Sunday 6 May 2018

Nerd Church - Viral Reading





Are you ready to be a Bookish Rebel? Cos we're gonna shake sh** up today! 😉





girl reading as dragons, light, smoke, etc. emerges from the book





I love my blogging friends - but you weren't originally who I was aiming my brain babbling at (But I still love you!!!! Never leave me!!!! *tugs at your sleeves to stop you going*)

No, when this blog started, it's half-formed, characteristically-vague, ideal was to spread reading like a positive plague across the globe - I wanted, and still want, to make READING go viral.









That means, my dearest nerdlets, that I truly appreciate all of you - both from the blogging and non-blogging sides of life.

I wish I knew more about what you non-blogging folks like/think though! And you bloggers from other niches/categories. Everyone's welcome here! XD

Remember you can always talk to me on social media or comment on Dora Reads - you don't need an account to comment, you can put in a name, or comment as Anonymous (but don't use that as an excuse to act like a douche.)

Don't be surprised if my replies are awkward af though - it's definitely me, not you!









If you just wanna read my stuff - then that's ok too!

I'm not the sort of person to try and force interaction.

Sometimes you just wanna read a post and nothing else - and that's ok. 😄








What do you think is the best way to spread the love of reading my nerdlets?

I know that leading by example - talking books, reading books, reviewing books, hyping books - is one of the best ways to make things spread.

And I know so many awesome people who are doing just that (keep it up dearest nerdlets!)








Diversity is also the way to go.

Diversity is the reality of making reading something for EVERYONE. Diverse books make reading something that welcomes the world in - as it should.









We also need to be less precious.

I love you, dearest, dearest, nerdlets, but some of you have little quirks which you think everyone should follow.








If you don't want to dog-ear then don't! But people who dog-ear are not 'monsters.'

I don't tend to dog-ear, but neither am I particularly bothered about other people doing it.

My books are not pristine - many of them look like they've been dragged through a dense forest on a string behind me. (Rumours that this may actually be the case are unfounded... maybe.)

I carry books around in my handbag, and ain't nothin' coming out of there in as good condition as it went in. There's at least three demons in there, I swear.

I don't care about having series of the same edition/covers. I will pick up a series in the middle. Etc. etc.
















I worry that sometimes people are put off from the online and/or offline bookishness by the trappings - the little stuff that becomes the big stuff for reasons I struggle to fathom.

Genre wars. Fandom wars. Ship wars. E-book vs print. New vs second-hand. YA vs MG (middle grade) vs Adult. Fanfiction vs original work. Indie vs mainstream publishing.








Plus there's the endless string of acronyms that it's physically impossible to keep up with - how are people who aren't online 24/7 supposed to know the difference between TBW and a TBR?!

(Please don't come at me for that example.)

It's ok to use acronyms - of course it is! But I don't want us to get so caught up in lingo that we alienate people we could be enticing into the realms of bookishness.

And I want to make it perfectly clear, right here, right now - IF YOU EVER DON'T UNDERSTAND SOMETHING I SAID, JUST ASK.

Honestly, between the bookish slang,  the fandom slang, the Welsh/Wenglish slang, the British slang, and the random-a** cr*p I come out with all by myself, it's amazing that anyone ever understands a thing I say 😅









I think the book-blogging/bookish online community needs to do more to spread reading - we need to reach out to people who aren't big readers.

Because it's ok to only read one book a year. It's ok if your shelves look like there was some sort of natural disaster - even if there wasn't.

It's ok if you don't give a sh** about pictures upon pictures of books... I love you guys, but I will never get the appeal of Bookstagram (bookish Instagram) - you've seen one pic of books, you've pretty much seen them all.

Likewise, it's ok to read hundreds of books a year. It's ok to obsess over getting your shelves to look pretty (within reason - please remember to sleep, eat, go outside, etc!)

It's ok if you absolutely adore bookstagram. It's ok if you don't get why I don't get it.







To sum up:


  • Reading is for EVERYONE

  • If non-bloggers wanna talk to me - I'm here!

  • Read YOUR way - that's what matters

  • We need to make room for every sort of reading, and every sort of reader, in our online community/communities

  • Diversity is essential for the growth of reading as a pastime, hobby, way of life, whatever

  • Reading is something we need to spread to the whole damn world! 😈💖









My 'To sum up' points as an infographic with books as bullet points












So, my nerdlets, are you with me? Do you think we need to do more to attract non-readers? Do you have any ideas for tempting people into reading? Talk to me! 💬😊









You can follow me on Twitter @CeeDoraReads, on Dora Reads @ BlogLovin, and on Google+. For more ways to support me, check out the Support Me page






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18 comments:

  1. This was a very interesting post that I definitely agree with, Cee! Even I feel like I’m not up on the new book blogging lingo sometimes. I know my sister, who is a non book reader and definitely not an avid reader, has told me that the book community seems to her a bit “exclusive” and unwelcome. I definitely think there needs to be less judgement in this community.

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  2. This was a very interesting post that I definitely agree with, Cee! Even I feel like I’m not up on the new book blogging lingo sometimes. I know my sister, who is a non book reader and definitely not an avid reader, has told me that the book community seems to her a bit “exclusive” and unwelcome. I definitely think there needs to be less judgement in this community.

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    1. Sorry typo: **I meant she’s a non book blogger!

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    2. Yes! Like, I don't mind slang - it's a natural part of language and shared interests, but we need to be careful that we *don't* alienate people and make ourselves seem unwelcoming!

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  3. Yes the acronyms and lingo! Can be confusing for some, especially when starting out. You're right though, everyone needs t obe welcomed! I like how you worded that. :)

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    1. Thank you :)

      Like I said, acronyms and lingo is fine, but I think we get a little carried away sometimes! XD

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  4. I also wonder if I have any followers who silently enjoy my posts but never comment and aren't bloggers. I'd like to do more posts that non-bloggers can enjoy, but I'm never really sure *what* types of posts that is. To be honest though, I guess my blog is not aimed at non-readers? But I try to be conscious of not getting too deep in the lingo so as to alienate people who are new to the online reading community. And as you mentioned, some people do get a tad overexcited about their ways of doing things. I've also noticed sometimes people don't realize that not everyone has the resources or access or money or whatever, and that can feel a bit alienating as well, even to other book lovers and bloggers!

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    1. I think non-bloggers tend to be interested in much the same thing - just less about blogging! Lol. I think the odd post which takes things 'back to basics' - how to read more, what's good about X genre/author/whatever, would also not go amiss. The reason I focus a lot on comics and fanfiction (well, one of the reasons - I never seem to have just *one* reason for anything) is that it's such a great route into reading for so many people!

      And yes, I find that especially with people who seem to buy loooooads of books - and loads of editions of loads of books. I don't have that kinda money! Lol. Also, International bloggers/readers have different book release dates, so we might wait for months for something that's already out in the US. (And don't get me started on Americans spoilering TV shows and films that haven't been released elsewhere yet!)

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  5. Ok this is by far definitely the longest comment I have ever made! XD

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    1. Ok... I'll read it when you re-post it! (I don't mind rambling - I do it enough on everyone else's blog.)

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    2. oh you are always so sweet I think I was especially mumbly yesterday because of some events happening so hopefully I can post a most coherent and short one soon LOL

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    3. No worries! Life scrambles my brain all the time! Lol. <3

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  6. Yes, I agree with you, Cee. I think the bookish community can be a little confusing for non-bloggers and there is a lot of pressure to read loads of books really fast. As someone who juggles full time work and childcare, I only have time to read one book a week maximum, so I sometimes feel like I don't belong with the bloggers who read hundreds of books a year. But I've come to learn that it isn't a competition and it should just be something you love doing. I think it's a great idea to try to get non-readers more interested in books, but it's tricky to entice them over to our blogs. I think they sometimes come over from Facebook and Pinterest if you post interesting content there. Maybe writing posts about bookish slang or books to read if you're not a big reader would help. Love them or hate them, series like The Hunger Games, Twilight and Fifty Shades of Grey have introduced a love of reading to people who otherwise weren't that interested in books, so perhaps recommendations based on similar books would also get people interested.

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    1. Hey, a book a week is still waaaay more than a lot of people read! The numbers should really only be personal targets - we're not trying to beat each other!

      I haven't got Facebook or Pinterest atm actually! I've been trying to expand my blog's social media slowly so that I don't get overwhelmed - so far so good! :)

      Yes! There's nothing wrong with talking about popular books. I think it's better to do so if you actually like them though - cos otherwise your dislike's gonna shine through to the reader! This is one of the reasons I love book-to-film adaps though - they get way more people into reading! XD

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Comments? I love comments! Talk to me nerdlets!