Happy Saturday, fellow book bloggers!
I know I've only been part of your world for a little under a year, but here I am offering my humble opinion on how you can acquire what I would call mad commenting skills.
I've noticed over the last several months that there is a marked difference in commenting styles between different bloggers. I actually love this! I love not getting carbon copied comments from everyone because it keeps it interesting and gives me a little wiggle room to have fun with replies.
That being said, there are a few things that I've personally found to be pretty important when it comes to leaving comments.
- Leave actual comments. Nothing bugs me more than seeing a comment, whether on my blog or someone else's that says something super generic and I've noticed this happens most frequently on weekly memes. Some of the ones I see often are to the effect of: "Nice, here's mine" or "Come check my post out." (hint: I will probably not visit a blog that does this) Now, I'll readily admit to not putting as much into some comments, especially when I sincerely can't think of anything to add. But I will always, always try to add something personal.
- Link back to your page. I'm honestly not sure if there's "official" etiquette on when to leave a link to your blog. When I first started blogging I felt almost like I was shamelessly promoting myself by linking back to my own page, but honestly, if someone (who isn't in my sidebar) doesn't link back whether I'll go hunting for their blog is really up in the air...
- Comment back. Whether it's replying to a comment on your page or commenting on the commenter's blog (did they leave a link?), it's always nice to say something back. I think of it kind of like having a conversation at school. I would never just ignore someone who spoke to me! So why would I do it in the blogosphere? I'm definitely guilty of forgetting to reply if a comment is made days after a post goes up, but I do my darnedest!
It's true that some of this could just be personal preference. Maybe you don't even want a link to my blog in your comments section! But these are three things that I've found to be useful to take into account when commenting on other blogs. I most definitely have off days when I don't put as much effort into personal comments, it takes me way longer than normal to reply, or I totally forget to link back... I may not always get it right, but dang it, I try!
Happy commenting!!
