Friday, June 1, 2012

Upcoming Event: Blogoversary Giveaway: Four Weeks, Four Genres



Hi everyone!

June 20th will mark the fourth year for this blog, and to celebrate I'm doing a Blogoversary Giveaway Event throughout the month of June!

The first giveaway won't start until Monday, and will run until Sunday at midnight. Then giveaway two will start the following Monday, ending the following Sunday, and then...well, you get the point.

There will be a total of four giveaways, the last one ending July 1st. Winners will be announced after each giveaway, and prizes will be sent all at once (so not until after the end of the last giveaway).

There will be more than just the giveaways, though. I'll also be posting different things each day that tie into the giveaway post. Each week highlights a different genre I read, so posts might include reviews (old and new); spotlights on various books, authors or series; one post a week where I ask for your recommendations for that genre; and of course my weekly Lusting For Cover post. A few bloggers are stopping by to join the fun, as well as various authors. There may even be a few extra giveaways thrown in...

So let's get this party started, shall we? Spread the word, tell your friends--a blog post, no matter the content, is just words on a screen if no one's commenting and talking about it! :)

Grab my blogoversary graphic (above) and put it where ever you want--but please, link back to my blog. :)


*Thank you, Adria (from Breath of Life Reviews and More!), for making the two graphics for me--they look awesome! :) *


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TBQ's Book Palace over the years:


When I first started this blog, well, I'll be honest--it was a bit pathetic. Obviously I had no followers yet, very few that stopped by to comment, and for the longest time I was simply posting things...and I really think I was the only one reading them. But that's how any blog works when it first starts. :)


My reviews were pretty much only about books I owned, books I had picked up to read myself. It would be quite a while before I received my first review request, and the few ARCs I reviewed in that first year were ones I won on giveaways or from LT's Early Reviewer program. I still don't get a ton of requests, but I have slowly built up a few since then, and I'm proud of each and every one! :)

Let's not even talk about the content of those old reviews...*shudders* Let us just leave it at "Did I write that?" and move on. Really, it's best if you never read my old reviews; it might scare you away from the blog for good! Some days, I seriously consider just deleting them. Or revising them. And then I get lazy and they stay, just the way they are. *sigh*.

Now I'm participating in blog tours, hosting a few authors now and then, writing more reviews for books I'm sent to review than books I actually own. I've since signed up as a reviewer for NightOwlReviews, where I've been doing reviews for, I think, 3 years. I've had my review quoted in one book (read more about it here), and a few that I've reviewed for NOR have also been quoted (read more about it here).

I started the weekly meme, Lusting for Covers, and I hope you've enjoyed the drool-worthy covers as much as I have. I plan on continuing this post for years to come, and I hope you join the fun every week! :)

I've met a ton of great people, fellow readers, bloggers, and authors, who all share my love of all things books! In other words, I've had a blast!

It hasn't been easy, and I've had more than a few problems (from Blogger errors, to computer failures, family issues to personal health problems), but I've managed to keep the blog going, even if it's had it's slow spots. This may be my fourth year, but I'm just getting started!

And while I have improved and upgraded the blog since 2008, it still has a long way to go. It's slow going, since I have no real talent with graphics or layout, but I've had a few helpers (thanks!) and I do plan on doing a complete redesign sometime soon!

But this blog isn't about me.

Oh sure, I'm the one posting, and the opinions are mine. But I post because of you. Because I want to share my love of a book--or my dislike of it-- with you. I want to know what you're reading, if you've already read a book I mention, and what your thoughts were. I want to see your L4C for the week, and hear about any books you received in the mail. Without you, my readers, this blog would be nothing but words I type up. Without your comments and likes and follows, what good do my reviews or discussions do?

Whether you are a new reader or one of the few that has been around since the beginning, I want to say a big thank you! Because, truly, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't do this. And if I didn't have the blog, and all the great friends I've found from it, I think I'd go nuts sitting here at home, with no one in my area to talk to about the books I read.

 THANK YOU!

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Now to the boring rules and info:


Giveaway 1 (Historical) will go live on Monday, and the rest of the week will be filled with various posts, so please be sure to check back!

The weekly giveaways this month are all for US residents only. Sorry!

But I will do ONE international giveaway for the event; as long as Book Depository offers free delivery to your country, you're welcome to enter that giveaway. It will go live Monday as well (separate post) and will run until the last day, July 1st.

To enter any of the giveaways, you must leave a comment on the entry page for that week AND fill out at least the first option of the Rafflecopter on that page (follow the blog).

There are a ton of extra entries on the Rafflecopter each week--they are completely optional!

But if you do the optional entries, please know that I do check. So if you put down that you commented on a certain post, but there is no comment from you (before the giveaway ends), I will delete that entry.

If there are any problems, issues with the entry form or Blogger not showing your comments--please email me!


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Here is my question to you, dear readers: What do you want to see more of on TBQ's Book Palace? What do you want to see less of? Is there something about my blog/layout/reviews that bothers you--and if there is, please, be honest! And even if there isn't something "wrong" with it, is there something that you'd rather see changed or improved?

I really want to know what your thoughts are on it, and if you have an idea or suggestion on how I can improve, please tell me, either in the comment section or by emailing me. :)



Enjoy!



Until Next Time,
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*TBQ's Book Palace is a member of both the Amazon and Barnes and Nobles affiliates program. By using the links provided to buy products from either website, I receive a very small percentage of the order. To read my full disclosure on the matter, please see this post!

7 comments :

Kathleen O said...

COngrats on a great blog.. I just recently was introduced to your blog a few months ago.. It has introduced me to new and exciting authors I have never read before.. I think you do a good job... Keep it up..

The_Book_Queen said...

:) Thanks for the kind words, Kathleen! I'm so glad that you've been able to find new authors--that means I'm doing my "job". :D

I hope you keep coming back!

Enjoy,
TBQ

Unknown said...

Congrats!!! I will post your graphic up on my blog!! Have a great weekend!! :)

Adria's Musings said...

Wow, it's great to read about how you started, since I obviously haven't been around very long. It's encouraging to know that slow and steady is how you have to start.

I'll be promoting your giveaway as soon as it starts, on my blog, twitter, facebook and as soon as I get other outlets set up I'll promote it there.

The_Book_Queen said...

Thanks, hon! :) Hope your weekend is great, too!

Enjoy,
TBQ

The_Book_Queen said...

I've only seen one or two who start a blog and overnight it's a hit. Great. But let's be realistic, it's not always that way, and it does take time and work to do. :)

Thank you! :) Graphic creater and promoter--you sure I shouldn't be paying you? LOL.

Enjoy!
TBQ

Adria's Musings said...

Aww, I don't mind promoting and making graphics is good practice for me. Plus you've been so nice to me and as a new blogger that really means a lot to me.

Adria