My Book Blogging Manifesto

I feel like having a Book Blogger! *fist air pump* kind of day. And y’all know I love lists. So here’s my list of what I, as the book blogger that runs A Striped Armchair, like to do with my little bit of the internet:

• I seek out books…making lists on random topics, checking titles out from the library, and reviewing them in the good and the bad. I prioritise my main interests in fiction: older books, an equal POC/white author balance, and a good dose of literature in translation and other international books (since England colonised a good percentage of the world, I don’t have to read translated fiction in order to hear the voices of authors from all different continents). And I enjoy a wide variety of nonfiction!
• I gush about the books and authors I adore, in the hopes that I can convince other readers to give them a try. And I analyse the less gushworthy books, so that I have a reading record for my future self.
• I post about whatever I feel like, even if it’s not entirely book-ish. And I skip posting whenever I’m not in the mood for it.
• I express my opinion as I see fit, even at the risk of ruffling some hypothetical feathers. I find that debate, as long as it’s kept on an intellectual level, is invigorating and healthy. Every time I’ve blogged about a controversial topic here, I’ve been more than impressed with the caliber of discussion that takes place in the comments section. I don’t apologise for having a point of view, even if it is different from others.
• I am close with other book bloggers from all walks of life, and chat with them via Twitter, e-mails, blog comments, and any other medium. I value these relationships, and I am grateful to the evolution of social media for making them even easier to create and maintain.
• I shape my personal blogosphere, reaching out to bloggers old and new who can brighten my day with a new post in my reader, and who I connect with at some level, intellectually, personally, or otherwise. And I delight in new (or simply new-to-me) blogs that I stumble across and feel a reading connection with, as well as watching the evolution of bloggers I’ve known for years.
• I offer advice and mentoring to anyone new to book blogging who asks for it.
• I join in a wide range of challenges, read-a-longs, and community-sponsored events to help me celebrate the joy of reading or explore new-to-me genres or just have a reason to create yet another book list.
• I believe in both reading and blogging relativism…there is no one right way to do anything, especially in two such individualistic hobbies.
• I receive joy and enrichment every single day from being a member of the book blogging community.

If ten was good enough for Moses, it’s good enough for me! ;) And now, I believe I might have suddenly broken out of my reading slump. I’m aching to curl up with a book for the first time in over a week. So I’m off to take advantage of that!