Mindscape in Words Celebrates 8th Blogoversary!

Posted On September 2, 2022

Hi Readers! Today is Mindscape in Words’ 8^th Blogoversary! I am so incredibly happy with what I have achieved for Mindscape in Words. It started from amateur book reviews interspersed with short stories & occasional travel journals. And now after 8 years, I know what I do best: BOOKS! Be it book reviews, book recommendations, genre-wise reading, TBR books, book hauls, book challenges or monthly roundup of books read; you will find all of it here. I thought that the best way of commemorating these 8 years was to share 8 lessons from these 8 years of blogging. And, also some more fun additions towards the end!

~~8 LESSONS FROM 8 YEARS OF BLOGGING~~

~~BLOGGING~~

~1. WRITE & READ WHAT YOU WANT~

I used to think a lot about what I should write, which post will help me get a wider audience, what words to use to enhance SEO & the whole works. But soon I realized that this was putting me in a self-made restraint. I wasn’t enjoying what I was writing & the whole process just seemed forced. So, that’s when I took a step back to revalidate. I started Mindscape in Words to have an outlet to share my thoughts. And, I went back on doing just that, which was the best decision. Because not only was I again enjoying & looking forward to writing, but I also gained a lot of followers & page views on the posts I wrote from the heart. Do what you want to do. Read what you want to read.

~2. IT’S OKAY TO CHANGE YOUR BLOG NICHE~

If you are just starting your blog, then you will see a lot of posts stating you to form your own niche. This is important, of course, but over the course of years, if you feel one niche is not for you & you want to get into something else, then go for it! Once again, do what you want to do! I started with book reviews, then I added a little bit of travel journals into it, then I also had a regular short story series called Monday Moments & Diary Logs. And then finally now Mindscape in Words is all about words: Book Reviews, Book Posts, Short stories. Doing what you love takes courage. And, I hope you find it. Because once you set a foundation for your blog, it will take courage if you want to change it. Do it, it’s okay!

~3. POST AT YOUR OWN PACE~

Another extension in doing what you want is posting at your own pace. Not everyone will be able to post every day, much less every week. Even a few times a month is okay as long as you know you are okay with it. Especially if you have a blog in travel or fashion or books, your audience cannot expect you to travel every week or promote brands every day or read 30 books in 30 days. So, stay true to your niche & your audience & post at your own pace.

~4. LEARN EVERYTHING ABOUT BLOGGING BEFORE YOU START~

This is a piece of advice that I wish someone had given me when I started blogging back in 2014. I set up a basic Blogger account with the .blogspot at the end. Later I changed the blog name from Abstract Reader to Mindscape in Words. And also bought a domain name. And then, just last year I moved from Blogger to WordPress.

Everything has its pros & cons. I had it very easy with Blogger; low investment, low risk, low rewards. In other words, I only had to spend an annual amount for the domain & there were no other costs. The viewership was also below average. MiW was nowhere on the Google Page Rankings. When I decided to switch to WordPress, I researched more into how all my 7 years of data will be moved to another platform. I researched less of what will be the scenario after this migration. It involved a lot of costs; some annual & some recurring. But, my viewership increased incredibly. Viewing the statistics week on week was actually fun, because it was all going up. So, yes, research everything before you decide to start blogging: Costs, Themes, Plugins, Codes, SEO, monetizing & so on.

~~BOOKS~~

~5. BE AUTHENTIC~

These two are special book-related tips. If you want to start a book blog, you will have to be authentic in everything that you share. The views that you post on your brand must be your own. You cannot give every book 5 stars because it will please the authors & get you more visibility. On the other hand, you cannot give every book 1 star because you want to create a critic vibe. You absolutely cannot plagiarize your reviews. You have to be real. Because, if you are not, your audience will notice, either now or later. I usually write my thoughts into the review, and only then go on Goodreads to read others’ reviews so that mine stay unbiased & original.

I read everything aside from self-help nonfiction & horror. So, my reviews are for different genres. This works for me because I cannot read one genre just for the sake of that niche of the blog. Reading across genres, geographies & graphics helps me maintain my mental health too. At the end of the day, it’s reading. So, you have to control what you absorb with the words you read.

~6. ASK FOR THAT ARC~

An Advanced Review Copy is something that the author or the publication house shares with readers or bloggers before the book’s release date. Makes you feel special, doesn’t it? Almost makes you think that this privilege must be reserved only to those who have over 10k or so followers. Well, this is where you are wrong. And even if you aren’t, what’s the harm in asking?

I started asking for ARCs since early this year. The first one I received was Blake Crouch’s Upgrade. I had recently read his other 2 books & just couldn’t wait to read the next one. And, guess what? I received the digital ARC of the book. I was so stoked! Ever since, I have always written emails to the authors I love & for books I really want to read. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. What’s important is having the confidence to just go for it!

~~SOCIAL MEDIA~~

~7. EVEN IF SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOT YOUR THING, YOU NEED TO MAKE IT YOUR THING~

If you are reading this, then you already know everything there is to know about social media. Create your blog’s account everywhere & promote it on all those platforms. If you have a strong SEO game, then most people will reach your website through organic search alone. But, you still need social media. I get 91% visitors through direct & organic search & the remaining 7% through socials.  Again, you need not post every day, but you need to be visible to your audience.

~8. CHOOSE ONE PLATFORM AND STAY TRUE TO IT~

Be active on all social media platforms. But, soon enough you will know which platform is working for your blog’s niche. When you find that, be active on it more & give it your attention. For example, Pinterest & Goodreads work really well for me.

~~STATISTICS~~

Since September of last year, Mindscape in Words had a total of 32000+ views! In the last month of August alone, there were 6000+ views, which is a record for the highest in a month. Amazing, isn’t it? You made that happen & for that I am just so eternally grateful. Check out some other amazing statistics below!

~~SPECIAL MENTION: TEMPLATES~~

These are the special mentions for some of the posts which I thought were worth mentioning. Firstly, I tried something new this year & it worked out wonderfully well. It’s the Reading Templates I made at the beginning of the year! I keep adding fun new ones to the same post. These templates have more than 2500 views since I posted. It’s the second most viewed post on Mindscape in Words. I feel just so so happy that there are people out there who choose to use the templates I created. It’s such an incredible feeling! Here is the link if you want to look at them & maybe want to use them too!

~~SPECIAL MENTION: CONSTANTS~~

There are a few first-bencher posts which have performed amazingly well ever since I published them. The fact that my favourite book is the post that has received 10k views this year alone still continues to baffle & amaze me. Here are the posts:

A Little Life: To Read or Not to Read

It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover

Verity by Colleen Hoover

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

The First Date (Short Story)

~~SPECIAL MENTION: THE POEMS~~

As a part of my 22 Things to do in 2022, I had decided that I will write something every day. It did start off well, like most resolutions do, but faded pretty quickly. One night I watched this animated movie called Soul. I was so moved by it that my brain finally had something stimulating. That’s when I wrote a poem called ‘Just Moments. Just Life.’ I first started my blog with a poem called ‘Popular & Plain’. And now, 8 years later, I wrote another poem called ‘Just Moments. Just Life’. I, of course, like them both. But, it’s amazing to see the growth.

~~FUTURE PLANS~~

I likely make more book & blog plans than I make real life plans. That does indicate how big a part Mindscape in Words plays in my life. Being a realist, I had never set out to write book reviews for an audience. My only intent 8 years ago was no intent at all, because I started writing reviews because I loved to do it. But now, after so many ups & downs, I plan. If not meticulously, then at least vaguely.

Because Mindscape in Words is all about books, I continue on reading, which is a no-brainer. But, in addition to just my blog, I also plan to be more active on Bookstagram. I also plan on making more templates because there is such a big audience for it. And coming back to books, I plan to expand my horizons in terms of the books I read. If you want to see anything specific on here or any reviews for books you want me to read, then please let me know!

It has been an incredible journey. Thank you for being with me & I hope you stay. Here’s to many more!

Until next time,