Category: Site Announcements
Guest Posting Today: Another Fairytale Retelling
Today I’m posting over at 20four12 and yes, it’s another fairytale retelling. At least Entwined by Heather Dixon is a retelling of the twelve dancing princesses, something you don’t see very often. Did Heather Dixon pull off the fairytale? Or was it yet another failure? Go on and check it out!
The Best and Worst of October
Well it hasn’t exactly been a record-smashing month like September was, but in comparing it to my normal stats, everything is up since August. In October I received 5,421 views, as compared to 4,846 in August. That’s not bad because I’m only around 1,500 views down from September, which more than makes up the difference Anne Rice’s publicity gave me. Now let’s look at which articles received the most traffic, shall we?
2. The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton
3. The Hunger Games and Ancient Rome
5. Ark Angel by Anthony Horowitz
Okay, I completely understand the first four being on the list. I mean, most of my traffic is from search engines and looking at the search terms makes me suspect it’s mostly kids doing homework for novel study. But what is with Ark Angel‘s sudden appearance? There seems to be a resurgence in the now finished Alex Rider series, although I’ll likely never know why. But why Ark Angel in particular? It’s the sixth of nine books.
I’ll be puzzling over that for a while, so let’s take a look at the five worst articles in October.
1. Pretties by Scott Westerfeld
2. YA News and Upcoming Releases
3. The Iron Legends by Julie Kagawa
4. Nefertiti by Michelle Moran
5. Genghis: Bones of the Hills by Conn Iggulden
Okay, I can see ‘YA News and Upcoming Releases’ placing on here. I wrote it ages ago and those kinds of articles don’t age well. However, what is with Julie Kagawa’s Iron Legends anthology placing on the worst list? Has all the hype for it died down now that The Lost Prince has been released? Who knows? The good thing is that while the best articles seem to be consistent, the worst articles seem to rotate. Well, except for ‘YA News and Upcoming Releases’.
So how was October for everyone? Stats-wise and life-wise.
Guest Posting at The Streetlight Reader
Today I’m guest posting over at The Streetlight Reader. Once again I’ve stepped outside my comfort zone and read a girl empowerment book by Gail Carson Levine: Ella Enchanted, a Cinderella retelling. It’s fantasy, but it also carries some very powerful messages that all young girls should learn. Go on and check it out! And while you’re there, check out the other books Savindi has reviewed; the books she reads are very different from what I normally read and review.
At 20four12 Today
Well, by the time you’re reading this I’m on the road travelling, but for posting purposes today I’m posting at 20four12. I went outside Caleb’s usual reviewing material and chose to review Fairest by Gail Carson Levine, a great story for young girls who are struggling with their self-esteem. It’s also a great story for older girls and women who struggle with their body-image. So go on over and check it out! While you’re at it, check out what Caleb usually reviews. He has read more science fiction in one year than I will likely ever read!
My Commenting Policy
In case you didn’t know, during my 3 day hiatus a couple of weeks back, I updated my comment policy. I know most people don’t check this tab regularly (and in all honesty, why should they?), so whenever I change the guidelines I’ll be posting them here on my main page. Here they are:
“Everything on my blog is my own opinion, except for comments made by others (which are theirs). I try to be a fair and light-handed moderator, but any spamming or trolling will be deleted without a moment’s hesitation. Here are some general guidelines to read before you comment:
1. Feel free to debate with me or any other commenters. However, your comment will be deleted if the debate degenerates into personal attacks, bigotry and/or racism, sexism, etc.
2. No swearing in the comments! I try to keep my blog as family friendly as possible, as it is a YA blog.
3. Don’t say anything in the comments you wouldn’t say in front of the person you respect most in real life.
4. Stay on topic.
5. No one is perfect, but do try to use proper grammar and check your spelling. I am constantly amazed by the superior quality of commenting on my blog and I would like to keep things this way.
Any violations of these policies can result in deleted comments, temporary suspensions or a permanent commenting ban. The degree of violation is what determines your punishment. Minor infractions = chastisement, edited or deleted comments. Major infractions = suspensions or bans.”
Lately I’ve received some one-liner comments in which a person says “Great article I totally agree!” and gives a link to their site. This is not acceptable. It is shameless self-promotion and in the future I will be calling people out on it. In the past, I simply deleted the whole comment, but from now on I will be deleting the link to your page (in your comment and profile) and adding in one of my own editing comments. Don’t you appreciate the special treatment? Not everyone takes time to embarrass trolls personally.
Despite this slightly annoying one-liner trend, as I state in my actual policy, I am constantly amazed at the quality of comments I receive. For the most part, they are well thought out and bring up some very good points on both articles and book reviews. The excellent grammar and spelling are also very much appreciated, since everyone here knows that those are two of my biggest pet peeves.
I really do appreciate the thought and time people put into comments. Thanks guys. You’re awesome.
A note on tomorrow: On Saturday it is my birthday. My birthday is the only day out of any given year I will ever stray away from my book discussion/reviewing mandate. The article tomorrow has a bit of bad language and is on a topic I feel very strongly about. This isn’t going to be your typical Mad Reviewer-style rant; it’s sort of a throwback to an article I wrote a few years ago on the same topic, which caused the proverbial crap to hit the fan. If you get offended easily, I would advise you to not check in on Saturday. Trust me, it’s for the best.