My Feelings About Blogging, Ratings, and a Couple of Fun Facts About Me

Can I just say that I love being tagged and nominated for things?

I don’t know if it’s uncool to admit that, but it always makes me feel so warm and happy and, idk, appreciated? So, many-many thanks to Caitlin @ Caitlin Althea who was kind enough to nominate me for the Liebster Award! She’s an amazing and lovely blogger, so you all should check her out if you haven’t yet.

RULES

1. Acknowledge the blog that gave it to you and display the award
2. Answer 11 questions that the blogger gives you
3. Give 11 random facts about yourself
4. Nominate 11 blogs and notify them of their nomination
5. Give these blogs 11 questions to answer

Answering Caitlin’s Questions

What did you find most shocking when you first started blogging?

I remember being shocked by how big the community is. I started out with no knowledge about blogs, blog tours, ARCs etc. and I was super-overwhelmed by everything and, to be honest, everyone during those first few months. It was pretty much surprise after surprise for a bit there, if I’m honest.

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What book do you think would make a great TV show?

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Read is my go-to answer for this question. It would make an excellent mini series, and the fact that (basic as hell) Daisy Jones and the Six has gotten a show before Evelyn is continuous source of my annoyance.

Humour me and imagine this: two episodes for each period/husband in Evelyn’s life. Wouldn’t that be marvelous!?

If you could go back to when you first started blogging, what would you do differently?

I would be more open to connecting with other bloggers, particularly on social media. I spent a massive amount of time with little to no interaction with other bloggers and readers, because I was… well, scared of them haha. There is something about online interactions – about not hearing or seeing the person you are talking to – that has always made me nervous. In real life, it’s fairly easy to determine if someone doesn’t like you, but on the internet? Basically impossible, or so it seems.

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What’s a book that most people dislike, but you love/like?

I had to check my Goodreads profile for this – I literally have to check it for any bookish information; every title I’ve ever read leaves me when I need them – and the most fitting answer is A Wicked Thing. I think a lot of us were hyping this up because of the drop dead gorgeous cover, but in the end it simply wasn’t what most of us expected. The heroine is, for lack of better word, pretty meek, and I know that’s put a lot of people off. Which I get!! But I remember being delighted by how different and quietly captivating this fantasy novel was.

Do you have any bookish and/or blogging goals that you really want to accomplish?

Man, I don’t know. I think my biggest desire regarding the blog is to still get enjoyment out of it throughout the upcoming years, and to be able to make it grow continuously. I know! These are genuinely the most boring goals in the history of blogging, but… *shrug*

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What’s your favorite non-romance trope?

Found families! I love when characters, particularly ones who have little to nothing in common, slow by slow become a tight knit group that functions like a caring, loving family! My favorite example of this is Want by Cindy Pon, which does wonders with this trope. A more well known series that utilizes this trope is The Lunar Chronicles, but we see something similar – although less fluffy – in Six of Crows as well.

Do you find people who almost always rate books 5 stars questionable?

A little? I’m not about to police anyone’s ratings, and if they really do love everything they’ve read? Good for them! But I’m more inclined to listen to someone’s opinion who has a variety of different ratings, rather than all five-stars.

I do think some people are very good at guessing what they might like, such as Roberta who puts in a lot of work to only purchase books she genuinely believes will be for her, but even these types of readers tend to, so to say, make mistakes. For instance, I’m pretty sure most of what Roberta reads ends up being her cup of tea, but they are definitely not all five star reads.

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What’s a book that you’ve been meaning to read for forever, yet still haven’t picked up?

I used to be a massive fan of The Wolves of Mercy Falls by Maggie Stiefvater, and yet, I never got to Sinner, the final novel/spin-off of the series. I remember so little of the original series, which means I should probably reread them, but I have no inclination to do that!? Tbh, I’m half sure I’d not like them – that much, or at all – this time around. And who wants to willingly go back and ruin an old favorite!?

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Is 3 stars a good or bad rating?

Cop out answer, but for me, 3 stars is neither good nor bad; it’s right in the middle, so in my book that means a mediocre novel. That said, I’ve rated books I quite enjoyed – or, on the contrary, strongly disliked – 3 stars. It’s a case by case thing, I’d say.

What’s your opinion on gifs in blog posts?

Gifs can really enhance a post, if done right. They can break up the text and give my eyes a moment to rest before jumping into the next paragraph. With that being said, I don’t like when a post relies too heavily on gifs – this might sound harsh, but I’ve come to read your content, not to look at gifs. Not to mention that I doubt visually impaired people appreciate super gif-heavy posts.

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If you could read any book for the first time again, what would it be?

My god, there are so many!! Essentially, any book I adore, particularly ones I’ve reread before, such as Lucy Parker’s Act Like It or Nalini Singh’s Psy-Changeling series. They always make me happy, “even” as rereads, and it would special to experience them for the first time again. On a whole other note, it might be interesting to erase my memories of a book that should have worked well for me, but didn’t, such as Sorcery of Thorns, which I went into with the wrong sort of expectations. In these cases I’ve always wondered – would I have enjoyed it more had I known what it’s like?

11 Fun Facts About Me

1. I would kill to have a pet pig, or a bunny, and I do 1000% plan to have (at least) a bunny later in my life.
2. I used to hate audiobooks, but after listening to The A.I. Who Loved Me by Alyssa Cole, I became more open to them. All it took for me to be able to enjoy them was finding the right activity next to which I can still pay attention to the story.
3. I live in a small town, but I’ve been travelling to kindergarten, school, high school and uni to the capital since I was 5, so I (weirdly) feel more at home in the city.
4. I’m an only child, and I’m both happy and sad about that?
5. I’m pretty much obsessed with Taylor Swift – according to Spotify I listened to 89 hours of her songs in 2019.
6. I love going to concerts; there’s something so special about hearing your favorite artists sing live. It’s a whole new experience.
7. I love musicals – both as movies and as theater plays. They are so damn fun.
8. I can’t cook, and part of the reason behind that is that I’m disgusted by raw meat.
9. Aand I also can’t bake, but I’m way more interested in that – in a big part because of The Great British Bake Off – and I do want to learn to bake.
10. I hate coffee; it’s a trickster of a drink: it smells delicious, but the taste, guys, the taste is terrible.
11. I don’t really drink alcohol, and I get really frustrated by people who try and try and try to push me to drink.

I’m tagging…

Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads, Becky @ A Fool’s Ingenuity, Olivia @ Olivia’s Catastrophe, Emily @ Paperback Princess, Tasya @ The Literary Huntress, Caro @ The Book Chesire Cat, Sam @ We Live and Breath Books, Tina @ Tina’s Book Blog, Dini @ Dini Panda Reads, Tracy @ Cornerfolds, and Marie @ Drizzle and Hurricane Reads!

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My questions:

1. If you could be put into any bookish universe, what would you choose?
2. Are there any genres you wouldn’t read?
3. What’s your favorite winter read?
4. Did you enjoy any compulsory high school readings?
5. What’s your most disliked popular book?
6. What is your least favorite thing about blogging? (Or the most difficult thing?)
7. What’s your favorite book series of all time?
8. What book has made you truly angry?
9. What’s a bookish trope you wish you wouldn’t have to see anymore?
10. What’s your most underrated favorite novel?
11. Which character would you like to swap lives with? And for how long?

Let’s chat!

Do you like doing tags & awards? If so, feel free to consider yourself tagged! What would your answer be to these questions?