Hardcover Lover Confession on My Commenting Habits
I recently asked my followers on Twitter if they would want to see a post on my blog about my commenting habits. Most of the people who took the poll said that they would be interested in a post like that, so today, I bring you my confession on how I comment on other blogs.
What's in a Comment From Me?
One of my biggest pet peeves about the book blogging community, and blogging in general, is seeing really short or unrelated comments on posts. I feel like it's unfair to the blogger who put a lot of effort into his or her post just to leave a one sentence (or shorter) comment. Unfortunately this isn't a new trend; I saw it when I perused book blogs before creating The Hardcover Lover, and I still see it today.
Keeping that in mind, I promised myself that I would never just leave a comment to network or get the word out about my blog. When I comment on a blog post, I try to say something meaningful. I like to read reviews, and I like reading discussion posts. If I have something to say, I say it in the comments. I know that it won't always be the longest comment in the world, but nine times out of ten, the comments that I leave are long! I know how comments can make a blogger's day, and I love leaving something that I know will make another blogger smile.
Replies! Another little confession about me is that I love getting an email that says that a blogger replied to my comment. Now that I've finally figured out the password to the email address associated with my WordPress/CommentLuv account, I am a reply queen. I will go back, read the reply, and most likely add even more to the conversation.
Bloggers Commenting Back
Back when I first started blogging, I did what a lot of bloggers do. I added my name to the list of bloggers who comment back. I thought that it would be a great way to meet new people and discover new blogs. I thought that I would really get to know other bloggers in the community on a personal level, but that wasn't the case.
A few months after adding my name to the list and the button to my blog, I removed the button from my blog. Why? Well it just wasn't working for me. I wasn't getting a lot of comments from bloggers on the list, and if I was, they were mostly things like, "cool post" or "I haven't read this book." I was also getting a lot of comments that just said, "Visit my blog" or "Check out my latest post!" I don't know if it was because the button was on my blog, but I knew I needed to do something to dispel those commenters.
It's not that I'm ungrateful for those comments, but I was taking a lot of time out of my day to respond to them. I was replying to all of the comments on my blog (like I always do), and then I was going back to all of the blogs to comment back, even if they left a short and unrelated comment. I didn't know who was on the list and who wasn't, so I just visited all the blogs. It was too time consuming to keep up with, and I've stopped commenting back like I used to.
That being said, I don't think that the list of Bloggers Commenting Back is a Bad thing. If you've been to it lately, you've probably noticed that there are almost 700 bloggers on the list. That's incredible! It goes to show you just how many great people there are in this community, and it's a wonderful way to find new blogs to follow.
How Do You Comment Then, Erin?
You might be wondering how I comment if I don't comment back. Well the answer is actually kind of simple, and I actually do have Bloggers Commenting Back to thank for how I decide to comment on other blogs in the book community. I take notice of people who come to my blog, and I often comment back. If I comment back, I look for posts that I know I will read and not just the top post of the day. I've often left three or four comments on blogs in one day if I see a lot of interesting content. If not, I save their blog for another day.
I also use Bloglovin' for commenting. I have a list of about twenty favorite blogs that I visit a few times a week. I'll go through my list of favorites, and pick two - three posts (sometimes more) per favorite blogger and leave comments. This is a habit that I do once every week or once every two weeks. It just all depends on how busy I am.
But that's not all! I follow over 1,000 blogs on Bloglovin', and most of them are book blogs. It's impossible to visit all of those blogs per week, so once a week, I pick a few blogs at random and go on a commenting spree. There's no rhyme or reason to this, and I don't really have a great way of picking the blogs. I usually just do a random scroll, and the blog that my mouse hovers over gets a visit. It's a fun way to check out what everyone is posting without feeling too pressured to leave a comment on all of those blogs that I follow.
This year, I've also been participating in Nori's Commenting 365 Challenge. There are a few bloggers on her master list that are in my list of favorite bloggers or ones that I subscribe to via email, and they often receive a plethora of comments from me. However, there are a lot of new-to-me bloggers on the list. I've been picking random starting points on the list, and visiting about ten blogs a day (on the days that I comment). When I'm on those blogs, I try to leave between two and five comments, and again, it's all based on content. I like reading discussion posts and reviews for books that I've read, so those posts will be frequented by me most often and are more likely to receive a comment.
In a Nutshell...
In short, I love comments. I also love commenting. I probably have the weirdest system going on for when it comes to how I comment on other blogs, but it seems to work for me. I like going through my emails, favorite blogs, and selecting blogs at random. I like returning comments and commenting back, even if my blog no longer wears the badge.
Commenting is one of my favorite things about blogging. I just think there's something so special about receiving a comment, but I also find the reverse to be true. I don't know if this post will actually help anyone out, but I hope you learned a little bit more about me and my commenting habits today.
Your Confessions
Now we've gotten to the part of the post where I ask for your confessions. Feel free to let me know what you think about my commenting habits in the comments. But don't just leave it at that! If you'd like, let us know how you comment on other blogs in the community! I'm sure there are some different methods out there, and I'd love to know what other people do.
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