Monday, May 21

Book Blogger Confessions: 5/21

Question for  Monday May 21st:

Memes. Love em or hate em? How many do you participate in? Which kinds do you like best? Do you feel like there are too many?

Memes, memes, MEMES!!!
In the beginning I sought out memes and added my two cents when the topic struck my interest. It was nice to have people come along and comment on my two cents. But I started to notice something about the comments. It seemed that people were using the memes as an advertising campaign. So many of the comments would contain only links back to their blog. It felt a bit pushy. I am a bit of a rebel and I tend to do the opposite of what is expected. So my interest in memes started to dwindle. Another reason my interest dropped off is a time issue. I had to decide if I wanted to spend all my time posting memes or reading and reviewing books. Sure I need to socialize and connect better with the blogging community but I am not so sure memes is the answer. 

Well, I am participating in this meme. I also post an In My Mailbox/My Reading Pile and Waiting on Wednesday. There are several others I have participated in over the past year but they just didn't stick. I even tried to start my own meme but couldn't stay consistent or get others to participate.

When it comes to memes it must spark my interest. Like these conversation posts. I am not good at putting together weekly top ten lists or quotes. It must be something that I regularly. Such as the mail and waiting posts.

Are there too many memes? Is that possible? YES! When I stumble upon individuals on Twitter worrying about being able to keep up with all the popular memes I know it has gone too far. 

But my biggest question is this: 
What is the purpose of memes for book blogs and book bloggers? 

Why do we do them? 
Are they a social tool to get to know each other better? 
If so are they really working?
Is the intent to promote books?
How do they help promote books?
Are memes simply a way to promote your blog?
Are memes a popularity contest? 
How do publishers feel about memes?

I honestly don't see the point of some of these memes. Not that I am any great expert in the book community. If I weren't afraid of offending someone I would try to seek clarification about particular memes. Maybe a little insight would help me understand their significance. I wonder about publishers and their desire for you to post daily. Do memes satisfy that credential?

Anyway, thanks for the topic.