15 Day Book Blogger Challenge (12, 13, 14)

Don't know what the 15 Day Book Blogger Challenge is? Check it out at Good Books and Good Wine, and hop in on the fun if you want also. Click on the 'fifteen day' tag at the bottom of the post, or go to my Events tab to follow along with all of the posts for this challenge. :)  Also, I realize I slacked a bit recently answering these. I feel bad about that. But I still wanted to complete the challenge anyway. =P

 

How Do You Choose What Book To Read Next?

I don’t have any real process. I normally just go by mood, the anticipated reads, etc. ARCs are usually more of the priority, but since I normally request them because I’m anticipating those books, it’s not too hard to decide. Sometimes I get in genre moods too and only want to read just one or two particular genres for a certain amount of time.

　

Describe One Underappreciated Book EVERYONE should read.

Hmm. This is a tough one because many of the books I read are probably considered “popular” and not quite underappreciated. I would probably say Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen though since it doesn’t seem as well-known and I’m always telling people they should read it. Why? Because it’s awesomely-awesome. Anything that can get me loving the Robin Hood legend, having such a unique writing style, and make me beg for moooree at the end is certainly a book everyone should read. I get that not all are into historical fiction, but I do think this fits for anyone because it’s such a classical tale.

　

Tell us your “deal breakers.”

Oh boy. Deal breakers in books! I will almost always put down a book and DNF if they have one or more of the following:

Insta-love -- Sometimes I let this slide depending on how well the romance and rest of story is written. So I’m not extremely picky with this one, but it does become an annoyance often.

Abuse (physical or mental)-- Not to be mistaken as abuse as being a point of the story that is a message. I mean I don’t want romantic ideals of it.

Absent parents in YA books -- Really. One of my biggest hates in YA. Even one or two mentions/interactions of the parents would satisfy me a little bit at least. These are usually teen characters 15-17. They have parents or guardians like normal people, too.

Character or Characters that exhibit beliefs to make me uncomfortable-- ex. Homophobia, racism, preachy Christian…

Romantic ideals of pedophilia or incest. (Ew.)

Detailed/graphic scenes of pre-teen/teen sexual abuse -- Due to personal life experiences, I just really struggle getting through reads where characters go through these situations.

Other than those, I don’t really have any other instant deal breakers. I have other things, annoyances, that will bother me and possibly make me DNF, but I usually try to finish most of my reads. :)

 

 

Only one post to go before the challenge is complete! And it's the big one-- My Blogging Mentors! I will be posting this one in the next week or so and look forward to it. ^_^

 

 

15 Day Book Blogger Challenge (10, 11)

 

Don't know what the 15 Day Book Blogger Challenge is? Check it out at Good Books and Good Wine, and hop in on the fun if you want also. Click on the 'fifteen day' tag at the bottom of the post, or go to my Events tab to follow along with all of the posts for this challenge. :)

For this post, I’m going to step just a tad out of order here with the questions and skip to what’s actually days 11 & 12. Instead, I’m just rearranging a bit, making them for days 10 & 11, and moving the other questions to the next post. This way the posts have a more fitting theme with each question/answer. Haha.

Also, I realize I slacked a bit the last couple of weeks answering these. I feel bad about that. But I still wanted to complete the challenge anyway. =P

　

Day Ten:

Show off 5 of your best blog posts!

Well this is tough, to be honest, because I don’t know if I can personally pick out my best posts. I think that’s always up to my readers. Isn’t it? I guess I could go by my stats and link you the five posts that get the most attention through views/comments? Or the posts that I had the most fun writing? *shrug*

Let’s Talk About Sex, Baby… No Diggity (Discussion) -- This discussion post was put up earlier this year, mostly out of agitation after reading a few books that seemed to have the same recurring theme when it came to characters and sex. It ended up becoming one of my more popular posts on the blog as far as views went, and continues to be one of my highest-viewed posts. Also, I guess the Loki gifs are a bonus.

Books and Crafts: Is It Destruction or Love (Discussion) -- Okay, so this post hardly got any attention at all outside of anything except views. No comments. Nothing. But that’s completely okay. The reason I’m putting it on the list is because I really put a lot of time building this post and enjoyed writing it. It’s probably one of my favorite discussion posts out of the ones written in the last year on the blog (which I need to write more discussion posts anyway).

Interview with R.J. Anderson -- Not only is this special because it’s R.J. Anderson, author of the awesome Ultraviolet/Quicksilver set that I adore sooo much, but this was also my very first author interview on the blog way back in the summer of 2011 (and Ultraviolet had also been my first NetGalley title after I joined that site back in June of 2011 haha). So maybe not one of my BEST posts, but one of my dearest.

Some of my favorite reviews posted: Monsters by Ilsa J. Bick (I just loved gushing about this whole trilogy, tbh. Ha.), Daughter of Smoke & Bone/Days of Blood & Starlight, Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, and Crown of Midnight.

I think that's about it for now. Would you agree or do you want to add some to this list that you think are also my best posts? Any posts you'd like to see more of on the blog in the future?


　

　

　

Day Eleven:

How Do You Fight Blogger Fatigue?

Blogger fatigue is so pesky. I do get in my moods where I just don't feel like doing much of anything with the blog. I may not feel like making posts, returning comments, updating pages, or whatever. And in order to fight that feeling, sometimes I just have to take a step back and actually take a break. What? How does that make sense? Well, I can't force myself to go doing things either. So if I'm in a mood, maybe a break or doing something else for a bit is just what I need to feel better. Because the biggest thing to remember is that blogging should never feel like a chore. When/If it does start feeling that way, it's time to take a break and ease the stress. Everything will still be there upon returning. =)

And for me, a break usually doesn't even last long before I'll get to feeling up to doing things again. Like with any kind of fatigue, sometimes I just need a moment to clear my head and to get the motivation back. Sometimes sitting back and doing some reading (especially some "me" books to read--not books that are specifically labeled as review reads that may make me feel worse or required to pick up) will have me back in no time.

I'd like to hear some of your tips, too. How do you fight blogger fatigue? Do you also take breaks from blogging/social media if you feel the need to get away so you can relieve the stress?



Next post coming soon!


 

15 Day Book Blogger Challenge (7,8, and 9)

Don't know what the 15 Day Book Blogger Challenge is? Check it out at Good Books and Good Wine, and hop in on the fun if you want also. Click on the 'fifteen day' tag at the bottom of the post, or go to my Events tab to follow along with all of the posts for this challenge. :)

Day Seven:

Talk About Your Blogging Quirks

　


I don’t think I really have any. Mostly I just can’t stand CAPTCHA. When it comes to my own quirks--I’m probably particular about how I like images to line up according to the posts, always using a certain font/size. And no matter if the colors/header/widgets, etc. ever change, you can pretty much bet the layout will stay the same. That’s basically because I’m a fan of the layout. I have the space I need. I feel like my stuff doesn’t look too cluttered when I look at it. I love the bottom bar addition, even though I know I’ve read at various tips/tricks things that those don’t get a lot of attention, it just all feels more organized for me personally. That’s about it as far as ‘quirks’ go.

I don’t really have any quirks when it comes to posting. I’m not someone who HAS to post every single day (and it’s obvious I don’t, haha) but I do try to share at least one or two reviews a week if I can’t get anything else done. This last week I haven’t had much in the way of any reviews because I’m finally all caught up in reading and don’t have a review to share just yet. =O So I’m reading my current reads as fast as I can so I can share something soon. =D

 

Day Eight:

Quick! Write 15 Bullet Points of Things That Appeal to You on Blogs!

I don’t have 15. I’ll write 5. Lol.

+Look -- I don’t really care if it’s extremely fancy, professionally done, or whatever. In fact, sometimes it can be too overdone. So a blog’s look can be the first thing that will appeal to me when I visit before I even start reading. Oh! And P.S.? Don’t put anything that automatically plays music/repeating sound. No captcha, either. Annoying.

+Sidebar Widgets -- Love seeing what’s on sidebars, like your Currently Reading or Favorite Blogs. It helps me figure out what we may have in common also.

+Easy Navigation -- Hey, I’ve just read some of your posts, commented, and now I want to go back and check out some of your older stuff. A nav bar that points out direct links to reviews, discussion posts, and other features to make for easier blog surfing while I’m at your page is so awesome.  ^_^ (Or at least tags and an archive or search bar that makes things simple)

+YOU -- I really like to see the blogger’s personality and immediately what it is they enjoy most through their posts when I hop over onto their blog.

 

Day Nine:

Why Do You Blog About Books?

I don’t really know many people around me personally. Not many that are into books that much anyway. And I wanted to talk books damn it. Favorite books. Books I hated. Characters. I had tried a small blog before on a writing critique site several years ago where I talked books when I could, but I didn’t know what it was I was doing (I hadn’t heard of blogging at all at that time). Then had comp probs and scheduling issues, but got a laptop finally (YAY!). It wasn’t long after, I left the other site and joined GR. Then a couple years ago, after I started participating in GR a bit more, I found my way to the blogging community and it was immediately HOME. Felt good to talk about books amongst so many others--and I’ve made wonderful friends along the way. :D


Tune in soon for the next post!

15 Day Book Blogger Challenge (5 & 6)

Don't know what the 15 Day Book Blogger Challenge is? Check it out at Good Books and Good Wine, and hop in on the fun if you want also. Click on the 'fifteen day' tag at the bottom of the post, or go to my Events tab to follow along with all of the posts for this challenge. :)

Day Five:

Recommend a Tear Jerker

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. It’s a book I think everyone should try to read at least once… and I have a feeling this one is going to eventually be a classic. I already know I’m going to have to carry in a box of tissues when I go see the movie. Oy. So emotional.

Day Six:

Describe How You Shop For Books

I don’t really have a specific way that I shop. If I’m going in without anything set in mind, I still go to my usual section of choice first--the area that has the books I read a majority of which is the YA/Teen section--and check out the shelves to see what just catches my interest. Sometimes while I’m browsing, I recall that there’s some new releases I’ve been wanting or something on my wish list, and I’ll go ahead and search those out. Sometimes I’m just random. Haha. I really like browsing for as long as I can. Just going through a variety of shelves in my favorite categories and genres until I pick up whatever I want. There are days I go in with of list of “okay, this is what I’m definitely getting,” and I’ll walk out with those exact books. But usually, I just like shopping books the random way and being fun about it. Especially since I don’t get to the book store as often as I’d like. My good book store (Books A Million) is almost an hour away. When I don’t get to go there, I’m buying whatever I can if there’s anything good on occasion when I go grocery shopping--sneak buying, actually--or I order online.


What would be the biggest tear jerker for you? Is there a specific way you shop for books?

15 Day Book Blogger Challenge (Day 4)

Don't know what the 15 Day Book Blogger Challenge is? Check it out at Good Books and Good Wine, and hop in on the fun if you want also. Click on the 'fifteen day' tag at the bottom of the post, or go to my Events tab to follow along with all of the posts for this challenge. :)

Day Four:
What's The Last Book You Flung Across The Room?

I’ve never physically flung any book across the room, to be honest. Certainly thought about it… And I’ve tossed down books out of anger, frustration, disbelief at a twist or ending, etc. But never have truly flung or thrown. Hmm… Also probably half are read on my laptop, and that probably wouldn’t end well if I tried tossing that. Lol!
 


I’ll say the last book that gave me the reaction where I may have actually even considered destroying a book, and that’s rare. Not often for me to get so angry and disgusted at characters that I wanted to outright destroy one.

　

Dinner With a Vampire (The Dark Heroine), the book that probably made me angriest anyway. I did almost throw this one across the room on several occasions just from the overuse of the word “girly.” Ugh. And in case you’re curious, no, I never destroyed it. As much as I hated it by the end, I don’t think I could bring myself to do anything like rip it up or burn any of it.


　

Good news is that was a book I’d read back in April/May? So at least I haven’t had TOO many major problems as far as wanting to slam, throw, or destroy any books. It doesn't happen often. I’ve had my frustrating moments, but nothing that stands out too much at least. Ha. :P


What about you? What's the most recent book you've flung across the room (or thought about flinging)?


(P.S. I haven’t exactly been doing this ‘15 Day Book Blogger Challenge’ every single day, and it’s taking me awhile to complete it. It’s been a lot of fun though! But I do have some other things planned for the blog soon. So I think I’m going to just mix it up by combining questions from posts for a couple days in a row and put them together. Instead of trying to post one question every day, I'll post two or more in one post every few days--until I’m done. ^^ Thanks everyone for being patient and continuing to visit. I hope you’ve been enjoying!)

15 Day Book Blogger Challenge (Day 3)

Don't know what the 15 Day Book Blogger Challenge is? Check it out at Good Books and Good Wine, and hop in on the fun if you want also. Click on the 'fifteen day' tag at the bottom of the post, or go to my Events tab to follow along with all of the posts for this challenge. :)

Day Three:

Who Are Your Blogging BFFs?

 

It’s extremely easy to name two of them because I got these two ladies into blogging after going on and on about how much I loved doing it and how much I loved the community, etc. Plus, they really are two of my besties, despite not having ever met them in real life. We’d originally met in an online/texting group book club about five years ago and even when it cancelled, continued our friendship through phone calls, gifts, and (probably thousands by now) messages. Ha.

Anyways, these two great ladies are Kelly at PaperFantasies and Taylor at Thoughts of an Endless Dreamer.

There are others I would also definitely name as Blogging BFFs, too. Some personal connections I’ve made through the last two and half years. People I talk to all the time on Twitter, or lurk their blogs. But maybe I’m just a bit worried that by the end of this post (if they read it), they’ll be all “Psh, no. I could call you something else. Like.. Annoying.” Lol!

I’m looking at you:

Kara and Lyn at Great Imaginations --Kara was one of the first bloggers I met and befriended. We started out around the same time so we had that in common. And we also have a Big Brother love in common. Ha! And I just love her. I didn’t meet Lyn until last year, but she is my Nerd Twin, completely awesome, and I don’t know what I’d do without her now. :P

Bekka at Pretty Deadly Reviews -- Just connected with Bekka earlier this year actually. But I’d been one of her blog lurkers for several months and always adored reading her reviews on GR, etc. I still visit her blog all the time (even if I don’t always comment), but talk with her often on Twitter and she’s one of my fave people. ^_^

Christina at A Reader of Fictions --I think the first time I met Christina, she visited my blog and left a comment that made me laugh. If I remember correctly. It’s been awhile. All I know it was a comment enough to make me go visit her back, and I loved her blog and reviews. Then before I knew it, we were following each other on Twitter and GR and chatting it up lots of times. So fun to talk to and I’m hoping to meet her and Kara at BEA next year. :P

Shanella at Books are Wonderful --One of the first bloggers I met when I started out also. ^_^ She made me feel pretty welcome to the community when I hardly knew much of anyone in 2011. We don’t always share the same common interests when it comes to books, but have had some interesting convos. And we share a Harry Potter love! We also did fun features for our blogs last year with Throne of Glass.

(Also, Sharon at Obsession With Books was another blogger I owe huge thanks to making me feel welcome in the beginning since I mentioned it above)

Lea At LC’s Adventures in Library Land --Lea doesn’t seem to blog too much anymore so I don’t know if I’m cheating by adding her to this list or not. She HAD been one of my Blogging BFFs, I guess I should say it like that? I don’t know. She even rarely gets on Twitter. But I do still see her on FB at least and chat with her when available! I miss that girl. She also helped me out by designing the previous header/color scheme and layout of the blog. If you’re a regular reader, then you’ve noticed the new look. That wasn’t Lea this time around. Though I did keep Lea’s original layout settings and only changed the color scheme. Anyways, Lea and I started blogging around the same time in 2011 also, and I don’t remember who visited who first. Ha. We share a lot in common, and she is awesome. ^-^ She ever gets back to blogging, don't miss out!

　

Closing, I’m just going to say that there are several others I talk to and adore and love. Quick shout-outs:


Blythe (Finding Bliss in Books)

Ashleigh (Birth of a New Witch)

Racquel (The Book Barbies)

Wendy Darling (The Midnight Garden)

Laura (Little Read Riding Hood)



Have any Blogging BFFs? I'd love to hear about them in the comments below! Or if you're also participating in this challenge, show me your links! :)



 

15 Day Book Blogger Challenge (Day 2)

 

 

Don't know what the 15 Day Book Blogger Challenge is? Check it out at Good Books and Good Wine, and hop in on the fun if you want also. Click on the 'fifteen day' tag at the bottom of the post, or go to my Events tab to follow along with all of the posts for this challenge. :)

Day Two:

What's Your Bedtime Reading Ritual?

You mean I’m not the only one that has a reading ritual? This makes me feel a little better actually. There’s a process I have to go through before I get to my bedtime/night-time reading, though. I have to make sure I’m comfortable (of course). This means pajamas, barefoot, blankets…whatever sets the mood according to the season or where I’m at in the house. Usually I read on the couch in the living room because it’s the most comfortable place to be with the most light. I even have a “special corner” of the couch, closest to my bookshelf and table lamp by the armrest that I find myself cozying up in often. I’m not one to sit up and read in bed, to be honest, because I have insomnia issues and everyone goes to bed hours before I do. Even the hubs. The little bedside lamp in there just isn’t enough for me to read a book, I don’t have any currently on my Kindle Fire, and dragging my laptop and power cords would be a hassle when we keep it set up in the living room already as it is.

Okay, so back to what I was saying. I get sidetracked sometimes. Apologies. I grab the books I’m currently reading. Sometimes they’re e-galleys in the Adobe Digital Editions on the laptop, physical copies, or both. My process in the reading of multiple books is to try and read somewhere between 20-30 pages out of each book. Sometimes more, sometimes less. And sometimes I might get so into one particular read at one point that I find myself reading many pages before I set it down and only read a few short pages of another before I finally make my way to bed. I get most of my reading done at night, too. It’s the best time. The kids are in bed. The TV is off so there’s no noise to distract me. I’m by myself in the living room. And another bonus: Hardly any activity online so another distraction down. My time to relax and wind down for the day. Though it may take me awhile to even consider the possibility of sleep, I have the books to keep me company.

Another thing that might happen during my night-time reading is snacking. I like to have a little snack while I’m reading. I know many who would be all “You eat while you’re holding a book in your hand?! That’s a disgrace!” But really? I’ve never had a problem. Ha. And I use napkins to wipe my hands.

When it comes to thoughts on books as I read, I have a word doc on the computer where I take short notes. There are some nights where I might pull up this doc and put in some notes before going to bed. I don’t take notes on every book I read, but it usually consists of ones I really love (later to be high 4 star or 5 star rated) or ones I really dislike (including some DNF reads). It includes snippets of thoughts on why I loved/hated, characters, some quotes. That sort of thing and this process does help in review process later, though I’ve still been stumped a few times because like I said, I don’t take notes on everything. I should probably start taking more. o_o

There you have it. That’s pretty much all there is to it when it comes to my bedtime/nightly reading ritual. It’s not really all that special. What’s yours?

15 Day Book Blogger Challenge (Day 1)

Okay, so I'm totally late starting this challenge but I only just recently heard of this and I still wanted to try it out anyway. :P I knew that even though most of everyone participating was going to be finished soon, the linky was going to be up for a few months and the host said people could jump in and start at any time. It sounded like fun and a good way to keep me occupied on the blog for a while! :)

Don't know what the 15 Day Book Blogger Challenge is? Check it out at Good Books and Good Wine, and hop in on the fun if you want also.

Day One:

Fifteen Book-Related Confessions

It’s time to fess up. (Not in any particular order, either.)


1. I get easily distracted and sometimes no matter how well I might like a book, there’s been moments when I’ll skim the last 50 or so pages--speed reading--just to get a basic idea of what the ending was, read the final page or two, and be done so that I can move on to my next one. But usually this just happens when a book has lost a majority of my attention by that point. I’ve never had any of my high-rated books make me do this.

2. I probably have about eight boxes of books in my husband’s storage building, plus three in the house to be placed in there (all boxed books are mostly read). My shelves are still full of books even though I just cleaned them up and reorganized and include close to 35 books there that I haven’t read yet--half of which have probably been on shelves for a couple of years waiting to be picked up. Haha. I still go out and buy more anyway. There’s no stopping me. It’s a must. Let’s hope I never have to move…

3. I still read all my e-galleys on my laptop through Adobe Digital Editions despite that I have a Kindle Fire (and have had it since Christmas). Tbh, I still haven’t entirely figured out the whole Kindle Fire thing on how to download/transfer books from NG, etc. to it even after owning it for 7 months. I’m not going to bother. Lol. It’s just easier to keep reading the e-galleys on the comp, my habit, so no big deal.

4. If you tell me you “don’t read” or “hate reading,” I will judge you. Then I might make it my mission to find you something to read that you might like based on interests (tv, movies, etc.). I have been known to turn non-readers into readers before!

5. I’m still trying to grasp the whole idea of New Adult. Why does it necessarily have to have sexual themes in every single NA book to be classified in this category? Why can’t a NA be a NA with just simply mature themes, but not mature sexual content? See, I don’t get it. Confusing, much?

6. In love triangles, I always seem to like the male interest that the author writes as more of the “used toy.” Examples: In Hunger Games, I’ve always been a Gale fan.
Even years ago when I started Vampire Academy series, my fave was Adrian straight from book two (Frostbite) and on. And now we have Bloodlines for his story! Whooot!
In Wither, I liked Linden better even though it was apparent that Gabe was supposed to be the interest.
True Blood-- Eric.
Well, you get the idea. Ha.

7. No one is allowed to touch books on my shelf. No, seriously. It’s a house rule. You can’t just come in here and snatch one of my effing books off the shelf. I am seriously nit-picky about that. I’d happily let you look at any book from the bookshelf, but ASK, and I’ll get it for you and when you’re done, I’ll put it back. Why? They’re in an order. I have issues, people. 0_0

8. I will read up to 4 or 5 books at one time. While this helps me keep ahead of my reading goal, it also keeps me pretty busy with a backlog of reviews to write through week as I finish. But I’ve developed this habit and now I feel like I just can’t read one book/write a review at a time.

9. I can’t stand when someone reads out loud to me. I mean, I REALLY hate it with a passion. One of the most annoying things ever in my opinion. I can read! If it’s there for me to read just fine on my own, don’t read it to me. This peeve also worries me when it comes to audio books. Since I’ve never tried them, and would like to sometime, I have to wonder if I would hate them?

10. I’ve only attempted to read Jane Austen once years ago but have never fully read through a whole Austen novel. Wasn’t too interested, but I have read summaries of a few works and it sounds good. I just can’t get the motivation. (Austen fans on the page will probably jump me now, I’m sure.)

11. I actually first read the HP series out of order by starting with Goblet of Fire when my mom brought it home to me when I was 15. Someone had given it to her at work to give to me knowing how much I liked to read and we didn’t know it was the fourth book in a series at the time. Ha. I read it within a day. Immediately after, I went and bought the first three and devoured them within the week, and had to wait a year for the release of #5. Favorite HP characters: Professor Snape, Draco, and the twins.

12. I had never marked a book as DNF before until I started blogging two and a half years ago. Before then, I’d always forced myself to finish books, no matter how awful it was going. When I started blogging and getting into the swing of things with reviewing more, I quickly learned that I just couldn’t always do that. I still try to finish books, but if I really can’t, I don’t force myself. There’s just too many books I want to read and not enough time!

13. I love re-reading favorite books and have been known to re-read some over and over. Especially when I’m in a reading slump and just need to get out of a funk. It’s something I know I already enjoy and can curl up with. How many times have I re-read Wuthering Heights? Uh, maybe six times. Stardust? 3. Jane Eyre? Twice. And several of Shakespeare’s plays numerous times. Ha!

14. I actually prefer paperbacks to hardbacks. But I think hardbacks look much nicer on shelves. Paperbacks are just easier to hold and more portable for traveling around. But if I buy a first to a series and it’s in hardback, then any future installments I buy will have to match (or try to). Another organization type thing for me. Ha. Same goes if it’s paperback.

15. I am a total cover whore. I admit it. Forget that old saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” because that’s how a good portion of those babies on my shelf end up there.

 

Well, those are my confessions! Do you have any to share? Or have any in common? Sound off in the comments or leave your links! :)