BLOGGER Q&A

Hello lovely readers! Today, I’ll be answering some questions I received over on my Twitter feed all about blogging. It’s been a year since I started posting book reviews, bookish thoughts and other little bits relating to books, so what better way to celebrate than by answering some questions from followers!

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@Katelovescolour asks: If you met Kaz in real life but could only say one thing to him what would it be? What’s your most anticipated read for the second half of the year? Which author(s) are you most looking forward to seeing at YALC? If you could be any character for a day who’d you be?

– You know what, if I met Kaz in real life I’d probably just ask him if he was alright. That boy has been through enough in his life. Me knowing that he’s good is all I need from him.
– I was going to say that I didn’t have a huge release that I’m waiting until the end of the year for, but then remembered that WUNDERSMITH will be out!! The second book of the Morrigan Crow series by Jessica Townsend is out in November and I can’t wait!
– I’m most looking forward to seeing Tomi Adeyemi and Alice Oseman. I loved Children of Blood and Bone with such a passion, and can’t wait to thank her for such an amazing book. I’ve read the rest of Alice’s books and loved them so much, so want to get them signed to match I Was Born For This.

@GoldenBooksGirl asks: What’s your favourite thing about bookselling? 

– My favourite thing about bookselling has to be having the ability to share with other people the passion of reading. I love recommending a book or a series to a kid and have them come in a few weeks later and get the second in a series. I love being able to get books into kids hands that they’ll enjoy, and I love being able to get excited about books with customers. It’s certainly a fun job!

@Preferablybooks asks: How do you decide which books to keep vs. which ones to donate/pass on to a friend/whatever after you’ve read them? Or do you just keep them all and live buried under piles and piles of books?

– If it’s a book I enjoyed but didn’t love to bits, it gets considered for rehoming. Sometimes if I’ve had a book I’ve enjoyed I’ll give it to my best friend. Often if a book was ‘alright’ but I won’t ever read it again or have sentimental thoughts about it, I’ll donate it to charity. With proofs, I’ll usually take them in for my colleagues at work to share out. I’m glad for my bookshelves as it means I no longer have to live buried under the books!

@olivia_gacka asks: What is your recommendation of the month? How many hours a day do you read?

– My recommendation for this month is Noah Could Never! This was a great read! It’s absolutely hilarious and so full of heart and love, how could I not recommend it! You should all read it!
– With work, I’ll usually read for about three hours a day? Combining my commute time, my break time and then reading at home. When not at work, probably four or five if the mood takes me. I usually read in the evenings, but if it’s sunny I’ll read for a while outside! But I have to be in the mood to read. Otherwise I end up getting distracted.

@eenalol asks: Do you create a TBR or are you a mood reader? What series is a MUST read? If you could live in any fictional land, where would you live? What have you learned in your first year of blogging? What have been some of your favourite moments from your first year of blogging?

– I’m very much a mood reader. I have a TBR on my Goodreads account, but it’s usually for me to keep tabs on the books I like the look of and will eventually get to. If I’m in a fantasy mood, I’ll pick up a fantasy I’ve been meaning to read, and the same goes for other genres too.
– So if you don’t know what I’m going to pick, you haven’t been reading my blog for very long have you? The series that is A MUST READ is the phenomenal Six Of Crows. You’ve got action, you’ve got drama, you’ve got boys with tortured souls and sad pasts, you’ve got more representation than you could shake a stick at, and the writing is so expertly crafted that it should be considered a piece of art.
– I think I answered this in another blog post, but can’t remember what I said…I think I’d choose Red London. It seems alive with magic, and thrives with people being able to use their powers and be surrounded by magic.
– During my first year of blogging, I’ve learned that I don’t have to be the same as other bloggers. I don’t have to have many posts out every week, and I certainly don’t have to love every book I read. I’ve also learned not to worry about statistics. During my first few months, I’d worry about views and comments, but now I’m not really concerned. I write my blog for me and for the people who follow it, and as long as those who enjoy my content see it, that’s all that concerns me.
– I’ve really enjoyed collaborating with other bloggers, but a big moment for me was being longlisted and then shortlisted in a blogging award! To get nominated was a huge thing for me, and something that wasn’t even on my radar before it happened. It was a huge honour to have my blog longlisted in three categories, and then get shortlisted in one.

@charlotteswhere and@Stacerino_2 ask: If you could only read one book for the rest of your life which book would you choose and why?

– Are you actively trying to kill me? How am I meant to decide between my favourites?! Okay, if I had to choose it would be A Gathering Of Shadows...I mean, elemental magic games?! How could anyone resist reading that over and over again??

@ColonelGarroway asks: How do you balance social media, writing and your voracious reading? Do you schedule specific amounts of time for each? When reading a book you will be reviewing do you take notes as you read? How do you feel about audio books?

– I don’t actually schedule myself to do any of these things! A lot of the time, reading just happens when I have the time to bury my nose in a book. Tweeting happens whenever I’ve got my phone with me and see something that I want to share, or if I’ve read something in a book I’ve liked. Blogging is linked to Twitter, so thankfully does it automatically for my posts, but usually I’ll blog when I have a day off! Some days, I’ll write three posts, some days one, and some days nothing at all.
– I don’t take notes at all! I feel like sometimes I should, but I enjoy flicking through and book to find a certain part and remembering how I felt when I first read it! Sometimes if a book needs discussion points, I’ll mark the page that I want to write about, but that isn’t with every book.
– I love audio books! I really should listen to them more. I think they definitely count as reading a book and anyone who says that it doesn’t count is, quite frankly, an idiot. It’s like telling people comic books don’t count. Just because you enjoy the book in a different medium does not make it any less of reading a book.

@georgieereads asks: How do you choose which book to read when you’ve got a mammoth TBR pile and decision paralysis?

– Most of the time it really is a random decision, or completely dependent on what genre mood I’m in. But if I’m really stuck, I’ll take into account when I need to read it for. “Am I required to have a review up for this book soon?” “Do I need to read this for my book club?” “Is it the most recent book of the month at work?” “Have my colleagues been pestering me for weeks to read this one?”. Those usually do the trick for me!

@NicoleSweeney_ asks: What upcoming releases are you excited for? Which books have been on your TBR for forever?

– The releases I am most looking forward to are: King Of Scars (Leigh Bardugo), The Wicked King (Holly Black), Vengeful (V.E. Schwab), City Of Ghosts (V.E. Schwab), Steel Prince (V.E. Schwab), Heartstopper (Alice Oseman), Wayward Son (Rainbow Rowell), SIX OF CROWS 3 (Leigh Bardugo), Odd One Out (Nic Stone), and Rayne and Delilah’s Midnite Matinee (Jeff Zentner).
– I’m pretty sure the entire His Dark Materials series has been on my TBR for years…I just never got round to reading them!

@bibookishbabe asks: What are your most anticipated releases for the second half of 2018? What is an under rated/older book you think everyone should read? If you had to switch lives with any fictional character, who would it be & why?

– Definitely has to be Wundersmith by Jessica Townsend. I can’t wait for it!
– I think Goodbye Days by Jeff Zentner is definitely an underrated title. It’s so, so good and just as heartbreaking as books like They Both Die At The End and Dear Martin. It’s a story all about grief and how those around you can cope with death in completely different ways to each other.

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There you have it! Maybe you learned something new while reading these answers? Huge thanks to all the amazing people who sent me such brilliant questions! I’ve had tons of fun answering them, and hope you all love the answers!