include links to full reviews in these while also keeping it chatty and fun.
- Wrap-ups: This can be monthly wrap-ups, seasonal wrap-ups, or just reading wrap-ups every so often. Write a short bit on every book you've read. This is easier for readers to read as well because they can see all your thoughts without going through a bunch of posts.
- Recommendation lists: I absolutely love reading rec lists because I get a bunch of book recommendations while not being told too much about each book.
- Themed book lists: these are so fun to read! Pick a trope or some general things and make a list of them. For example, scientists in romance books.
There are many more ways to make engaging posts to talk about books while not being restricted to book reviews. Try different types of posts and see what works for you!
be wordy with me
What do you think? Are book reviews enough for book blogs? Do you like to read and write book reviews? What types of bookish posts are your favourite? Discuss with me in the comments!
And if you want to, feel free to write a discussion post of your own in response to this! I'd love to hear all that you have to say.
Sumedha spends her days reading books, bingeing Kdramas, drawing illustrations, and blogging while listening to Lo-Fi music. Read more ➔
Be wordy with me!
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I feel the same way about book reviews, I really rarely read them. I like to go into books not knowing too much, and I also don't want to be influenced!
I don't write them anymore, I just write shorter reviews in my monthly wrap-up, and it works for me!
Shorter reviews work better to write and read! I prefer seeing those too ?
This is an age old discussion that will forever be relevant to book bloggers. I think I have finally found a review style that works for me (short but dense) but no doubt it won't last forever. I have found looking at my reviews as an index - linking them together with representation tags - rather than individual posts makes me feel more confident in what I'm presenting.
Oh that’s interesting! I generally just do separate posts since I don’t review often anyway but haven’t thought of linking them using anything.
It’s a relevant discussion which will no doubt evolve over time based on other factors. For example I didn’t even talk about other platforms due to which reviews don’t do good on blogs. But I do think it’s interesting to discuss about ?
*bursts in screaming about reviews being evergreen* Oh wait, you linked to my post haha!
This is a great discussion post and these topics float around in my head all the damn time. I make an effort to read reviews when I blog hop because I know how much fewer views & engagement they get, but I know I'm in the minority there. Also? I don't like being spoiled. So I find myself skimming sometimes when it is a book that I'm planning to read, but I do love getting new books on my radar from trusted reviewers who I know have similar tastes as me!
I agree that book reviews aren't enough and I do my best to mix up my content, sprinkling in reviews between guides, dicussions, etc. Great post!
Thank you, Kal! Haha yes I did. I try to as well but I'm mostly not in the book for them and I prefer coming across new books in lists instead of reviews ?
I try and read book reviews, to try and see whether or not I would pick the book up, but sometimes they give away a bit too much - or nothing at all, which is just as bad! - and I am back on square one. I'd love to read more discussions posts on books!
I get that! Same, I prefer discussion posts more ?
“While I’m generally okay with my statistics and try not to give them too much attention, I definitely look at them and find patterns.” SAME. I’ve especially been interested this year and last year since I’ve been seeing some Very Interesting™ trends, and I just want to see how it’s going to play out. (I promise I’m not obsessed, just obsessed with the patterns. ?) But I definitely agree that book reviews are evergreen and will die on this hill, even if the lack of engagement makes me just a tiny bit sad.
I am admittedly very much the “writes and posts a lot of reviews” but I also don’t tend to read reviews versus other types of posts. Like you, I feel put off when doing a lot of reviews, which is pretty ironic considering most of my posts ARE reviews currently with the occasional discussion/fun post. ? But at the same time… it does provide content on the blog when I’m not up for creating other types of posts, so I think ultimately what it comes down to is personal preference.
I'd be very interested in reading and the trends if post your findings ? I know Kal posted about evergreen book reviews and stats using your stats screenshots but are there any other patterns? I'm also a nerd who likes finding these things ?
Yep, it comes down to personal preference! As long as we're happy with our content, there will be an audience for it.
Hahaha I think one of my drama reviews is throwing things off big time! I think that's the biggest reason I'm so interested in my stats for 2021. ? Other than that oddball, there's not much else that's different - reviews trickle views over time while non review ones die out (for the most part) after about a year or so.
ooh I think I get that. on my old blog my Kdrama reviews did very well and one brought in 10k+ views last year ? I think if the reviews reach the first page, they get very good traffic.
This type of discussion is very prominent in my niche - which is not books but whiskey. There's an abundance of whiskey reviews out there and some argue there's too much of it and that people should write other types of articles around whiskey. I believe there is a place for both reviews and other article types and that both are important. In some niches (like mine, and yours), reviews are a natural part.
I agree that non-review posts allow for more personality which people find relatable and catches interest. There's a reason I normally don't follow ANY niche blogs, and when it comes to whiskey blogs, those I follow are mainly written by people I've connected with on Twitter.
However, I believe also review posts can have a personal touch. I try to not only talk facts and tasting notes but also about how I came across this whiskey, what is my previous relation to the brand, how do I like their distillery, and then regarding flavours how do they make me feel?
I know there are people who like my reviews. I had two whiskey blogs for a while (one was for Irish only) but decided to quit one and to merge the two of them, but I first kept it closed for a month or so. When I quit, I received messages from people I didn't even know read the blog and how they appreciated my reviews and how useful they found them! Now when I've started up the other blog again, I have the same followers there. And I still get lots of pageviews from search engines to some of my older reviews.
I don't know if there's the same attitudes around book reviews, but don't underestimate them! Review type posts can also invite to conversation, depending on how they're written.
Having said that, I receive very few comments on my whiskey blog, but I think it is mostly because of culture - people comment mostly on such blogs if the topic is near controversial or if the blogger is "famous". For us normal people, the chat takes place on Twitter.
Oh wow, it was so interesting to see how this relates to your niche! When writing it, I was keeping only book reviews and book blogs in mind but I did not think of other niches. Interesting how the same applies for you as well!
About you receiving messages from people saying they appreciate your content - that's amazing! But also really telling how even though there isn't much active engagement, it doesn't mean that the content is not appreciated or liked. That's one thing I didn't mention in my post as well, but your comment brings it up.
Also, I agree with you! Reviews can have a personal touch as well, and it would make it great. But I don't think that translates very well for book blogs because we generally read several books each month and its hard to personalize every review other than saying what we liked/didn't like. I go through 2 romance books in a day sometimes (when my mental health is low haha) and there isn't much to say other than "this helped me escape". Am I making sense?
Oh yes, controversial topics and famous bloggers are the ones who get most engagement. I remember writing a discussion post on my old blog about not liking comment back culture, simply because I had things to say, but it blew up as it was a negative sentiment about something that's generally positive. I was very surprised haha.
I totally see where you're coming from with not being able to write personalised reviews every time, and I guess I don't do that either, but when I do, those articles are those I like the most.
But sometimes there isn't a lot to say - still it will be interesting for people to read my opinion about that particular whiskey. It happens that companies send me free samples, and then my own story around it usually is very scarce.
2 books in a day sounds fantastic! I was like that when I was young.
I'm sorry about the response to your post about the comment back thing! People can over-interpret things so much. It would be interesting to read that post, by the way.
I'm not the biggest bookworm but I do like book reviews. I find them really interesting based on how the blogger writes their posts. Sometimes, I wouldn't mind seeing other posts from book bloggers besides reviews. It was interesting reading your thoughts. Great post! xx
TheQuietGirl | http://www.quietgirlblog.com
Thank you! Glad to hear that you liked reading reviews 🙂
Interesting post! We actually really enjoy reading book reviews, especially from bloggers who read YA. For us we like to keep it mixed. We do a combination of book reviews and list posts to keep it interesting.
Thank you! It's good to hear that you like reading reviews, and post different kinds of content.
Personally, I actually enjoy writing book reviews. The way I looked at it, writing book reviews is like writing something in my diary; it allows me to let out my feelings and thoughts during a certain period of time. I know reviews don’t do well, but I love revisiting them because it brings me back to a time when I first read the book.
That said, I do see your point. Reading reviews isn’t appealing sometimes. I still try to read them, though, because it’s how I discover new books. Also, if a book is hyped, reading reviews helps me decide if I would want to read that book as well. Also also, maybe this is just the English major in me, but book reviews remind of literature analysis papers, and for some reason, that comforts me. ?
I totally get you! It's a personal preference at the end. What you get out of them matters.
Your point about literary analysis papers makes sense haha. Those types of reviews are actually the only ones I don't mind reading if they're about books I haven't heard of before. They're interesting.
Love you post and idea. I have different opinion and I'm thinking to make it in post. I'll pingback your post when I do that.
Thank you! Sure, I'll look forward to it 🙂
It's not something I've ever really considered as a book blogger before as I love writing reviews so I'll always share them, regardless of how many clicks they get. I'll never earn from them or anything, so I really just post them because I like to. Plus, I'm a book blogger so I imagine people expect me to review books among other posts. But it's been a while since I did share one as I only give full-length reviews to the books that give me a lot to say.
I totally agree that reviews evergreen content. One thing I've noticed is that my reviews' numbers remain steady month-to-month, whereas other content is sometimes popular the moment I publish and then slowly fades out. I like reading reviews too, all bookish content is a win for me! So I'd say they're definitely enough for book blogs, I think there'll always be an audience for them. Interesting post and thanks for sharing.
It's great to hear that you love reviewing! I agree, there will always be an audience for book reviews especially in the book community. And it is generally expected of book blogs. But the engagement types and lifetime vary a lot. It totally on the blogger, I'd say. I personally don't enjoy reviewing so I don't do it much, but you do and it shows in your reviews!
Thank you, Anika 🙂