Mission

Bibliophiliac is the space where one passionate, voracious reader reflects on books and the reading life. You will find reviews, analysis, links, and reflections on poetry and prose both in and out of the mainstream.

A book must be the axe for the frozen sea within us. Franz Kafka

Sunday, June 13, 2010

The Blogiesta Update

So far my Blogiesta experience has been good, with some complications.




1.  Katie and I would both like to know how to retrieve our code from Google Analytics!  Help!  I have fiddled around with the "help" but I just don't speak the language!
2. I added a review policy and a poll.
3. I'm thinking about/going to write a "mission statement."  I'm not sure if I will actually post my mission statement, but I'm going to write one.
3. I did visit some new blogs on the blog hop.  I'm pretty good about this--I really do look at the other blogs, and very often I become a follower.  However, this weekend I am a little behind on my visits.
4. I have a couple of ideas about reaching/celebrating 100 followers.  I would be interested in knowing what others think about the importance of having high numbers, and whether you look at your followers or the number who subscribe on Google Reader?
5. Participating in Blogiesta did cause me to reflect on/evaluate my blog--a good thing!
6.  I signed up for the Blogiesta feed, and have enjoyed reading the many informative posts.
7.  It's not over yet!
8. I created a Gravatar.
9. I took a break from the computer for a couple of hours this evening, and had a picnic and walk on the beach with my husband--fresh air and the sound of waves cleared my head a little, and helped me shake off some of the sense of frustration I had with technical problems.

The Latest (possibly last) Update for Sunday
So, to wrap it all up, my first Blogiesta involved both frustrations and successes.
  • I have some good ideas for future posts
  • I am planning my first challenge (look for news about this within the week)
  • I reflected on the identity that I would like to build for my blog
  • I created a gravatar based on the Underwood typewriter in my header
  • I am composing a mission statement, which I will probably include below my header, when I finish it
  • I am still playing around with design, mostly with fonts and colors
  • I had fun reading posts, and leaving comments
  • I am now following or subscribing to even more blogs
  • I'm pretty excited about the ideas I have for future posts
  • I will definitely participate in Blogiesta again 

12 comments:

Esme said...

I have not figured out the importance of folllowers-I get asked this question a lot when someone wants me to review an item but then I tell them I do not keep track and that is the end of that and the product is sent to me-I would sooner have loyal followers who visit because they like the blog vs. follow to win a prize and never see them again. I guess what I am saying is that I like being connected with people as opposed to the one time drop in.

I cannot figure out google analytics either.

Anonymous said...

Great job on Bloggiesta. I think your blog looks great. I took your poll too. Keep up the great work.

Lisa said...

On the Main page at Book Blogs ning, ride hand side there is a box that shows the badge with a link that says "Get Badge." Click on that and you can select what you want the badge to look like. At the bottom it gives you a box that says "embed code." Copy that. Then on your "Edit: Layout" page on blogger, click on one of the Add A Gadge boxes, click on the HTML/JavaScript option and paste that code into that box. Then click save. You can move that gadget where ever you want it on your page then.

Jennifer said...

What kind of code are you trying to retrieve from Analytics? I have a hard time with it, too. My stats are always way off, compared with Sitemeter. I don't get it! If I can help, email me at js1997@gmail.com and I will try!!

Jennifer said...

Oh and with your poll, make the width of it smaller so you can see the results after voting! Go into the code for the poll, find "width" somewhere and adjust it until it shows how you want it to!

Kerry said...

Sounds like you've been busy! I'm trying to figure out how to track the number of RSS subscribers, at the moment. Any insight?

bibliophiliac said...

Esme, thanks for your comment. I agree, but I also still want many, many loyal and devoted followers who read and comment! ;)

bibliophiliac said...

Senora G, thanks for stopping by! And Lisa, I will try it again! Jennifer, I feel like I've had a celebrity sighting! Thanks for your help!

bibliophiliac said...

Kerry, I just subscribed to my own blog on Google Reader. Then, when I have my blog up on Google Reader, I click on "show details" in the upper right hand corner, and it tells how many subscribers I have.

Judith said...

Thank you for visiting "Reader in the Wilderness." I'm excited to discover your blog and am looking forward to your posts and blog revisions!

Judith

B said...

Are you trying to retrieve your tracking code from google analytics and put it in your html? It took me like 2 hours to figure out but I've had to redo it a couple times (when I redesign my blog) so I'm pretty familiar with it now. If you want me to write you a breakdown email me! bkalmer@gmail.com

avisannschild said...

I recommend you create a favicon as well, which it turns out is super easy. Your typewriter image would totally work. (I'm in love with my new favicon and inordinately pleased with myself for having created it finally!)

I took your poll too -- I have trouble believing any book blogger has fewer than 30 books in their TBR pile (but that's probably because there are literally 100s of unread books in my house!).