Happy 1st Blogoversary, All About Manga!

Woohoo! One year! 😀

Last summer I decided to take a blogging class. I figured that since most of my journalism professors were crying over the upcoming death of print media, I should become more familiar with this blogging stuff that was going to pretty much take over print media. When the class started, the professor told us to make a blog. I made this one.

In one year I’ve managed to write over 100 posts, get over 700 comments (OK, half of those are probably mine, but still not too shabby!), been on more than a few podcasts, people who know me and my blog when we meet  and more hits that I could have ever dreamed of when I first started this blog.

Here are some highlights of the past year…

The top 20 posts:

  1. Ten REALLY GOOD Ways to Buy and Not Steal Manga (It’s fitting that this is the top post. ^_^)
  2. Why is Manhwa not as popular as Manga? (I really wish this post wasn’t so popular…I’ve since changed my views on manhwa A LOT)
  3. Comics & Girls: We want to kick ass (One of two posts with the most comments for this blog! Also my first troll!)
  4. Interning in the Manga Industry: My Advice (So happy this one is in the top five! I’m so proud of this post.)
  5. The Great Manga Gift Guide: SHOJO STYLE! (One of the posts that started getting me recognized by others.)
  6. Anime Expo: Day One (Admittedly, this post is probably only popular because it was posted on the AX forums…)
  7. Causing the Death of an Industry (Yes, this post is alarmist, but it’s a good way to imagine the what ifs.)
  8. Jews in Anime and Manga (What happened when I answered one of my own questions…)
  9. Layoffs for Viz; Death Rattle for Go!Comi (One of the saddest posts I’ve written after the one on CMX’s demise.)
  10. Scott Pilgrim/Mighty Fine T-Shirt Contest (My first contest! It was so much fun and I can’t wait to do more!)
  11. The Manga Cliche Review: Musical Talent Part 2 (An old review concept… I’m not sure why this one is so popular. o_0)
  12. Gakuen Alice on the Fast Track (Thank you to Marco for giving me this inside tip.)
  13. Osaka Considering the Regulation of Female-Oriented Manga (I still don’t fully understand why Osaka didn’t target ecchi manga too, a real headshaker.)
  14. Hetalia: You Should Read This Manga Even If You Don’t Want To (Yes, I am not above shameless self-promotion. I worked hard on that manga!)
  15. Fandom Hierarchy: Should We Be Allowed to Hate? (Sparked by an intense Twitter discussion.)
  16. 10 Years of Lovin’ Manga (My 10th anniversary as a manga fan, followed by everyone sharing their own manga stories.)
  17. Prostitution in Manga (Probably one of the hardest posts I’ve had to write. I wish I could develop this into a real research project.)
  18. Discussion: Why Do Readers Shun Shoujo? (I was beginning to realize how I could create more discussion on the blog. It worked!)
  19. Comic Book Movies: Astro Boy (Another old post that’s popular for reasons I don’t understand. I guess it’s not a bad post, but I wish this post was more popular. I never saw the movie in the end.)
  20. Manhwa Controversy (My response to the outrage at my first post on manhwa… Yeah, I was totally wrong.)

I’ve pretty much figured out that opinion, not reviews, is my strong point, but maybe in the future I can work on that a little more or bring someone on with me to do reviews. (Anyone interested?)  I’d also like to make a little money off of ads or book referrals, but I haven’t figured out the best way to do that yet. There’s still so much I don’t know about blogging!  (There’s still so much I don’t know about other stuff either…)

After I finished my first internship at TOKYOPOP and started this blog, I realized something that had been stirring in the back of my mind– I really did not want to be a journalist. At the time, it was an enormous problem for me. If I didn’t want to do journalism and if this whole manga editing thing didn’t work out, what was I going to do for a living? And while this blog doesn’t make me any money, it’s certainly helped me build my reputation up more and allowed me to make so many friends. This blog kept my head above water when I was drowning in uncertainty and lead me to a island that I might be able to call paradise.

In the mean time, I’m going to continue doing this blog, continue editing manga for a living and maybe some day in the future I hope to open up my own business. Maybe a publishing company, maybe a bookstore, I’m not sure yet.

Thank you, everyone, for what you’ve given me over the past year. You’re the ones who’ve made me and this blog a success.

So much love,

Daniella Orihuela-Gruber

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12 Responses to Happy 1st Blogoversary, All About Manga!

  1. MikeyDPirate says:

    Congrats on the one year blogoversary! (Did I spell that right?) I hope that blogging been as enjoyable as it can that you the love for blogging and whatever else you do stays with your for many years!

    *Breaks out the wine glasses* Cheers!

    • Thanks! (And that’s the way I spelled it…)
      Blogging has been one of the most terrific things I’ve done with my life. It’s been so rewarding, I don’t know why I’d ever stop!

      CHAMPAGNE! Oooo, I should totally have champagne tonight to celebrate.

  2. Yan says:

    Congratulations, Daniella! Keep them quality posts coming. You’ve improved boatloads. C:

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  4. Congratulations on the 1st year!

    Making money off a blog can be tricky. You’re going to have to do a lot of research on it. You might save the money-making until you build a substantial fanbase. That number can be tricky, though I have learned that if you have 10,000 subscribers, then you can make & command some decent money. You can also try getting a book deal.

    Also, if you monetize right away, you might focus less on content & community. Someone once told me that.

    I started my blog about 7 months ago. I was lazy at first, but as time went on, I just went with the flow and here I am. I’m pretty amazed that I have readers/followers/fans myself. I admit that I have written some bad entries, but I’ve learned to accept the fact that I can’t please everyone.

    I think someone called me a really great writer, which was pretty shocking! Also, like you, I don’t know if I can do reviews. I’m more of a critic than a reviewer myself.

    Anywho, your blog is very well-done. I wish nothing but the best on your blog.

    • Thank you!

      I’m not planning on doing anything big like a book deal. What I would like to do is become involved in an affiliate program so that people who click on ads or buy a book through a link on my blog will essentially give me money. Other manga bloggers I’ve talked to have said they do get a bit of money off it, even if it only pays for the manga they buy. I put so much into this blog and while it does give back to me in certain ways, I’d just like to get a little more back, you know? I don’t make much money as an editor yet, so any extra cash is appreciated. One thing that Erica Friedman does from her Ozaku blog is run a wishlist that readers can buy manga they want her to review. She has a pretty big following, so it’s probably not something *I* could do, but it’s a great idea and one that includes the community too, especially since she has such a niche blog subject.

      Having a blog is tough sometimes, but I also love how many people come to it now and just talk to me about manga. It makes it worth every tough part when I’m not feeling the blogging mojo and just want to ignore things. Someone also said I was a good writer and that just made my day. I know what I do with my blog is a little unconventional, but this blog has been so great. I don’t have a single bad feeling about it.

      Thank you for your kind words and I hope the best for your blog too. If you ever want to do any collaborations like guest posts or whatnot, let me know. :3

  5. Congratulations on making it 1 year!

  6. Just wanted to add to the chorus of well-wishers! You’ve really grown as a writer over the course of the blog’s first year, which has been fun to see.

    As for making money off your blog, the easiest thing to do is join the Amazon Associates program. You won’t make big $$$ from adding Amazon links and widgets to your site, but you’d be pleasantly surprised to see how many folks actually click through and order books. (Or jeans. Or heavy-duty flashlights. No, really, folks have ordered some interesting stuff after visiting my site!) The commissions aren’t very big, but my program participation covers my web hosting costs as well as a few book purchases every month.

    I got a kick out of looking at your top post list, BTW. It’s really interesting — and humbling! — to see what clicks with readers. Most of the titles on my list make sense — they’re lists or essays about controversial topics — but there are always a few weird, wonderful surprises, as well as a few disappointments.

    Here’s to another year of blogging!

    • Thank you! Just to hear that my writing has grown and improved is all I could ever ask for. 😀

      And thank you for the advice as well. I was looking into that sort of thing, although I’m taking my time with it.

      Glad you liked the list! I’m always fascinated by what readers liked the most in my blogging and it’s a constantly changing list! (Although most of the top five has been solid for awhile.)

      To many more years of manga blogging for the both of us!

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