So if you've been following twitter you'll see that recently I've been wanting to do some Q&A posts and a while back I had this Idea to start a series and do "An Interview With" as it never really took off I put it aside but decided it was worth getting back out of the old closet and trying again. With that here is the first post in a new series! Hope you enjoy!
What made you start blogging?
A mixture of things really. When I started my blog, I was actually in a very bad place - I’d quit my college course and voluntary placement because I wasn’t enjoying it - okay, hating it - and it was having a really negative impact on my mental health. I was suffering with bad anxiety at the time (which I still have) and I just couldn’t hack it. I came across a book blog and loved the idea so I got in contact with the blogger and she helped me set my blog up and here I am! I seriously couldn’t thank her enough!
You do a lot of book reviews, what would you say is your favourite genre of book is?
I honestly don’t think I have one set genre that I would say is my favourite - I do love reading a whole mix of everything but there’s a few that do stand out somewhat more than others. I will say, I’m not a massive fan of hardcore romance. I love romantic elements in stories and I love Chick Lit books for the reason that the romance is usually humorous and more realistic. I love YA as well - most of my favourite books are this genre because I love the approach to these books and the messages and lessons that are usually within them. I love the occasional Thriller as well - but these are a bit hit and miss because if the author gets it right, then they can be amazing but if they don’t then they can be a bit deflating.
Any Recommendations?
I’d recommend my favourite books to everyone but I know not everyone will like and understand them the way I do. John Green is one of my all-time favourite authors, Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns are my 2 favourites from him. The Book Thief is another favourite of mine and without a doubt, the most beautiful book I’ve ever read. I recently read I Am The Messenger by the same author and whilst it’s wildly different to The Book Thief, it was just as amazing so I’d definitely recommend that too!
On twitter you’ve recently mentioned about writing your own book, can you give us any spoilers related to your work in progress?
I am indeed writing a book and I’m really, really enjoying it! It’s taken so long to get to the point where I am now - I started it way over a year ago as just a hobby that I didn’t know what I was doing with, then I stopped because I thought it was hopeless then after my best friend got a publishing deal last year, I was encouraged to pick it back up. Since then, I've been writing almost every day and going from strength to strength with it. I’m just over halfway through and have a pretty good idea where the story will go from here. I don’t want to give too much away because of the early stage I’m in but I will say it’s a Chick Lit novel with a lot of humour.
Have you always wanted to write your own book or is this something more recent?
As I’ve always loved books and reading ever since I was little, it was always something in the back of my mind. Something that I always thought would be amazing but before book blogging, I’d never given it a go nor would I have known where to start. Since I started blogging, the idea and prospect has become far more realistic and I know now that if you work hard, it is actually something you can achieve. I only started taking it seriously last year so I’d say it was pretty recent!
Did you plan or outline before starting your work in progress?
Not at all! I am the worst at this, I just like to dive straight in head first - usually with no idea where I’m going but I just like to get stuck into the action. I find sometimes that the more I plan, the harder it actually is. Which I know is the complete opposite for some people. I’ve roughly planned what’s going to happen from now until the end - I have a general gist but I know this will probably change slightly as I go along.
How did the idea for it come to you?
I actually have no idea - it just did! I’m sorry I don’t have a more interesting answer for this one but it was just something that came to me one day and made me think, “Hmm, that wouldn’t make a bad story” so I started writing it and that was that. I’ve come up with so many story ideas over the last year or 2 - 99% of which have been absolutely atrocious and no publisher would touch with a barge pole!
Have you given a name to it or is that still in the making?
I’ve messed around with names but I haven’t got anything solid yet so it still is very much in the making. I think once it’s finished I’ll be able to get a clearer idea of a name!
Have you ever encountered writers block? If so how to you counter it?
Oh God yes, both with my work in progress and with my blog. With my work in progress, I’ve always made sure I write every day and even if it’s just 100 words it doesn’t matter, at least it’s something. Because it’s a first draft and I have no deadlines, I don’t want to rush anything so I've found that if I stick to my guns and write something every day then the writers block usually filters out on it’s own. With my blog, I sometimes step away from it and stop trying to force blog posts when I have writers block because they’ll likely be rubbish!
You have your own Blog Tour Business – How did this come about?
I do! Well I started it last year and it was originally a touring business that specialises in Fantasy, Sci-Fi and Paranormal genres because I’d never come across a touring company that did that before so I thought it might be useful to authors. This worked for a while but since then, I’ve expanded to any genre and also organise tours under my own blog name, ‘Jenny in Neverland’. It was a lot of hard work, took a look of time and research to set up and I did a lot for free at the beginning to get my name out there but all the work has definitely paid off. I love doing tours, organising tours (I’m a bit of a organisational freak!) and seeing authors happy with reviews and posts.
Any Advice for aspiring writers like yourself?
Oh god well as an, as you said, aspiring writer, I don’t think I’m in the position to be offering writing advice to anyone! Every writer has a different way of getting through the process and as long as it works for you then that’s all that really matters. But I don’t know, I guess I’d say, if you have a story idea that you like and want to proceed with, just go for it. The longer you put it off, the less inclined you’ll be. Even if you haven’t got all the details sorted. The main character in mine was nameless for a good few chapters before I could even think of a suitable name! Now is a good a time as any to start… So start!
I'd like to thank Jenny for taking part and would now ask you to go and visit all of her pages!
Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Blog Tour Website
Want to be interviewed too? Send me an e-mail: litt3b00ts@live.com
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