My blog book! Volume 1.
I have been meaning to print out a hard copy of my blog for some time. Call it paranoia but it's always there at the back of my mind that one day Blogger might just disappear, taking with it all my posts. There was a time when I used to regularly PDF all my posts as backup, till I got lazy and stopped doing it.
I was mighty pleased when I came across Blog2Print. I had investigated several other different methods of getting my blog printed, but in the end, it seemed like this service was the most straight-forward and met most of my needs -- it auto-generated my blog, allowed me to print my blog with the pictures in the same layout as I had in my posts, include comments if I wanted, and choose the posts I wanted included.
In return for the convenience, there are certain drawbacks: I didn't want the auto-generated title on the front cover and wasn't pleased that I couldn't omit it, or choose the font/font size/colour for it. I couldn't choose the font of the text within the book either and the extra large fonts I used occasionally throughout my blog were rendered in the regular size. There were also some formatting problems which required me to tweak my html on my posts. Fortunately those could be sorted out. Also due to the number of posts I had, generating the book took a long time each time I needed to make some changes.
But it was done! I waited till they had a 15% discount promo (which they do fairly regularly) and then got my 2005 posts printed into a volume to test out the quality.
I must say I'm pretty pleased with it! Everything looks exactly like the online preview and the paper quality is nice, smooth and thick.
Separately, it's hard to believe but I've been writing for 6 years now, since 2005. What started as a whim has become a deep-seated hobby that I make time for, often writing and editing late into the night. Over the years, my writing style and what I've written about has changed. I used to be more open and free with what I said when I first started out, but I've come to realise that I just can't do that any more now. A while ago, I moved all my oldest posts -- where I used to blab freely -- off my blog onto a separate protected site. (Sorry about the broken links!) What remains mostly relates to the kids. I'm still trying to find the right balance and strike the right note. I love this space, so I don't think I'll be giving it up just yet.
In the meantime, I'm thinking of publishing yearly annuals as keepsakes. You know, just in case they disappear. If anyone knows a better publishing option, please let me know!
Wow it looks good! I really should do this soon too - I have a huge phobia that all my posts may suddenly disappear one day (especially since LJ has been acting up quite a bit recently)!
ReplyDeleteBeen thinking about doing a blog book for the longest time, thanks for the review!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a great thing to have!
ReplyDelete@olimomok i think we all have the same worries. somehow there's nothing like a hard copy!
ReplyDelete@yAnn it's nice having something to hold, isn't it. i'm quite happy with my book, aside from the limitations i mentioned. try it!
@Delphine it's my backup! i'm a hard copy kind of person!
makes me want to do it too! since i can't scrap all my memories... haha.
ReplyDeleteThis is really a good idea..though this means adding another book to the shelf! argh. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic idea! Thanks for sharing this...I'm inspired to give it a try too!
ReplyDelete@lynklee i wish i could scrap like you!
ReplyDelete@lilsnooze yah, i know. i already don't have enough shelves as it is!
@kér you should! your blog is such a lovely collection of memories.