Do you want to become a better blogger? Or you struggling to even start one?

Being a blogger means more than just putting words into post. Everything matters when it comes to run a blog consistently. Things like a blog’s design, managing social media profiles, saving countless drafts and then scheduling them in manner as they fit your theme of the month or something like that. Lastly, do not forget about networking with authors and fellow bloggers.

It sounds overwhelming. It is OVERWHELMING

I am here to help. I have been writing this blog for about 5 years now and have monthly subscribers of more than 7.5k. I am currently writing for three blogs other than this and various different publications on Medium.com and I how hard it can be to find your audience. I have been managing countless social media accounts, and have gone through every phase in terms of blogging that you are going through. This is how I want to help you.

Below is a list of variety of posts that I have written over years and I continue to write that are going to help you not only kickstart in the world of blogging or your niche book blogging, but you will be a PRO in no time. You will be spending more time creating content for your own blog rather than breaking your head over things that are only worth one at a time. After reading them, you will have a workflow (probably custom) and you will utilise your time gracefully and productively.

Check out my latest post #bookblogging.
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So let’s begin…

Browse By Topic:

Book Blogging

• 5 Books you should read as a Book Blogger
• The Secret Life of a Book Blogger
• Social Media for Book Bloggers

Blogging

• How to be a Productive Blogger: Getting Things Done
• How To Hack Your Mornings So You Get Most Of Your Time
• Boost Your Blogging Confidence and Write That Post
• Things I have learned about Blogging

To read in depth of making of a book blogger and all general how-to’s you should check out my Ebook on Blogging: A Blogger’s Manifesto.

It is available on Amazon IN | Amazon US only for $ 0.99.

Stay tuned for Freebies coming for book bloggers next month  To get an update subscribe this blog in the right side bar.

The post Tips on #BookBlogging appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Instagram runs on Hashtags. Without ‘#…’  it would not exist. It is a relevant and a useful way to find things that interests you as a user. If you are blogger/book blogger/ bookworm and like to click or share what you are reading with the world, you probably are familiar with the power of Instagram. If not, I am going to share with you 10 hashtags that can help you get started in a quickly fashion on Instagram.

I started my Instagram account two months back. So far the response I have got is good. Though I still struggle to post frequently there, I do have observed a set of popular hashtags. I love photos of books there. Readers share what they are reading and some of those pics are highly exquisite

P.S. You can find me on Instagram too.

#Bookstagram

#Bookshelfporn

#BookNerd

#BookHaul

#Shelfie

#Bookworm

#BooksofInstagram

#Bookstagram

#Bookstack

#CurrentlyReading

Are you on Instagram? You can find me on Instagram. Share your Bookish pics with me and I will follow you. 

This post took a cup of coffee. To write more posts, I need your help. You can by me a coffee

The post 10 Bookish Hashtags to Follow on Instagram appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Who does not like to read a book in one sitting? In this post, I am going to present you with a list of books that can be used for a calm weekend after a tiring week, while traveling or even Readathons! Readers who think are falling behind in their Goodreads Yearly Challenge or want to jumpstart can also use books mentioned in the list below.

I love shorter books. Sometimes it is better to tell a story in less amount of words and leave the rest for the reader to figure out. Novellas are still written by modern-day writers and sold by publishers. In the list below, I will try to diversify as much as I can. Let us prepare for our next Readathon!

The Vegetarian by Han Kang

Page Count: 208

Winner of 2016’s Man Booker International Prize, Han Kang ’s subtle written book, The Vegetarian is a surprise package. It’s a long form of a novella and divided into three parts, first published in 2007. However, the concept of this novel originated in 1997 when Kang wrote a short story titled, ‘The Fruit of My Woman’. Set in modern-day Seoul, it tells the story of Yeong-hye, a homemaker, whose decision to stop eating meat after having a nightmare.

The Grownup by Gillian Flynn

Page Count: 64

The author of the Gone Girl came out with a short story in 2015. about a fraudulent psychic who gets drawn into the life of one of her wealthy customers who is convinced her house is haunted. When the psychic checks out her tale, though, she realizes she might be able to sense a sinister supernatural power after all.

Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman

Page Count: 162

First Nonfiction book on this list. It is a collection of essays and is a reader’s delight, written by another reader who tributes her love for the books in her life by writing a book of essays herself.

The Strange Library by Haruki Murakami

Page Count: 96

The Strange Library is an excellent introduction to the dreamy, magical world of Haruki Murakami. In this novella, an unlikely trio—a shy boy, a tortured sheep man, and a strange girl—work to escape a creepy library.

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

Page Count: 264

My favorite Christie book. Don’t go on the length of it. It is so intense that you will be shocked to read it in a lesser amount of time than you expect.

A Single Man by Christopher Isherwood

Page Count: 192

This slim novel about George, a professor grieving the loss of his younger male lover, caused outrage when it was first published in 1964. The story, which takes place over the course of a single day, shocked audiences with its bold and unapologetic grappling with society’s paralyzing stigma towards the gay community and advocating for LGBT rights.

The Misfit’s Manifesto by Lidia Yuknavitch

Page Count: 120

Another non-fiction book is an ode to nonconformity by weaving her misfit history and those of her writing students and notable artists, writers, and creatives. For anyone who has felt like they never fit in, The Misfit Manifesto is a searing manifesto that will inspire a rebel stirring in your weird little heart.

I am accepting books for reviews, email me for inquiries at amandeepmittal@live.com

The post 7 Books You Can Read in One Day for a Readathon appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Having a to-do list is no harm done. It is actually good, a productive step to increase your own productivity. It is a methodology that tends to change the way you work. Instead of feeling overwhelmed and stressed, one can perform their tasks in an organized manner.

Having a to-do list helps to bring a structure to your routine. As a blogger, I do get overwhelmed by the amount of research I have to do in order to complete the task of writing an article. It took me a lot of time to get into the habit of having and maintaining a list. At times, I still struggle to maintain one and achieve the targets I set in a day.

I believe in getting the habit of maintaining a system for oneself. Keeping up with a list and to have all checks at the end of the day is not possible every day. However, it does help me de-clutter my mind. I do not have to spend every moment for getting a task done if I write it down in the list. Not only, I get most things done on most days, the sense of excitement for all things I do is a bliss.

The key concepts I have found that works for me in developing and maintaining this habit are listed below.

Having a List

Write it down in a notebook. Write it in a smartphone application. Or in your email, Whatever works for you. Do make sure, that the material or the application you use must be accessible to you almost all times.

Adding the tasks

All tasks whether, personal or professional, big or small, projects, must dos could be the items on your list. Have a system around them, a concrete format. Such that you do not have to think about changing and modifying the system every day. Add those tasks to your list that capture your attention.

Organization

It can get a bit overwhelming if you add all your tasks without an identifier, whether personal or professional. Divide your tasks appropriately such that you can focus on them and have a clear idea of what you should do next and what can be done later. Do not get into the habit of multitasking, you are only going to exhaust yourself.

Reflect

Take time in a day or twice, to reflect how far you have come and how far you have to go. If your list is organized, you won’t be spending much time reflecting. The frequent reassessment will help you prioritizing your tasks and avoiding the dead end.

Do It

Do it. Write that post. Devoting a fixed amount of time to do the research. In that time, try avoiding getting distracted by new tweets or Facebook notifications. The system does not work in your favor if you do not work on the task you are required to.

By keeping up with your system, you will feel accomplishment and that is a good feeling. You have to feel worthwhile every day to continue putting the hard work. Try this method for few days and if it is not working, reflect and modify it to your needs. Remember. Reflect, and repeat. If you’d like to get in-depth into your working habits and how to maintain them, I recommend a copy of David Allen’s Getting Things Done and Austin Kleon’s Steal Like an Artist.

Read my review on Austin Kleon’s Steal Like an Artist | Five Things I Learnt from Steal Like an Artist

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The post How to be a Productive Blogger: Getting Things Done appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Finches of Mars by Brian Aldiss

Blurb: Set on the Red Planet, it follows the stories of a group of colonists and the problems they have in setting up a new society. Life can be sustained by new life will not prosper – the women on the planet only ever give birth to stillborn children.

Red Mars by Kim Robinson

Blurb: Brilliantly imagined, breathtaking in scope & ingenuity, Red Mars is an epic scientific saga, chronicling the next step in evolution, creating a world in its entirety. It shows a future, with both glory & tarnish, that awes with complexity & inspires with vision.

Desolation Road by Ian McDonald

Blurb: t all began thirty years ago on Mars, with a greenperson. But by the time it all finished, the town of Desolation Road had experienced every conceivable abnormality from Adam Black’s Wonderful Travelling Chautauqua and Educational ‘Stravaganza  to the Astounding Tatterdemalion Air Bazaar.

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The post 3 Books Like "The Martian" PART 2 appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

If  you enjoyed and lol’ed (in some places) while reading Andy Weir‘s (see Andy Weir’s interview) The Martian (read book review here), the story of an astronaut Mark Watney, who struggles to survive, alone on the red planet. Maybe, you’d watched the movie directed by Ridley Scott, in which Matt Damon portray’s Mark Watney. Maybe, you just more of the red planet. Whichever the case is, you’d want to take a look at these books.

Moving Mars by Greg Bear

Blurb: Moving Mars is a story of human courage and love set within the greater saga of a planetary liberation movement. Mars is a colonial world, governed by corporate interests on Earth.

No Man Friday by Rex Gordon

Blurb: Quite Similar to The Maitian, but is more adventurous.

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury

Blurb: In The Martian Chronicles, Ray Bradbury, America’s preeminent storyteller, imagines a place of hope, dreams, and metaphor; of crystal pillars and fossil seas, where a fine dust settles on the great empty cities of a vanished, devastated civilization.

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The post 3 Books Like "The Martian" appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

In 2017, I started my voracious reading journey with the word “productivity” in mind. In my workflow, I wanted to be as productive as I could but later realise that it has its limitations. First limitation that I come across as I continued on my path as I found that there is a vast field and there are sub-niches that fall under that word. I had to make a decision on how will I benefit more in terms of productivity itself but more importantly having/developing that mindset? I came across 28 books throughout the year. Few were recommendations from people who share similar goals as mine and few were picks of my own.

The post What to Read in 2018? A List of books worth your time appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

“Picking five favorite books is like picking the five body parts you’d most like not to lose.” – Neil Gaiman

The post GUEST POST: Marianna's Five Favourite Books appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

In the first part of this list series, I did include most of the titles that I have already read. In this list too, I am prohibiting common, well known books like Harry Potters, A Song of Ice and Fire, Fight Club. These are the books that readers are highly familiar with and there is high chance that  most of us have seen the movies/tv-series and read the books. This list is also not specific to any genre.

High Fidelity by Nick Hornby | Contemporary fiction |Review

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman | YA, Fantasy fiction

The God Of Small Things by Arundhati Roy | Historical/Literary fiction |Review

The Sandman, Vol: 1: Brief Lives by Neil Gaiman, art by Jill Thompson, Vince Locke | Graphic novel, Fantasy/Horror fiction

Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett | Fantasy fiction |Review

Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri | Contemporary fiction, Short Stories

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email: amandeepmittal@live.com

The post Books To Read From 90s Part II appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Raven Stratagem by Yoon Ha Lee

Blurb: Yoon Ha Lee’s critically acclaimed Machineries of Empire trilogy continues with Raven Stratagem, coming from Solaris Summer 2017.

The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter by Theodora Goss

Blurb: With the assistance of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, Mary continues her search for the elusive Hyde and soon gathers around her more women, all of whom have been created through terrifying experimentation: Beatrice Rappaccini, Catherine Moreau, and Justine Frankestein. When their investigations lead them to the discovery of a secret society of immoral and power-crazed scientists, the horrors of their past soon arrive as well, and it is up to the five of them to stop the malicious machinations of the Société les Alchimistes. It is time for the monsters to triumph over the monstrous.

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The post Science Fiction and Fantasy Books to Read in June 2017 appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.