This week I attended HUGE Theater's improvathon: 24 hours of non-stop improv. I was there for four hours in two days.
It was great to see people I haven't seen in a while. I mistook a few for someone else because of the their mask. I also kept busy house cleaning and getting rid of stuff in closets. I've tried the KonMarie method in the past:
Commit yourself to tidying up.
Imagine your ideal lifestyle.
Finish discarding first. Before getting rid of items, sincerely thank each item for serving its purpose.
Tidy by category, not location.
Follow the right order.
Ask yourself it it sparks joy.
(Usually I get to about three of these stages. Imagining my ideal lifestyle is a challenge)
Either way, it's been a good week and I got a ton of reading done this week.
Blog Tour day. Author, Kristen Kooistra is with us.
Kristen fell in love with reading at a young age and never resurfaced. She loved solving mysteries, riding across the prairie, andsailing on the open sea. But her favorite books were those that held the fantastical. So when the time came for her to seriously approach publishing a book, it had to be fantasy!
I'm taking the time to reconnect with some old favorite books and presenting you with The Disney Song Book Tag created by Aria’s Books. continue reading
This sort of book tag will probably shoot me in the foot one day when authors turn me away for reviewing their book so I’m preempting this post by saying I’m pretty open minded on the most part. This booktag was created by
I prefer stand alones. I find I'm satisfied with learning about characters within a short time span. Rarely do I need a trilogy to help me with that.
2. READ ONLY FEMALE OR MALE AUTHORS?
I don’t like this question so I’m going to skip it.
3. SHOP AT BARNES and NOBLES OR AMAZON?
I’m going to have to go with Amazon. Back in the day when I didn’t have a touch phone I would have loved to peruse the bookshelves of Barnes and Noble. But I’m such an on-the-go person. I love the flexibility of books I can buy on Amazon.
4. ALL BOOKS BECOME MOVIES OR TV SHOWS?
I’m going with TV shows. I know I just got done saying that I like books that are shorter vs in a trilogy but when it comes to the big screen the options are endless and always engaging.
5. READ 5 PAGES PER DAY OR 5 BOOKS PER WEEK?
Five books per week, that is If I had the time. I’m satisfied with just searching for five books a day, sometimes. I like to read a book’s synopsis and wonder if it would be a perfect fit.
6. BE A PROFESSIONAL REVIEWER OR AUTHOR?
Definitely an author. This question is like a double edged sword. In order to be an author you need to read a lot of books and in order to be a great reviewer you may need to write a lot.
7. ONLY READ YOUR TOP 20 FAVORITE BOOKS OVER AND OVER OR ALWAYS READ NEW ONES THAT YOU HAVEN’T READ BEFORE?
I always read new books. I think it was a motivational speaker that once said you should never watch a movie more than once, there’s so much out there, you should always diversify your interests. So I believe that same mentality applies to books as well.
8. BE A LIBRARIAN OR BOOK SELLER?
I like the IDEA of being a bookseller, a fictional character who sells books like A.J Fikry or the Bookseller of Kabul. But to be honest, I think I would rather be a librarian because of all the great books I’d come across while shelving.
9. ONLY READ YOUR FAVORITE GENRE, OR EVERY GENRE EXCEPT YOUR FAVORITE?
Ohh, tricky and mean question. I think I would rather give up my favorite genre: contemporary. I don’t want to be deprived of horrors like Stephen King Books or lose out on any fantasies that will later be adapted into movies.
10. ONLY READ PHYSICAL BOOKS OR EBOOKS?
If I had to choose I’d pick physical books. There's no phone charger or eye straining involved with a physical book. I'm tagging Tamara at GetYourGiggleOn and Deb over at PeninherHand to do this book tag.
Truth or Lie?
1. I have danced in stadium in front of 30,000 people. 2. I have interviewed with Cassandra Clare. 3. I was once had Pica. Readers, can you answer any of these above questions? Is there a book that's just been in the back of your mind lately?
"I wonder how many people I looked at all my life and never seen." -John Steinbeck (Author of Of Mice and Men, Grapes of Wrath, In Dubious Battle, East of Eden, Travels with Charley)
I couldn't wait for March Readathon season, mainly for the return of booktubers. Jennifer Slater is with us today shouting her love of books from INnerSANITY channel. She can be contacted on twitter, goodreads, and instagram
Jennifer, was it hard getting your booktube channel started? What was some of the planning?
Well I wouldn't say it was hard per say. I had a camera to film on, a video editor, and I had TONS OF BOOKS!! So I already had everything I needed when I decided to start making videos. It was just a matter of deciding what kinds of videos I was going to film.
I watched a bunch of different booktubers to see what kind of things they were filming.. and picked stuff that appealed to me. Book tags are popular and fun,
And the ever popular TBR's (to be read) and WRAP UPS (what you actually read) for each month. Of course the first video I made was the "New to Booktube Tag" I think a lot of people would agree that when you first start making videos, it's a little weird talking to the camera.
I kept on feeling self conscious and kind of embarrassed for some reason.. I was alone while filming, so I really shouldn't have been - but it just took some getting used to. That was the most difficult part for me. Just being able to be natural in front of the camera.. and just go with it. Some things to keep in mind for those of us out there who want to start a channel.
So, which writers inspire you?
I think any writer that is able to tell a good story that has emotion and drama and humor is inspiring. I really love Joy Fielding's writing. She has this way of really being able to draw me into her stories. Her character development is great and you can really picture everything as you're reading. I love her style of writing. I've laughed out loud while reading all her books and I've also cried.
Other favorite authors of mine are Karin Slaughter, Tania Carver, Erica Spindler, Jonathan Kellerman, Dean Koontz, Stephen King, and Lisa Jackson to name just a few!
Quite a list you got there! I'm reading Stephen King's, End of Watch. I love Stephen King. I love that he reaches out to writers and even has a book called On Writing to help writers with their craft.
What drew you to mystery/thrillers😱?
I've always loved this genre.. even as a child I remember taking out scary books from the library. Books about ghosts, supernatural stuff.. and when I was older I loved the VC Andrews books series.
I guess I love being scared because I really love horror movies and thrillers as well. One of my favorite TV shows is Law & Order: SVU. So a lot of my favorite authors are the ones who write books about detectives and the killers they're after. A lot of the stories in plot lines in those types of books I can see being on an episode of SVU. For your own reading, do you prefer ebooks or traditional paper/hard back books?
Oh my gosh real books all the way!! I love holding something tangible in my hands and having them to put in my bookshelves and bring them out to look at them and touch them - I also really love the smell of books. I love flipping the pages - you can't get that with e-books. I find it so much harder to get into the story on an iPad or tablet - it's just not the same!
Do you think that the cover plays an important part in the buying process?
Definitely! That's what attracts you to pick up the book in the first place.. then you'll look at the synopses. I'll even sometimes look online to see which cover versions I like better- because they are different in the U.K. from the US.
What would you say are the main advantages and disadvantages of self-publishing against being published or the other way around?
Well this I'm not to sure about.. I suppose with self publishing you wouldn't get as much exposure as you would with a publishing company. It would take a lot more work to get your book noticed. Although there would probably be a lot of pressure to get your writing
done - deadlines and such - with a publisher.. whereas you'd be able to go at your own pace and write it the way you want when you self publish.
Sometimes it's the need to go to the washroom.. lol
Other times it's thinking about getting back into that book that's just so good..
or wanting to go out to the used bookstore to see what I can find..
I also do a lot of art - I love adult coloring books and playing around with my art apps and playing with my photos - making them into weird and freaky images / if I'm feeling really inspired artistically I won't be able to sleep!
Do you enjoy writers like Michael Connelly, John Sandford, John Grisham?
I LOVED 😍 The Prey series by John Sanford - I read a bunch of those while I was pregnant. I know there's more now - I think I may have to go to that used bookstore and find that series again and re-read them! Thanks for reminding me of it! Yeah no problem, as long as were on the topic John Sandford. He has also written in chronological order : the Virgil Flowers Series, The Kidd Series, and The Singular Menace Series. (breathes in and out) Do I have them all? Oh, yeah he's got several other novels not in a series as well.
As far as thrillers go, I also have a bunch of Michael Connelly's books from my mom too but I haven't read those yet. As for John Grisham-- while I didn't mind the movies based on his books I haven't ever felt any strong desire to pick up his books to actually read them. But I think I'd probably enjoy some of them if I did read them.
Oh you should totally read Michael Connelly. I finished 'Lincoln Lawyer.' I felt that the novel was far better than the movie. I also read Connelly's, The Fifth Witness, Reversal, and The God's of Guilt. I really like the audio book narrator, Peter Giles and really got into all the books he narrates. His voice reminds me of a movie commentator's.
If you could be asked any question in an interview, what would that be?
Wow that's kind of hard!! Hmm maybe something like "what kinds of things do you think are important in life?"
And to that I'd answer "..always be yourself! Enjoy what you do! It's ok to be goofy! Make sure to laugh often!! If you have children - always talk to them about everything and anything!! Tell the people you love that you love them often!! And LOVE with all your heart."
I agree with you, I'm a total goofball, just ask anyone who follows me on twitter. Well, that's all the time we have today folks. If you have any questions or comments for Jennifer, let her know in the comments below.
