I am going to try something a little bit new here for me on my blog. So far I have been bringing you all reviews along with a few author interviews. When I started this blog the idea was to make it the ultimate place for bookaholics. I am going to try to start bringing you something a little new and fresh once each week. Preferably, each Monday. I am interested in hearing if there is anything in particular you would like to see. I would love to hear from all of you. Let me know in the comments below. I aim to please. 🙂
Today I thought I would start with something really simple. This past Summer I participated in a Blog Tour. Each week I was a guest on someone’s blog and someone was a guest on my blog. I kept some of the posts that I wrote for other blogs. Today I am sharing some random information about myself so you can get to know me a little bit better. Hope you all enjoy!
Hello everyone! My name is Michelle and I am the owner/creator/writer (whatever you prefer to call me) here at Bookaholic Banter . I created this website to share my love of the written word for other book lovers like myself. Eventually I want to expand my website to offer so much more than reviews, blog posts, and author interviews. I want to have a store of bookish items, I might even start my own blog tours. We shall see. 🙂
When and Why I Started Blogging…
I started blogging in 2010 when I became a part of an Internet Marketing community online called Wealthy Affiliate. It is another great community with free classes and courses on internet marketing and a place you can build and host websites for free. I have two websites as of now. I have a premium membership and get free website hosting with up to thirty free websites. I plan on starting a few more sometime in the future. ( If you decide to check it out, please help me out and use the above link. I get the referral if you decide to join.) I had to pick a niche for my first free website. Obviously, I picked one centered around books. Books and reading have always been my number one passion! There was no way I was going to choose anything different. I always considered myself a bookaholic and I love to banter about books. That’s pretty much how I came up with the name.
I started up this website and slowly started blogging about books I read with reviews. I just got more serious about the blogging world and this website at the beginning of this year. I decided to start blogging about books since I like to write reviews after I read a book. I recently started doing some blog tours and reading and reviewing books for authors and publishers so it kind of forced me into blogging more often, but I absolutely LOVE it! This was something I wanted to do for a long time.
My Favorite Part of Book Blogging…
What I enjoy most about book blogging is connecting with other readers. I love when other readers leave comments and want to talk with me, I love this tour most of all! I can honestly say that this is the best part of my blogging experience so far. It is something different from what I’m used to. I love having guests on my blog and meeting new people. The other thing I love most about blogging is writing. I enjoy sharing what I have to say with others and starting conversations. I also love typing. I know I’m a weirdo. I just enjoy it for some strange reason.
My Least Favorite Part of Book Blogging…
The thing that I like least about book blogging is not knowing if what I write is going to be good enough or interesting enough. I worry that nobody will read or enjoy my reviews. I also don’t like when I read a book that I didn’t enjoy at all and I have to write a review about it. I don’t like to hurt anyone’s feelings. I find it very difficult writing a bad review without being a little harsh.
If I Could Only Recommend Three Books For The Rest of My Life…
Wow! This is tough! Only three? I am just going to go with the three titles that swim around in my head the most often. These are books that I have read years ago and I still think about them constantly. I could probably name at least ten, so this is hard. First I would recommend Life Laughs by Jenny McCarthy . It was the funniest book that I have ever read. It had me laughing hysterically. When someone wants funny, this is the first one I recommend. Second, I would recommend A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer. It is the most harrowing, heart-breaking story that I have EVER read. I still think about this book every day. It made my childhood look like a cake walk. It will make you be more thankful for your life and help you complain less. The third and final book that I would recommend would have to be Whiskey Sour by J.A. Konrath. I recommend this book the most because it’s literally the best fictional reading ride I have ever been on! This book grabbed me from the very first page. It kept me turning the pages fast into the night. The chapters would end on such a cliff-hanger, you just had to keep reading. The characters are unforgettable. The writing style is fabulous. So much fun! You will not put it down! I loved this book (and series) so much, that after I read them, I listened to them again later on audio-book for long trips in the car when my husband and I went on vacation to keep us entertained and make the ride seem shorter. By the way, my husband is not a reader but he devoured these books as well. If he likes a book it HAS to be good!
Something Un-Bookish About Myself…
I LOVE to sing! Music and Singing is a huge part of my life as well. I have always had a bad case of stage fright and couldn’t sing in front of anyone! One day I decided to enter a Karaoke Idol contest at a bar and out of 15 people I made it to the final round of three people. I took third place. It was so much fun. It got my confidence up and I tried out for The Voice as well. I am now a karaoke addict and like to go out singing with my sister ( who took first in the karaoke contest) at least once a month. I’m still debating if I want to go back to The Voice again or just keep singing as a hobby.
Book Format I Prefer and Why…
Physical! Hands down, wins every time! I like the feel of a real book in my hands, the turning of the pages, the smell, the feel, the look. I love having bookcases full of books. They make my home full cozy. My home just wouldn’t feel cozy without out all these physical books to look at. A great reason to meet an author as well! Taking them to be signed. Physical books are just so much more personal and leave you with a warm and fuzzy feeling. There is nothing like curling up in the winter with a book, comfy blanket, and a hot cup of coffee, tea, or hot chocolate. It’s just an all around better experience for me. E-books just can’t give me those feelings. Probably the only time that I read e-books is when I am sent one for review. I listen to auido books whenever I take a long car trip-which isn’t very often. Books are just once thing that electronics will NEVER replace in my life.
Favorite Post I’ve Written…
Well, since I haven’t been blogging too long and I mostly have reviews on my website, I am going to go ahead and say that this is probably my favorite post. I enjoy answering questions. It makes it easier to write. A prompt always helps get the words flowing. Also, I feel like this will help my readers get to know me a bit more and hopefully lead to conversations with other bloggers and I can learn more about others and hopefully make some new friends in the book blogging community. 🙂
What I Am Currently Reading…
Right now I am finshing an ARC of Kubrick’s Game by Derek Taylor Kent. It released September 24th, 2016. I should have a review up soon. Next, I am starting an ARC of Clanless ( Book #2 in the Nameless series) by Jennifer Jenkins. I read and reviewed the first book for a book tour earlier this year. You can find the review for it HERE. It was absolutely wonderful! One of my favorite reads this year. When I received an email to participate in a blog tour for the second book, you can be sure I jumped on that chance right away!
Two Truths and A Lie About Myself…
1) I got married in Las Vegas
2) I turn 30 years old this year on October 1st.
3) I have a 16 year old daughter.
Can you figure out the lie? Would love to hear which one you think is false in the comments.
Final Thoughts…
Books and writing have saved my life! Without these two very important things in my life I don’t know how I would have made it out of certain situations and certain times in my life. Books are always there to comfort me when I need it, distract me when I can’t calm my mind, teach me new things, and entertain me when I’m bored. With books in my life, I never go a day bored. Writing is an outlet that helps me get my emotions out and helps me not keep things bottled up, it helps me be creative, and just makes me feel alive.
Thank you to all of you who have made it this far and took them time to listen to me ramble on. I appreciate you taking them time to listen to what I have to say. Feel free to friend me on social media. I love meeting new bookaholics. I look forward to getting to know all of you a little more.
