Don’t be a Stranger: How to Make Connections in the Book Blogging Community

This is a guest post written by Carol from the Reading Ladies blog. Find out more about her at the end of the post!

One of the first blogging lessons to be learned was also my greatest challenge: I needed a community.

I desired to make connections and find my people. I knew for certain that no one can blog in isolation, but the solution intimidated me.

I’m an introvert. I’m a reader, not a talker and I love cancelled plans so that I can stay home and read. I’m never lonely because I always have a book.

These self-descriptors don’t set me up for making online connections. I also had fears: what if I attract creepers or someone makes a mean or negative comment?

How Did I Move From Frozen to Connected?

To be successful as a book blogger, I knew I had to extend myself, take chances and make the first move.

Easier said than done for someone who finds comfort hiding behind a screen or seeks escapism between the pages of a book.

If you’re just starting your blogging journey and you want to make connections in the book blogging community, I’ve put together all my top tips!

1. Set aside your hesitations and join ALL the social media

  • Make bookish accounts (using your blog name) for Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Goodreads and Facebook (you can make a separate business page as an extension of your personal FB page). The only place I do not have a presence is Booktube, as I don’t do video reviews
  • Some bloggers prefer to focus on only one or two social media platforms, but I’ve found it beneficial to dabble in all of them, as each platform reaches different potential followers. I generally gain the majority of my “click throughs” from Pinterest and Twitter
  • Follow bookish accounts on Bookstagram (Instagram users with bookish accounts), BookTwitter (Twitter users with bookish accounts), Facebook and Booktube
  • Look for opportunities to join engagement groups on Bookstagram and Twitter
  • Follow blogging and book groups on Twitter and begin to comment on threads
  • Drop your links as much as possible, such as at the end of your Goodreads review. However, try to avoid dropping your link onto other people’s comment sections
  • Pin to Pinterest and join group boards for pinning book review posts
  • Make sure your blog has its social sharing options set up- especially for big platforms such as Twitter
  • Share each and every post you write to all your social media accounts. You can set up your blog to automatically share your posts to social media accounts
a table of people use laptops to blog and make connections

Yes, it takes time to make connections in the book blogging community- and it can be uncomfortable for introverts at first.

However, if you want to find your people and have people find you to build a community, you need to promote yourself consistently.

2. Find your niche and your people

  • Book Reviews and Talking Bookish are my main niches, but I can narrow that niche down by connecting with bloggers who enjoy certain genres or sub-genres
  • Try out a bit of blog-hopping and follow a few blogs (maybe five as a starting point) that share your niche, content and preferences (visiting the “About Page” on a blog is a good way to begin)
  • Start “tweeting,” “liking” and “commenting” on their posts- hopefully they will return the engagement or even reciprocate by commenting on your posts
  • Don’t be discouraged by bloggers who do not reciprocate, that’s okay and you can move on
  • Once you have developed a reciprocal blogging relationship with a handful of bloggers, expand the pool 

In four years, I have developed an inner circle of bloggers (around 20-30) whom I consider my “community”.

We comment on each other’s posts, share reading preferences, enjoy bookish conversations and promote each other’s posts on Twitter.

This all happened organically through genuine interactions. In the huge worldwide web, this is the group with whom you will invest the most time.

Oh, and those negative comments or creeper concerns? Almost non-existent. However, you do need to be wise and aware, and WordPress is great at filtering out spam comments.

3. Slowly expand your reach and try new things

  • Guest posting is a new venture for me, so this post is me expanding my reach and trying new things: I’m thrilled to have connected with Eleanor @NotSoModernGirl on Twitter!
  • Try new memes or challenges: I’ve often participated in #NonFictionNovember, but this year I’m expanding my November challenges to include #NovNov (November Novellas) and I’m hoping to meet a new group of like-minded bloggers 
  • Check the calendar for special days or theme months, as these are an opportunity to connect with other bloggers using the same prompts and tags
  • Participating in a blogger’s book tag is a fun way to make new blogging connections. If you want to be tagged in my next book tag post, please just let me know in the comments

  • Top Ten Tuesday is a popular bookish meme for your first experience (ThatArtsyReaderGirl.com) 
  • TTT participants are known for their generosity in blog-hopping and commenting, and they always return the favour

5. Enjoy and treasure your new book blogging community

  • Celebrate their achievements
  • Continue the conversation
  • Enjoy the connection

The Joy of Book Blogging: Community

In four years, I can truly say that the joy in blogging for me is the community.

Book people are the best people. I hope that if you have not already found your community, these few tips can help you, encouraging you to start making connections online.

Although I’m still a new blogger, I’m happy to answer questions on connecting, blogging and book reviewing!

About the Author

I’m Carol, and if you’ve read this because you love blogging and reading, then we’re already friends!

I’m a retired 5th-grade teacher, an ardent and avid bibliophile, and my favorite genres are historical fiction, literary fiction, and contemporary fiction.

In addition, I enjoy reading selected memoirs and other narrative non-fiction. 

My blog is four and a half years old. The mission of my blog is to share a love of great literature across a variety of genres with an intentional focus on new releases, thoughtful themes, diverse cultures, and “own voices” authors.

I desire to be a trusted reviewer for your next great read!

Respectful conversations are always welcome over on my blog, and you can find me on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Goodreads and Facebook too.

Have you made connections in the book blogging community? Do you enjoy finding new ways to connect online? What is your favourite social media platform to connect with book bloggers?

Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below 🙂

Happy reading x

93 thoughts

  7. Some really great tips here! I totally agree that making connections in the blogging community is so important. I absolutely love getting to know other bloggers and reading their style of writing. Always looking to grow as a blogger so really appreciate this blogpost! Xo

    Elle – ellegracedeveson.com

    Liked by 2 people

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  8. This has some really fantastic information, tips and advice (even for those outside the book blogging community). Making connections has been so invaluable over the years and it’s great to get to know other people and help support their work, etc. Thanks for sharing this!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  9. connecting with the blogging community was the best decision for immersing myself into this world. i didn’t realize how supportive bloggers would be to eachother. i thought it would be more of a competition. but it’s not. we all support one another and cheer eachother on. i’ve connected with so many amazing bloggers [ you included] thanks to being on social media.

    Liked by 2 people

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  17. It is so fun to see how bloggers have grown and expanded by trying different options and finally settling in on the techniques and ways of sharing that work for them! I am not a book blogger, but I love reading book reviews and especially going through book tours; different views on the same book always fascinate me.
    Thanks for sharing!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  19. Connecting with other bloggers is one of the best decisions I’ve made as a blogger. When I first started, I was a bit shy and skeptical. “What If they didn’t like what I write about, what if there are lots of negative comments”? That was opposite of what I was expecting, the positivity, love, reciprocation makes blogging worthwhile. Thank you for sharing

    Liked by 2 people

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  23. I’m not a book blogger but follow lots of lovely readers and writers. I think it’s a lovely community so thank you for sharing your top tips. I know it’ll help a lot of book bloggers! Em x

    Liked by 2 people

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  27. Pingback: Don’t be a Stranger: How to Make Connections in the Book Blogging Community [ReBlog] [GuestPost] | Reading Ladies

  28. What an informative post! this post covers everything a blogger need to know on how to grow! What I do love is that I am a book blogger too, and finding a post that I can truly relate to was awesome!

    Liked by 1 person

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  29. I love this post Carol. It is great when you start to feel part of the bookblogging community. I’m still finding my way but love the interactions that I get from other bloggers.

    Liked by 1 person

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  30. I’ve been blogging for almost 9 years and there are people I began interacting with in the blogging community that I now consider to be friends even though we have never met in person. The interaction really is the reason I continue to blog.

    Carol has some great tips. The only one I don’t fully endorse is her suggestion to join all the social media platforms. The scatter gun approach could end up making you feel overwhelmed as you a) spend more time creating content for those channels b) spend more time engaging there and responding to comments.

    The advice from all the blogging gurus is to pick one social media channel and get to grips with that before you move on to another.

    Liked by 1 person

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  33. I am new to blogging and I am introvert as well. It is difficult for me to put myself out there but I am trying. Thanks for this post. It feels good to know I am not alone. Will definitely try these tips.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
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