Bloggers helping bloggers #2

Today's Bloggers Helping Bloggers contributor is Nikki from Fiction Freak. Thanks for participating in my first ever blog series Nikki!

Nikki's bio:  I'm horrible at these things...I'm your average book blogger who rambles on and on and on about books and spends every penny on them. Of course, both friends and family are starting to give me the eye if I walk in with a book and a grin on my face because chances are I'll most likely be ranting and screaming at a character. I barely pass ELA and got a few 70's on writing, but eh. I never was good at that! Fun Fact: Being the teacher's pet, I was allowed to sit and read in P.E. while all the others had to do sports and still got 100. That was in elementary, but I wish that happened now!

Is your blog strictly book-related? Do you have a specific angle that makes your blog stand out from other review blogs? if so what is it and why did you pick it?

My blog is 100% for books since that's honestly all I do: read. As for does it stand out? There are millions of review blogs so honestly, I don't think my blog is all that different. The only thing I can think of that makes is different is that I'm the one who reviews it. My reviews have my personality in it and that's it. But hey, that's what matters right?

What do you care most about--individual page hits, number of followers, or number of comments? Why?

A lot of followers are awesome, but I mainly care about comments. It shows that viewers read and care about what I say. You can get a lot of followers because of your giveaways and people can always view your page by accident, but if they leave a comment, there's no way they did it on accident. And I love hearing what people have to say about books, reviews, and just random stuff. Especially if I helped them discover a new book.

How do you feel about scathing reviews that sling insults at the author, editor, publisher, etc.? How do you feel when you get a book from an author you really like but the book is just 'not for you.' Do you still review it?

I hate those reviews. It's OK to post negative reviews since, after all, not everyone will like a book and it's only an opinion. But insults are another thing completely. You can explain why you disliked the book in a neutral tone, but saying it in a hateful way is annoying to both readers and viewers. I remember an author I interviewed (Ann Stampler) saying "I have seen some bizarre, nasty stuff, but I suspect it is more a reflection of the reviewer than the book in question." And I completely agree with that.

As for if I disliked the book, yes I would review it. After all, authors expect honest reviews (I'm hoping at least. O.O) and if I didn't like it, I would say so. But it's rare when I absolutely hate a book that I wanted. I really don't ask for books from authors unless they're ones I'm dying for.

If a blogger asks for a book and a publisher sends it to her for free, is she obligated to review it? Should she send them a link to the review? What if she HATES the book? Does she have to review it then? If she sends a link will the publisher blacklist me from getting more ARCs?

Whenever I get a book from the publisher, I do my best to review it ASAP, especially if it's already been released. I guess you're not obligated, but if you want to be trusted then it's best to review it. I'm betting they're have been a lot of people who have taken books from a publisher, but never reviewed them. But the reason publishers send out books are for reviews.

If I just hated the book, I'll still try to review it with a few neutral points, and a few points that I liked. After all, I never completely hate a book. It's like against my nature. And I always send a link to the review to the publisher if they were the ones who sent me the book. Or the author in very few cases.

Just for fun: Congratulations! You were the last tribute standing at this year's Hunger Games. What fictional boy (doesn't have to be Gale or Peeta) do you hope is waiting to welcome you home? Why do you like him so much?

Oooooohhhh!!!! Too many!!! So I'll cheat and say a fictional boy from each genre? Okay, here goes:

Dystopian: Alex from Delirium by Lauren Oliver
Paranormal: Kaidan from Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins
Fantasy: Ren from Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck
Historical: (Pshh. No competition.) Falco from Venom by Fiona Paul
No Place to Fit: Ash from the Iron Fey by Julie Kagawa

As for the why, it's because all of them are (a) mischievous (Falco, Ren, Kaidan) (b) Sacrificial (Ash, Alex) (c) Sweet even though it didn't seem like it (Kaidan, Falco, Ash) or (d) left girl with a broken heart for girl's own good (Every single one of them). Wait. There's also (e) Not surprisingly, they're also all completely gorgeous.