Interviewed by Another Blogger - What?

Mieneke from A Fantastical Librarian invited me to answer some questions about me, my interest in genre fiction, and blogging. I was all too happy to reply, because let's be honest, who doesn't like talking about themselves?

She asked a lot of questions, but the one I found most fascinating was, "How do you think blogs and reviewers fit in the book business?" I've written about the topic at some length before, but I think my answer sheds some more light on where I stand.

With the decline of the bookstore the vast majority of people moving forward will buy their books on-line. Decline in bookstores, means a decline in conversation between two people who love books. Ask anyone out there, what's the best way to sell books? Their answer is always, "Word of mouth." Well what happens when people stop running into each other in the stacks? When book store employees aren't there to recommend stuff? When book clubs stop meeting in person? The answer is blogs. Blogs are the new conversation. 

Did we ever imagine even ten years ago that on-line dating would be acceptable? That it would become one of the primary ways by which the modern single thirty something meets other modern single thirty somethings? No way! That shit was fringe! In that same way, I think publishers are slow to recognize the importance of blogs now and in the future. I don't think blogs today are a major reason in to whether or not a book is a success. But, that's changing. Moving forward their importance is only going to grow. Amazon and Goodreads will always be the Match.com of book conversation. But, if the publishers want the blogging equivalent of eHarmony, a network of people who target specific readers, they're going to need to start interacting with and treating blogs like major outlets. Because like it or not, we're the word of mouth in a digital age.

What do you think?

Read the interview in it's entirety at A Fantastical Librarian!