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There used to be a rather hearty debate online about what exactly defines a blog. What sets a blog apart from a webpage or magazine or other online format?

This is not one of those posts. Instead, it is just my pixelated version of asking the question: to be successful at blogging do you need to read and comment on blogs?

I think if you want a certain amount of traffic and influence the answer is yes.  And this has presented me with a more and more pressing dilemma.

Because I don’t really read a lot of book or literary blogs anymore; and almost never comment if I happen to stumble upon a post. Basically, my free time has been squeezed by work and family and I have a limited amount of true free time. Since I love to read, books take up a chunk of that time.

Much of the time I have left gets eaten up by social media; Facebook, twitter, etc.  In fact, any blog reading I do will usually come from links found at these sources.  Add in the fact that I have a wide variety of interests (I not only read a lot of different genres plus non-fiction, but I also focus on issues like sports, politics, and faith. This means a lot of people to follow and information to process which creates a dangerous time suck.

More and more this means very little blog reading and no commenting to speak of.

I think this does a couple of things. First, it limits my traffic. I am not really part of a community of bloggers anymore and so few people know about this blog or have an interest in what I say.  When I was engaged in the lit blog world, I had debates, left comments and generally had a sense of a larger group.

Except via Twitter to some degree, I don’t have this sense anymore and it impacts the site traffic. The vast majority of traffic comes via search engines with a little from direct links and social media.

I am not complaining. Really, I am not – I haven’t put in the hard work that builds traffic and I know this; neither am I some natural genius when it comes to reviews. I am just noting this as part of my thoughts on the subject.

The other thing it impact is comments on this blog. When you frequently comment on other blogs people are much more likely to comment on yours. Again, because you are part of a community and engaged in the debates and discussion they entail. And because of a natural sense of reciprocity.

A perfect example of this engagement is the young adult books debate I have posted on a couple of times lately. These post have much high traffic and have comments because they are part of something more than just my stream of conscience book reviews. They engage an ongoing conversation and touch on what others have written.

The irony here is that it is unlikely I am going to change my habits much. I just like reading books more than blogs. And if I have to sacrifice something it is going to be blogs not books.

Allow me to apologize in advance for not reading your blog, or commenting on it, but if you have something to share about this post please leave a comment (be sure to post your URL so I can come and visit).

As I have noted before, the fine folks over at NetGalley operate sort of like an open bar for alcoholics. People who just don’t have enough books to read can get a hold of even more!  I kid, of course, as it is a very convenient way to get review copies without making your TBR pile even more of a fire hazard.

Speaking of which, one such digital galley I picked up was The Social Media Marketing Book by Dan Zarrella. Since social media plays a big role in my “day job” I thought it would be worth checking out.

It turned out to be a useful approach but a very basic introduction. A useful and easy to read book for those just looking to explore social media marketing and want to know how to get started.

More after the jump.

It is a quick read well organized. Each chapter tackles a subject and then reviews the high points with bullet point takeaways. It covers all the major areas: Blogs, Twitter (and other micro-blogging tools), social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace & LinkedIn, Media sharing sites like YouTube, Flickr, etc., forums and review sites, and even virtual worlds like Second Life. And it includes  chapters on important strategies and tactics as well a measuring how you are achieving the goals you set.

This is the type of book you could hand to a colleague or friend who was interested in getting started using social media in their marketing but was basically a novice (little to no real experience).

The problem comes for those who have more experience. If you have been on Twitter and Facebook and have used YouTube and Flickr this book is going to seem real basic to you. I can see the value in putting all this basic information in one book and helping you get organized in your approach – or thinking about these sites and tools with a marketing mindset. And there might be an area where you have less experience that this book could fill the gap while serving as a refresher course on the others.

As is often the case, the publisher might be guilty of a bit of hyperbole when it claims

Whether you’re a seasoned pro or new to the social web, this book will take you beyond the jargon to social media marketing mastery.

I think that is a stretch. If you are a “seasoned pro” this book is far too basic and if you are seeking “mastery” this book is really jut an introduction.

As I said above, it is a well done introduction and a useful handbook to get started but if yo uare looking for more detailed strategies or techniques this is not the book for you.

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I asked the following question on Twitter and then realized the 140 character limit might make it hard to answer:

What  are 5 book/literary blogs you think are under-appreciated? And 5 that you couldn’t live without?

So consider this post a chance to answer the question with as many characters as you need.

(Don’t be shy, feel free to recommend yourself.)

Well, David Pogue (and his 500,000 followers) takes a shot at an explanation via example in The World According to Twitter.  Here is the publisher’s explanation of the book:

New York Times technology columnist David Pogue has tapped into the brilliance of his half-million followers on Twitter by posting a different, thought-provoking question every night. The questions ranged from the earnest (“What’s your greatest regret?”) to the creative (“Make up a concept for a doomed TV show”) to the curious (“What’s your great idea to improve the cell phone?”). Out of 25,000 tweets, Pogue has gathered the very best 2,524 into this irresistible, clever, laugh-out-loud funny book. The World According to Twitter is truly a grand social networking experiment, in which thousands of voices have come together to produce a unique and wonderful record of shared human experience.

Whether you think a book like this is worth ten bucks or not is highly subjective of course.  Your sense of humor and taste in general will determine how valuable you find a collection like this to be. (I received a free copy of this book so make of that what you will. Hi, FTC!)

But one thing I like about the book is that it highlights how creative and interactive Twitter can be.  There are probably a great many folks who just tweet mundane happenings in their lives, and there are obviously a fair amount of spammers and hacks, but there are also a great many funny, creative, and insightful people.

By asking questions and reproducing the best responses Pogue has produced a paper trail as it were illustrating this brighter side of the Twitter phenomenon.  From movie sequels and prequels to puns and jokes to real life expriences people find a way to pack quite a punch into 140 characters or less.

Part humor, part sociology, part folk art, part social networking The World According to Twitter is an interesting slice of culture while at the same time an explanation for the popularity and often addictive nature of Twitter.

I suspect that when somebody says that blogging had a “golden age,” the person means that there was a time (circa 2002) when it felt new and exciting, and the media wanted to do stories about it, and some people got a lot of attention really quickly (book deals! movie options!), and everybody got to have lively discussions and post pictures of puppies or argue about string theory, and it was a thrill because we all had a brand-new toy to play with and we knew who was reading us and we were finally, finally, getting some interesting e-mail. That moment has passed, so it’s easy for media folk to say blogging is old hat and move on to the new. But blogging remains a valid form, and Twitter is no replacement for it. (Twitter is more a supplemental form, I think—a supplement to a supplement.) What other online format besides blogging allows people to write at various lengths, distribute to a wide audience, and spark conversations? I suppose Facebook might qualify, but it’s a poor vehicle for lengthy, considered thought, and its system is designed to push your ideas only to your closest friends. If blogging is over, nobody’s created a suitable replacement for what blogging does.

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