Interview with Book Blogger Neena Paul from Kindle and Kompass

Blogging

Interview with Neena Paul from Kindle and Kompass

Disclosure: The FTC Disclosure Provision is a law that requires influencers to disclose when they are being paid to promote a product or service. So please know that if I'm not making money through affiliate links/sponsored content on the post you're currently reading, it's an oversight on my part and will be corrected soon. Read the full disclosure about all the legal stuff here.

For today's Book Blogger Interview join me in giving a warm welcome to Neena Paul from Kindle and Kompass

Party Time GIF from Themask GIFs

Introduce yourself. Who are you? Where are you from? and Where do you blog?

I am Neena and I currently live in Detroit area in Michigan. I moved here about 3 years ago from Bangalore, India. I am originally from the state of Kerala in India. I blog at a shared space started between me and my friend Rama Vani at www.kindleandkompass.com. We were friends since college and have known each other for the last 15 years. She lives in Chennai, India. We blog about books, travel and occasionally some personal/motivational writings. You can read more about us here (https://kindleandkompass.com/about/)

Why and how do you blog? What made you start?

We started blogging primarily because between us books and travels were a constant topic because that’s something that was close to our heart. We were also often asked by our friends on travel tips and book recommendations. So, we thought, why not we put it out somewhere for people to read if it helps them.

How long have you been blogging?

Our blog is relatively new. We started it about 10 months ago. Because we also work full time IT jobs, this is something we try to do during our extra hours.

What advice do you wish you'd had when you started?

I wish we had started this much earlier. We have been reading books from a very young age but it just took so long to put those into something useful like a blog. But then there is a time for everything!

How much time do you devote to blogging each day/week/month?

Like I mentioned, this is a shared space between two of us who also manage full time IT jobs. So, we mostly spend after work hours or weekends to get the content ready. We read on a daily basis, so between both of us, we manage to have at least 2 book reviews per month. And because there is two of us, it is probably a tad easier than having to do it all alone.

How often do you post to your blog?

Over the last 10 months, we managed to have about 50 posts up on the blog. We schedule our posts to go out every Thursday morning IST hours. Occasionally, we do more than one posts a week. That happens when we post about non- book/travel related posts.

What motivates you to keep blogging about books?

The fact that we are able to encourage more people into the habit of reading and providing book suggestions to enthusiasts is a great motivating factor to keep writing reviews. It is also a way to keep track of what we have read and what we liked the most. We also regularly post our reviews to GoodReads.

Interview with Neena Paul from Kindle and Kompass #BookBlogger #BookBlogging

Is there something you wish authors knew about your blog or blogging?

It would be nice for us to have more opportunities to work with authors and fellow reviewers. We are new to this space and still learning the multiple avenues of blogging and author interactions. There is a lot to learn from established bloggers.

What's your most popular blog post?

We recently published our 50^th blog post which became an instant hit among our readers. We shared about how we find time to do all these things that we have come to love – books travel and fitness. It probably struck a chord with the readers. We heard a lot of feedback on how everyone loved it. Here is the link to this post - https://kindleandkompass.com/2018/07/05/finding-time-for-the-things-you-love/

Do you write reviews for every book you read?

We almost try to review every book that we read. If the books are small, we try to club them together into a single review or a wrap up post – like this one here https://kindleandkompass.com/2018/06/04/books-to-add-to-your-reading-shelf-this-summer/

We try to keep notes as we are reading about the characters and major twists and so it becomes easy for us to review them later on.

How many book reviews do you normally do a week?

We normally do about 2-3 book reviews a month. Because we stick to a weekly schedule of publishing on Thursdays we end up having drafts written long before but not published yet – something that we are trying to change.

What genres are your favourites?

We are both lovers of fiction. I started my reading journey with Harry Potter and since then there was no looking back. We also enjoy reading autobiographies, contemporary fiction and classics like Jane Austen.

What are you currently reading and why did you choose to read it?

I am currently reading “A Mid-Summer Night’sDream” by William Shakespeare. As for why, I don’t believe an answer to that is needed because it is one among the world greatest works by Shakespeare. I wasn’t sure if I will be able to read it, but now that I started I am totally used to the style with which is written and the characters are beautiful.

Do you have any plans for your blog in the future?

We are slowly learning the SEO techniques and the very large platform that blogging is – something we did not realise until we started out on this journey. We hope to learn and associate with fellow bloggers and continue creating content that is mutually rewarding to us and our readers.

You might also like:

Interview with Megan from Ginger Mom and the Kindle Quest

Book Review: Pressure by Betsy Reavley

A Bookish Summer Blog Hop: Bookmarks or Dog Ears?

30 Book Blogs To Follow

Top 5 Places for Free Books

Blogging

Interview with Jess from Jess Bookish Life

Today I'm interviewing Jess from Jess Bookish Life as part of my book blogger interviews series.

Miles Jai Miles Jai Productions GIF from Milesjai GIFs

Introduce yourself. Who are you? Where are you from? and Where do you blog?

My name is Jéssica, most of my friends call me Jess, and I’m from a small town in Portugal. I’m 23 (24 in October) and I’m a Social Educator, reader, reviewer, blogger and aspiring writer. My blog is Jess Bookish Life (https://jessbookishlife.wordpress.com).

Why and how do you blog? What made you start?

I have always been a big reader, but I never really reviewed much. I always had the goal to do more reviews of the books I was reading and maybe start a blog, and that’s what I did this January. I blog because I want to connect with people and talk about books and bookish related subjects, and I wanted to have a place to do that.

How long have you been blogging?

I have been blogging since January 2018, and it’s been such a fun journey.

What advice do you wish you'd had when you started?

“Don’t stress, just have fun.” In the very beginning I wasn’t that confidence about my post and I would get a bit stressed about it.

How much time do you devote to blogging each day/week/month?

It depends on the weeks. Since I started my blog, my life was chaotic because I was finishing school and getting my degree. Still, I would try to devote a couple of hours a week (more during the weekend) to blogging. Now, I have more time and I try to prepare posts every day, even if it just to put down some ideas.

How often do you post to your blog?

Some weeks I post almost every day. If I have joined blog tours I may have more posts to do. But I try to post at least three or four times a week

What motivates you to keep blogging about books?

I love books! That’s it. Talking about books is fun to me and getting to share that with others is what motivates me to keep blogging and keep finding ways to connect to people.

Is there something you wish authors knew about your blog or blogging?

Never thought about that. I have a lot of author friends and they like my reviews. So, I suppose I just hope other authors see that I’m being honest with the reviews and that I truly love books and I’m just happy to be able to blog about it.

What's your most popular blog post?

So far it’s the first book in my Guest Posts feature, “Guest Post: Take Care of Yourself, and the Rest Will Follow by Frankie Reviews”, and “The Penance List” review post.

Do you write reviews for every book you read?

I’m trying to. So far, since starting my blog, that’s what I have been doing.

How many book reviews do you normally do a week?

It depends on the weeks and my free time. I’m always reading, and sometimes I just take notes, so I can write the review later, if I can’t do it right after I finish the book. Three or four books a week, maybe.

What genres are your favourites?

Paranormal, Fantasy, Contemporary Romance, are some of my favourite.

What are you currently reading and why did you choose to read it?

I’m reading two books right now. The Handmaid’s Tale, since it’s the book the book club I’m in choose; and I’m reading my friend’s poetry book “Sincerely, Me”.

Do you have any plans for your blog in the future?