What made you want to be a book blogger?
That’s easy, taxes, now the $1,000.00 per year we spent on books is a business expense and non-taxable income. Actually, my wife and I are both avid readers. We both love our books, but not each other’s. We were talking to each other all of the time about our books and not really being able to share the experience. We decided to start the blog so that we could share our book experiences with people who actually share the same book interests.
What have been your best book blogging experiences?
I have a couple. One of the first was after we set up our blog and we decided we needed to do some networking. We decided that it would be fun to do on a weekend evening. We set up our Facebook pages and our Goodreads users and then went following and friending our favorite authors. The Goodreads friend requests came back fast enough, but not much happened on Facebook. Then Monday morning when I was at work she sent me an e-mail, my Facebook page had gotten a like. One of my favorite authors, David Moody, had liked my Facebook page. We have had many good experiences since then, but that one has stuck with me.
What has been your worst book blogging experience?
That would have to have been an R4R (read for review) that I had done early on. The premise looked good, the author had very few reviews. I decided to read it, it was awful! I could not make it past 10%. I looked at my Kindle and I had another 9 hours to go. I could not invest another 9 hours of my life into something so bad. The worst part, and I am ashamed of myself for this, is I never got back to the author. I could not find a way to say how bad it was and to tear apart all of the hard work that author had done. I have since changed my tactics and have let them (not that there are many) know in a constructive and polite way. It’s a learning and growing experience.
How many books do you own?
On my Kindle 344. On our bookshelves, too many to count.
Who is your favorite author?
That is a loaded question. It really depends on my mood. George R.R. Martin is near the top of the list, but he frustrates me with how long I have to wait for the next book. Recently, I have taken a liking to Jussi Adler-Olsen. There are a couple of indie authors I have read this year and I am always looking for their next books: Tracey Ward, I was hooked on her Survival Series (it’s YA/PA), and Jason Brant’s Hunger Series, I ate it up.
What is your favorite book of all time?
The Odyssey, by Homer (not Simpson). There is a reason why that one survived over three thousand years.
What are your thoughts on ebooks?
I love ebooks. I read almost exclusively on my Kindle now. It allows more access to books for more people. Anything that gets people reading is a good thing.
What are your thoughts on self-publishing?
Some of my favorite authors are self-published. I would compare indie authors to cable television. They can do things and say things that the published authors cannot, self-published authors can push the envelope without the worry of offending someone and not appealing to the masses. And just like we have seen with cable TV, you get better quality when it is not vanilla.
Any literary aspirations?
Do I think that I have a story that I could tell? Yes. Do I think that I can tell it as good as the authors that I like to read? No way. I do not have the guts that it takes to give up the day job and put my 100% into it. With 2-3 hours in the car each day and 8 hours at work, I just do not have the time necessary to put out a quality product.
What's your favorite joke of all time?
If you run a family friendly blog and can’t put this on I’ll come up with a replacement, so here it goes.
Two fleas who had gone south for the winter were on the beach in Florida. The one flea noticed that the other was shaking and staggering around.
He asked his friend, “What’s the problem?”
The other flea replied, “Well, this year I was having trouble finding a ride down. So finally, I snuck into a man’s mustache and he came here by motorcycle. It was a bumpy ride and the wind tossed me all over his mustache. I had to hang on for my life.”
The first flea offered a solution, “You will have to try what I do. I go to the airport and find a flight attendant. I crawl up her leg and find a nice cozy spot, then curl up for a nap. Before I know it we are getting off of the plane and I’m here for the winter.”
“That’s a great idea! Next year, that is exactly what I will do!”
The two fleas meet again on the beach the following winter. The same flea was still staggering around the beach.
His friend asked him, “What happened? Didn’t you take my advice?”
“I did exactly what you said. I went to the airport, found a flight attendant, crawled up her leg and took a nap. The next thing I knew I was in a guy’s mustache, on a motorcycle headed to Florida.”
No comments:
Post a Comment