5 Things I wish I knew before I started bookstagram

Hello, my fellow readers, bloggers, and bookstagramers. I have started my bookstagram 2 years ago and I went so far since then. I have been looking at my journey and I realised that there are few things I actually wish I knew before I jumped into this madness head first. I want to share these with you and I hope that if you are planning to start your bookstagram you can learn from my journey. If you, however, are already skilful bookstagramer let me know if you agree with me. I am always happy to join a healthy discussion. 

1. You need to know something about Photography: 

- Joining the bookstagram means joining Instagram, a platform based on visual pleasure where pictures and photos speak more than the actual captions. You do not have to be a professional photographer, but you should learn something about how to take photos. How to use natural light, how to make sure your photos are not blurry. What is composition? What is ISO and what does depth to the photos mean? Where and how did I learn? I had great teachers: Google and YouTube!

2. Over editing is a thing

- And this is one of the stupid mistakes I did at the start. I didn't know how to take pictures so I did them in my room with my lap on, and then I used 4 different apps to edit the hell out of it. It was too much. It took crazy long, the photo lost so much quality when I ran it through four apps... not worth the stress, trust me. Invest your time in point one of this article - photography - rather than editing. Then just tweak some colours and blend the theme together - done.

3. Even if you have 1k followers you are nobody

- I started with 5 followers and I looked up to the accounts who had 1.000 followers. I thought they are amazing, inspirational, what a HUGE following they have and what amazing influencers they are. Then I reached that number and trust me, nothing changed. It was exactly the same as having 5 followers. So here is the piece of advice: NUMBER DOES NOT MATTER! Focus on friendships, on connection with people on Instagram instead. Have fun and enjoy your bookstagram journey.

4. Being a Rep is not as great as it seems.

- Yes, being a rep is amazing. You get to support this small shop, you get some free items, and you get to be where the magic happens (depends on the shop) BUT it can be overwhelming, if you rep for more companies, you get to post more rep photos a week and you will not have time for what YOU want to do with your account because you will have to do what the shops want you to do. Are you reading an amazing book by Leigh Bardugo and you want to share that with you followers, well sorry, today you HAVE to post a picture of this product that has nothing to do with the book at all. Yes, you can have photos and captions that do not align but I personally don't like that. I like to rep for one company at the time. It is enough. 

Another thing here is, being rep will not make you more famous, this will not bring more followers. The shop might share your photos on their feed but the shop is not here to represent you, you are here to represent the shop. Remember that. You are bringing followers to the shop, not another way around. 

With all of this being said, make sure you pick shop you truly believe in and want to support and invest yourself in this representative position. 

5. Open a window so we can see you

- You can only post about books, books and books. That is, of course, fine, but if you want your account to grow people like to know who you are, what you are, where you are (DO NOT share your home address) understand this "where" as a state of mind. Share some private information, not your shoe size, but maybe include what other hobby do you have. You are much more than just a reader and that makes you stand out from this sea of readers. Show your true colours. People will be drawn to you and you will find great Insta friends. 

I would still start my bookstagram knowing all this, but maybe I would approach it differently. But bookstagram is just like creativity, it is a process, it is a journey. You will never get to the finish. 

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BR You Let Me In - Camilla Bruce 5/5

‘Why is it that only because one thing is true, the other thing is not? Why do we always have to decide?’

After reading the blurb I thought this is classic detective story. Police and family searching for missing writer who left clues in her last book. But with first few chapters everything changed...

The only thing I liked about the start was how the "you" point of view slowly changed and past and present, two worlds, collided together. This already gives away how easy Camilla Bruce blends two different things into one.

This is a story of Cassandra Tripp who is an author and recently went missing. I go as far as to say this is her autobiography. Cassandra Tripp is a fictional character of course and You Let Me In is a fictional manuscript of her last book. You read a manuscript addressed to her niece Penelope and nephew Janus. At the start the story seems almost boring until the Pepper-Man arrives. He is a fairy who keeps Cassie company and in return feeds on her blood. If you find this disturbing then maybe this book is not for you. But it caught my attention all right. Suddenly everything changed and I found myself somewhere in between two worlds. The life of Cassandra Tripp is dark, unhappy and very painful. But I was so curious to find out what is real. Do fairies really exist or did Cassie created her own world to deny the horrible events of her life?

The chapters are short and it adds even more dramatic feel to the story where you are never sure what is true and what is fantasy. Language is rich, full of pictures and metaphors and delicious similes. I could imagine everything really well and several parts were not pleasant to imagine... Even sinister.

This is the first novel of Camilla Bruce and it is a chilling adventure into the world where lines between real and not real are not just blurred but they seize to exist. This book was great in every sense. Perfect writing style, great drama, fast pace and interesting descriptions.

I highly recommend this book if you like thriller, horror, mental health topics and dysfunctional family problematics and heavy topics.

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