A Bookshelfie Thing To Do...

I've just taken part in a huge bookshelfie project.  It's to find out how many people out in the world have book collections - personal, home book collections.  And this person doesn't mean a little bookcase by the computer for the computer magazines or the textbooks you need for your studies, she means a proper book collection you've accumulated over years and decades of collecting.

Well!  Of course I had to take part and so I stuffed around and took what they call a 'Bookshelfie'.. this is a photo of yourself in front of your collection of books... and e-mailed it to her.  But that's not all.  I had to give her my city, country and state.  I also told her how long I've been collecting.  In return, she wanted me to pass on the message to all my friends.  And seeing you're all here to read this, I thought to plug this wonderful project and see if you'd all like to take part.

Mainly, she wants to know if the digital age of e-books have really taken over the good old-fashioned books we have come to know and love so well.  Until my next post, happy reading.

Atua's Bookshelfie Project 

Advertising Reading...

I just saw these on Facebook.  Would you love to have these adverts grace your television screens or even be on a billboard in your city or maybe in a magazine or in a newspaper?  They're fun and colourful, and I think they're great!

Book Advertising 

Until my next post, happy reading!

An Interview With Joanne Harris

Over the last few weeks a lot has happened.  There's been posts about books, bookstores (well, only a couple) and other book-related things as well.  I've also promised you some interviews with some writers who I know as well.  This interview was done a few years back for a fellow blogger who I promised to do some interviews for at the time for her.  Well, I dug around in my vault of interviews and found one of Joanne Harris' I had sent along to her first; and wondered if it was okay to apply it to my own blog.  After a quick to and fro of e-mails, Abigail was happy to allow me to cross-post the interview this year for you all.  So, here it is.  The interview with Joanne Harris used in The Story Factory Reading Zone blog.

    Please introduce yourself to our readers

I’m a 47-year-old former teacher living in Yorkshire. I have an 18-year-old daughter and a husband I met via graffiti on a school desk when I was just 16. I ‘m addicted to Haribo, Diet Coke and musical theatre.

Oh, yes - and I write a bit.

    What book do you think you are most like?

Parts of me are in all my books and all my characters. I don’t think you can write a convincing fiction unless some of it is supported by experience and emotional investment.

    What sort of books do you write?

I don’t like categorizing what I write. My books are often very different from each other. Loosely speaking, I appear under general fiction, but I’ve written crime novels, fantasy, historical, cookbooks, short stories. Most of my books have an element of suspense, and many of them focus on the senses in some way – often those of scent and taste.

    Can you tell us a bit about your favourite character from your own writing.

It’s hard to choose a favourite character when there are so many to choose from. One of my readers’ favourites is Vianne Rocher, who has appeared in two of my books so far; a mother, a traveller, a reluctant witch and of course, a maker of chocolates. I’m writing another book about her now, because I sense that her journey isn’t done.

    What books/authors have influenced your writing the most?

Ray Bradbury; Jules Verne; Victor Hugo; P.G.Wodehouse; John Mortimer; Mervyn Peake; Vladimir Nabokov.

    Tell us about the place where you write.

I used to write at home, but now I have a shed in the garden. It’s made of stone and it’s quite spare inside, with just the basics; a chair, a desk; a kettle. I don’t like distractions when I’m working, so it’s good to have somewhere to go where I know I won’t be disturbed too often.

    Do you have any techniques that you use if you get writer's block

I’m not sure I believe in writer’s block. The idea presupposes that a writer can always write whenever they feel like it. Some days I can write, others not. On the others I do something else.

    What are your top 5 tips for writing?

Read as much as you can, in as many different areas.

Pay attention to current events. Newspapers are full of ideas.

Talk to as many different kinds of people as you can. Everyone has a story.

Don’t try to copy trends. Be yourself, and be honest.

Enjoy what you do, and keep trying to improve. That in itself is already success.

 
If you'd like to know more about Joanne Harris, there's a link to her official website on the sidebar.  Until my next post, happy reading!

Book Blogs

Okay, this sounds really confusing, but do you like to read book blogs?  I don't mean blogs that are about book reviews, I mean blogs that have books written into them?  I run two such blogs and they've got a small number of followers - and any number of looky-loos who just drop in to have a read once in a while.  So, do you read book blogs and enjoy reading an unknown author's written works?  If so, let us know of some of the blogs you all follow and read.  Here are my two.

Fry Nelson: Bounty Hunter 

Okay, this one is of novella/short stories.  But please do start with Chapter One - Initiation (book 1) and go from there otherwise you won't know what's going on; as it juxtaposes back and forth between the stories from time to time.  I have had some great feedback from this blog from people all over.

You Can't Go Back: And Other Impossibilities  

This one is of vampire romance and other mixed stories from time travel, weirdness and darkness I've only thought of while traveling around on holidays, had nightmares about (and thought would make a great story and found they did) and anything else I can think of to write... these are the odds and ends of the 'what if...' situations that run through my brain from time to time.  And yes, I did get published.  But it's fun to read the collection of stories here; and I will be adding to them soon as well.

I hope you guys enjoy these two blogs for your reading pleasure.  But do let us addicted to reading just about anything know of any blogs you've discovered where an unknown author has put their work on a blog to entertain the masses.  Until my next post, happy reading!  

Keeping Count Online

I've been a member of a few online book clubs since I joined the internet way back when I was living at my folks house after a nasty break-up with an abusive ex-boyfriend in 2000.  This was around the time when dial-up turned into Broadband; and it was hideously expensive and not everyone could afford it.  Thank goodness it became something everyone could afford eventually, eh?  Well, I thought to put on here the few sites I use on a regular basis to search for books, catalogue some of my books and - at times - keep count of the books I read.

Good Reads 

Book Found

Good Reading Magazine

Bookcrossing

Library Thing

So, there you have it, a list of the most-used book sites I use.  They're also on the sidebar as well.  So, when this post is gone into the archives, you can all see them and use them still. Enjoy!  Which book sites are you constantly using?  Are they the same - or similar - sites to these?  Are there ones you'd like to see here?  If so, drop me a line in the comments below and let us in on your secret book site.  Until my next post, happy reading!

A Brand New Blog!

Bloggers like to advertise their blogger friends on their blogrolls.  However, I have a Bookcrossing friend who has just started up her own blog and I'd like to let you guys into it.  She's never done a blog before and so would like to introduce you to FeistyPom2Love's very new blog called Captivated Reader I hope you enjoy.  And be the first to follow it.

 

Summer of Fun!

Welcome, welcome!  It's the beginning of Summer in the Southern Hemisphere and thus far, we've had a storm grumble by and temperature drop by about six degrees... yep you heard me right!  It's cold instead of hot and steamy.  

But that isn't going to stop us from having the Summer Fun I promised.  As the saying goes here in Australia:  'Rain, Hail or Shine, the show goes on'... so will this one.  And as promised, I've been busy with looking at what to do this Summer.  And so, I've been spontaneously going through Google and found a few book blogs that looked great.  

The first book blog that caught my eye was Kate's Book Blog I clicked on it and found myself in a very plain - yet informative - blog about books, authors and a world of a lawyer who loves to read.  Kate covers all genres including poetry and has a massive list of other blogs down the sidebar of blogs I've never seen before.  Well worth a look into; so much so, I'll be adding her blog to my blog roll to you can all keep up to date with her blog.

Another I found while perusing the huge number of bloggers who love books is I Heart Reading a lovely bright blog which I haven't heard of until tonight by Majanka Verstraete in Belgium who loves books and reading.  Her most recent review is of 'The Lady of the Rivers' by Philippa Gregory (a book I received for my birthday and have been attempting to get into unsuccessfully).  Majanka has written a wonderfully indepth review of this book, about its characters and why this book - in particular - didn't work this time around for this author (who is usually fantastic).  So, do check out her blog; it's well worth looking into; as there's a lot of work put into it and she has a lot of other previous reviews that look great.

Now the third one I've found in a number of places - not just on Google.  So, I thought to put her blog up here for you all to have a look at it.  Becky's Book Reviews is a lovely-looking blog straight up.  Before you look at anything in particular, you like it immediately for its colour and beauty.  Right now, Becky has a few challenges going; and there's one up on the most current post, offering if we'd like to join her.  She's mentioned that she read 20 books last month; now, this is a serious reader!  I will be adding Becky's Book Reviews to the blog roll for all of you who are interested in her work.

Well, that's all the blogs of interest I've found so far.  I hope you enjoy them.  I'll be looking around for others as the next three months pass by (our Summer here in Australia) for you all.  Otherwise, until my next post, happy reading!