thoughts by j. a book blogger interview

I met Joy through Goodreads. If I had to describe her blog, thoughts by j, in one word, it would be elegant. Swing by her place and you'll see what I mean.

1. Please, Introduce yourself.
I'm Joy, and I'm a 20 year old book blogger from Sydney, Australia! I'm currently studying media in university, and hopefully will be able to work for Bloomsbury one day. Fingers crossed! 

2. Coffee or Tea or Water? Espresso, Drip, Instant, or French Press? Bag or Looseleaf? Bottled, Filtered, Tap or Rainwater?
I love tea and coffee. I usually go for Earl Grey in the mornings and never fail to drink at least one cup of tea a day. When I'm out and about, I usually grab coffee. There's a great coffee cart at my uni where the best caramel lattes I've ever tasted are sold. I am a sucker for their coffees. Fun fact: My first job was at a cafe, where I was able to drink as many coffees as I wanted. I'm not sure if it's because I've had too many coffees in my short life-time, but instead of waking me up, drinking coffee puts me to sleep!

3. Why do you blog about books?
I love reading, simple as that. I never did blog, but as a media student I needed a platform to fine-tune my writing. Starting a book blog sounded like the perfect way to incorporate these two hobbies! 

4.What inspired the design of your site?
I wanted a more sophisticated feel to my website - something similar to how a digital magazine website would look like. I like really neat designs, as it gives off a hint of professionalism (ha!). I'm always a little weary of websites that are too cluttered, so I tried to keep that in mind when choosing my themes. 

5. What is your favorite thing about book blogging?
Meeting all the wonderful people in the industry! I've definitely met some wonderful bloggers, authors and aspiring writers during my short time blogging. It's wonderful to share your thoughts, ideas and opinions with like-minded people all over the world!

6. How do you decide which books to read?
When I'm really busy, I usually pick books that are shorter in length. I hate reading sporadically, starting a book and not finishing it for ages. Unfortunately, this happens much too often. When I get book review requests, I usually bump these up to the front of my TBR list. I am always grateful to any authors that take the time out to contact me, so I'm always more than willingly to choose to read their books first.

7. How much time do you invest reading and blogging?
Unfortunately not enough ever since uni resumed. I just came out of a four months holiday, where I had plenty to time to read and blog every week. Now I am swamped with course work, a part-time job, extra-curriculars and sports on the weekends. I can barely find the time to sit down a enjoy some quality reading time. This is really disappointing, but I'm trying my best to rectify this.

8. Care to comment on the Alice Hoffman quote: Books may well be the only magic?
I wouldn't say the ONLY magic. Magic is whatever you make of it - there are magicians worldwide that can perform amazing feats and I definitely consider them magical. Books are in a completely different realm altogether though. What I believe Alice Hoffman meant is that books are the only form of magic that is able to transport you to a different place, metaphorically speaking. Reading is the only way that you can really shut out your own life and follow the wonderful adventures of the characters that you're reading about. It may not be the only magic, but it is definitely magical.

9. On a scale of 1-10, how eccentric are you? 10 being VERY…
Haha, I would love to say I am wild and eccentric, but I probably only sit at around a 2 on the scale. :P

10. Is there anything else we need to know about you?
I love rabbits and own one named Mia. (:

Thank you, Joy!

Bookworm Lisa's Family Friendly Blog

Today, Lisa Faber shares the philosophy of her family friendly blog, Bookworm Lisa. She loves to read and pass on good books she'd be comfortable recommending to her fifteen year old daughter or her grandma. Blogs like Lisa's are invaluable for parents involved in their children's reading activity.

They're also great for readers who might get squeamish when sex and violence get too detailed. With tabs like: Children's Picture Books, Juvenile and Middle Grade Chapter Books, Young Adult Books, Clean Romance Books, Inspirational Books, Fantasy/Paranormal Books, and Adventure Books, there's plenty to choose from.

That's why book blogs are great. Invest some time online to find the blogs of those who have similar tastes to yours and they can help you find your next great read, especially in those moments when you don't have time to forage on your own.

Now, on to Lisa's interview!

1.  Introduce Yourself My first and foremost role is being a mother.  I have four children, three boys and one girl.  I was a "sahm" for almost 17 years. I now work part time as a lunch lady, so I can be home when my kids are home.  I actually enjoy the time at work, it's fun to work closely with a bunch of wonderful ladies, and I get my "girl friend" time in at work.

2.  Coffee or Tea or Water? Espresso, Drip, Instant, or French Press? Bag or Looseleaf? Bottled, Filtered, Tap or Rainwater? It would have to be water for me.  I love filtered water.  If I can't get the filtered then I resort to bottled.  My first preference would really have to be Dr. Pepper though. :)

3.  Why do you blog about books? Reading has always been a love of mine.  As far as blogging goes, I kind of fell into it. I started reviewing on Goodreads and then things expanded.  I really enjoy sharing my journey of reading with others.

4.  What inspired the design of your site? Several years ago I made a profile picture of the book I was reading (The Sword of Shannara Trilogy ~ 25th anniversary edition) with a bookmark that I created from my kids school pictures.  It has reading glasses on top of the book.  I spend several years in my local PTA helping children learn to read.  I wanted my blog to reflect a family friendly atmosphere and focus on books that would appeal to all ages. So I have books from childrens picture books to romance books for mom and grandma.

5.  What is your favorite thing about book blogging? I can't believe all of the wonderful bloggers out there.  There is a thriving community of book bloggers.  I have had the opportunity to "meet online" many people that I wouldn't have known about in any other way.

6.  How do you decide which books to read? There has to be an appeal on some level to me.  When I first started blogging, I couldn't believe that people actually wanted to give me a copy of their books to read.  I accepted everything, but soon learned that it didn't work for me.  I received books that I just couldn't get interested in.  I now look at the story line, the cover, and sometimes I will look at reviews that have been written on the book before making my decision.

7.  How much time do you invest reading and blogging? I don't know how to get a number for that. I spend many hours reading and many hours blogging.  I try to spend more time reading that blogging.  Sometimes it is hard to find the balance, because my kids need me too.

8.  Care to comment on the Alice Hoffman quote: Books may well be the only magic?

I look at books more as an escape.  I love that I can learn and be entertained.  That is in a way magical.  My favorite quote about books comes from The Guernsey Literary and Potato Pie Society.

 "That's what I love about reading: One tiny thing will interest you in a book, and another tiny thing will lead you onto another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book. It's geometrically progressive - all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than sheer enjoyment." 

9.  On a scale of 1-10, how eccentric are you? 10 being VERY...

Maybe a four or so.  I try to blend in.

10.  Is there anything else we need to know about you? I am committed to literacy and helping people find books that are a good fit for them. My blog is on the conservative side.  I try to find books that I wouldn't be embarrassed to recommend to my grandma, or my daughter, she's 15.  I am very committed to my family, particularly my very supportive husband.

Lisa, thank you for sharing your love of books with us!

You can visit Bookworm Lisa for reviews, giveaways, blog tours, cover reveals, and other bookish things every day of the week.

Book Blogger Justine Vandale Talks About Her Shelves of Books

Today I want to welcome book blogger Justine Vandale author of the Shelves of Books Blog as part of my Show This Blogger Some Love!

You may or may not be aware that the publishing industry is in a state of flux. Ereaders and indie authors have permanently altered the book lover's landscape and book bloggers are becoming an increasingly integral part of the reading conversation. That Amazon bought Goodreads. last Thursday highlights the value that the publishing industry places on independent reviewers of books. Lots of book bloggers hang out on Goodreads. How all this will shake down is anyone's guess, but my bet is that book bloggers are here to stay. So I hope you'll enjoying learning more about who they are and what drives them in this series of interviews that I'll be hosting through the end of April.

Justine Vandale talks about her Shelves of Books Blog

1. Introduce Yourself. Hey I'm Justine. I am 23 years old and I recently married my high school sweetheart on the beautiful beaches of Hawaii. I love reading books!!! I mostly read YA and biographies but have recently started getting out of my comfort zone and reading other genres. I am also an animal lover. I have a pug/ cocker spaniel named Steve and a cat named Obie. 

2. Coffee or Tea or Water? Espresso, Drip, Instant, or French Press? Bag or Looseleaf? Bottled, Filtered, Tap or Rainwater? TEA!!! I hate coffee it's so bitter. Ill pretty much drink any kind of tea except for fruity flavors.

3. Why do you blog about books? I started a blog for all of my reviews because I noticed that lots of other reviews have them and I wanted in on it. 

4. What inspired the design of your site? Mine is pretty generic. But I have shelves of books so that where I got the name from. 

5. What is your favorite thing about book blogging? I love having people come and read my posts and leave a comment. 

6. How do you decide which books to read? Before I would read just what I wanted but then I became hard to pick a book to read so I started joining book clubs and blog tours to expand my horizons.

7. How much time do you invest reading and blogging? I spend a ton of time reading! I read whenever I have spare time. I only blog when I have reviews or blog tours. I don't blog random stuff. I'd rather use that time to read :)

8. Care to comment on the Alice Hoffman quote: Books may well be the only magic? It's true. Books take you places in your imagination that you didn't know were even possible. They also make you feel emotions you have never experienced.

9. On a scale of 1-10, how eccentric are you? 10 being VERY… Maybe a 5/10. I'm too crazy but I'm not too tame. Lol

10. Is there anything else we need to know about you? I think that pretty much covers it but if you want to know anything else let me know.

One of the really cool things on Shelves of Books is the mini-banner across the top of the page that links to Justine's Goodreads reviews of her favorite books with a single click. That should help any reader find their next great read!

Justine, thank you for letting us get to know you better.

Interview with Candace of Candace's Book Blog & CBB book promotions

Over the past year or so, my fascination with book bloggers has grown. What began as an effort to obtain reviews for my books, became something else. The more time that I spent on the book blogger's sites, the more intrigued I became with their unique styles of reviewing books and creating great places for bibliophiles to hang out online.  So I've invited some book bloggers to be interviewed. These folks invest a lot of time and energy in reading, sorting through books, and sharing their opinions. I wanted to learn more about who they are and what drives them. I hope you'll enjoy learning more about them, too.

I'm honored to present the first interview with Candace of Candace's Book Blog & CBB book promotions.

1. Introduce yourself. My name is Candace, I run Candace's Book Blog and I've been blogging books since 2008 but have been pretty immersed in the online book community since 2005 when I discovered Shelfari and immediately started connecting with authors and book people.  I read most genres and review young adult, middle grade, children's books and adult books on my blog.  All are well labeled but reviews are clean whether it's an adult book or not.  I'm married and have two children, a daughter who's 8 and a son who's 4.  I live in the gorgeous Pacific NW but grew up in Sturgis, SD (yes, where the motorcycle rally is).  Besides being a book blogger I run CBB Book Promotions and do book promotions like blog tours and on going publicity for authors.

2. Coffee or tea or water? Espresso, drip, instant, or french press? Bag or looseleaf? Bottled, filtered, tap or rainwater? I drink coffee in the morning.  Usually only about half a cup or so as I'm weaning myself off.  I juice in the afternoon and other than that I usually drink water.  I do drink tea when I'm needing an extra immune booster too.

3. Why do you blog about books? I started blogging because I wanted to record my thoughts on the books I read and have it all in one place.  Soon after I had my son and I didn't read as much for a few months but then when I went back to it I pretty much immersed myself in the blogging community and found I didn't just want my blog for me, I wanted to share it with everyone!  I started another blog at the same time about cloth diapering and green living and while it's another passion of mine I found myself loving the book blogging more and ended up deleting the other blog.  I started my blog at the same time as two friends of mine and we have supported each other the whole way and run several yearly events together.  They are Lori at Pure Imagination and Angela at Reading Angel.

4. What inspired the design of your site? My friend Lori (mentioned above) is a blog designer and so I just told her something bookish and magical.  She had me pick out some different images I liked and then she played around with them and came up with something gorgeous! I have had her update the design to be more streamlined and add in CBB Book Promotions but I've kept the majority of it since I love it so much!

5. What is your favorite thing about book blogging? Where to start?  I love the community and feeling connected to so many like minded people and sharing my book thoughts with them, I also love helping out authors that need help getting their books out there.

6. How do you decide which books to read?  Oh geez, that can be a tough one.  First of all I read by mood.  There's no point in picking up a book that doesn't fit my mood cause then I'll end up liking it less.  But for the most part it's by what I have acquired first when it comes to review copies.  Since I went to ALAMW I put all my books in order of release so I work my way through them so I can review around their release date.  But since I have so many Indie books on my kindle I read at least one a week from that 'pile' by order they came in (if for review).

7. How much time do you invest reading and blogging? Lots.WAY more than I should probably.  How I like to do it is mornings are for reading and doing housework, etc.  I usually get at least an hour in of reading.  Then I spend time with my husband before he goes to work.  Around 1:30 I get on the computer and I'm on and off the rest of the afternoon.  I have a 4 year old at home all day so I have lots of interruptions, but it's still a few hours a day.  Then before bed is reading time, which is about 2 hours of reading.  While I spend 5 or so hours on the computer a day most of it is working on blog tours and other author promotions I'm doing.   It's hard to say how much is actual blogging.

8. Care to comment on the Alice Hoffman quote: Books may well be the only magic? Books make it so we can experience anything.  We can travel anywhere, we can be anything and anyone we want, and go through things we can only dream of. Books ARE magic.

9. On a scale of 1-10, how eccentric are you? 10 being VERY… I don't know... maybe a 6?  The things that use to make me eccentric are now pretty common.  I'm a vegetarian (mostly vegan actually), I used cloth diapers (he's potty trained now though), I juice, I try to grow my own food as much as possible, I prefer to avoid any GMO foods and eat all organic (when it's possible).  I dye my hair red (often a variety of reds) and... I think that's about it!

10. Is there anything else we need to know about you? I don't think so.  I'm sure I forgot something important, but I'm not thinking of it right now!

Thanks so much for having me on Heidi, it was fun! Candace

Candace's beautiful and popular blog has many great features, including:
Saturday Situation with links to hundreds of reviews and giveaways!
CBB Book Promotions Now Open & Accepting New Tours