Your Ad Spot

Interview with a Book Blogger | Khyati Gautam | Bookish Fame

Khyati Gautam Bookish Fame

Khyati Gautam

Q.1 Please introduce yourself - Where are you from? How long have you been blogging? What’s the name of your blog? What made you decide to start a book blog?
A. Hello, I am Khyati Gautam a.k.a bookish fame coming from the beautiful city of lakes, Bhopal. I recently finished my Engineering and currently, I am exploring blogging as a hobby. My blog Bookish Fame is my secret haven where I write about my opinions on books, poems, articles, etc. 

I started my blog back in 2016 purely on a whim. I started with book blogging in January 2017 after a friend of mine, Ankit Chouhan, introduced me to the concept and since then, there's been no looking back. In the years, I expanded my blog and took to microblogging sites to increase visibility, and get enough exposure. Book Blogging gave me access to numerous books, and given the fickle-natured human being, I am. Blogging is the only thing that keeps me consistent and sane.


Q.2 What is your favorite genre and book?
A. I never had 'one' favorite genre, but many. I like books with beautifully served words. Be it literary fiction, romance, thriller, humor, I like all of them. I am developing an interest in non-fiction books and would love to explore them immensely next year. Also, the next year would be more Hindi literature for me. I might not point out a favorite genre, but I can certainly list down the ones I don't like which are fantasy and erotica. One of my favorite books of all time remains to be Tuesdays with Morrie.

Q.3 What one piece of advice do you wish you’d had when you first started book blogging?
A. I think I should have known the value of my work. I have done unpaid reviews or gigs for a really low amount. I have changed my ratings after a middleman or the author himself told me. Over time, I realized the importance of what I do and how the dynamics of industry work. Now, when people ask me about the pay and related things, I ask them to stay away from demeaning their efforts by settling for dirt cheap pay and to stay firm on their opinions.

Q.4 What piece of advice you would like to give to other bloggers?
A. Treat blogging with equal respect and passion as you'd do for any other profession. If you really mean to share your experiences and connect with your audience, take a plunge into blogging and stay here. You need to be patient initially for the growth takes time to find its way to you. Don't let it become just another fad. And consistency and hard work is the key, the holy grail of anything you do in life.

Q.5 How many books are actually on your bookshelf/shelves right now?
A. Honestly, I have lost the count, but it would be something around 450 or maybe more. I think I need to seriously sit down one day, and count all of them. 

Q.6 If you could be a character from a book for just one day who would you be and why?
A. That's a tough question! I think I would want to be the unnamed female protagonist of the book The Nine Chambered Heart who is loved by nine different people in different ways. I loved that book, and that character's turmoil and struggle with love were beautiful and so raw and real. 

Q.7 Is blogging your profession or just a hobby? Does your family support you? What’s their take on this?
A. Blogging is a hobby for me and would stay the same for my life. I need multiple things to engage me or else, I get bored. So, blogging is definitely going to be one of the many. As for my family's view, they aren't keen on me doing this. And I don't see any fault with their understanding. After all, they belong to the traditional society with their conventional thoughts. To break the ice, it would take a really really long time.

Q.8 What do you think is the best strategy for getting more visitors to a blog?
A. According to me, the efficient use of social media platforms helps in this. Use Pinterest, Facebook, LinkedIn to share your blog posts. You might discover groups on Facebook and LinkedIn and interact with people to gain visitors. Groups on Goodreads are also helpful. Use a call to action and invite your audience to click on the link in your Instagram bio because that's the only place you can utilize to direct the readers to your blog. There's no perfect strategy. You should be experimenting according to your content.

Q.9 What are the top 3 characteristics you look for in a good book?
A. The top 3 qualities of a good book for me are:
1.  Writing Style
2.  Grammar and coherence
3.  Treatment of the plot and characters

Q.10 What are your favorite Instagram/Bookstagram/Booktuber accounts?
A. My favorite bookstagrammers - 
Krutika from @askthebookbug
Chitra from @talksbooksandmore

My favorite book bloggers -
Neelam and Apoorv from @booxoul
Vidhya from @readerviddh
Aakanksha from @bookscharming


A few words for our readers and Books Charming -
I admire your passion and efforts you put into the growth of Books Charming with diverse reads and the excellent services you provide your clients. All the best wishes to you. And thank you so much for this wonderful opportunity. For the readers, read because it informs and educates and makes you humane. Keep reading for it brings the best out of you in the due course of time.

Share your social account links -

8 comments:

  1. Amazing interview.Thanks for bringing this upto us

    ReplyDelete
  2. Every piece by her and of her is worth reading! More power to you!💜

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She is an amazing book reviewer and a person too, thanks Aysha for your support! Keep reading :)

      Delete