Two ways I was able to spread the #booklove last month

I don't blog all that often about stuff I've been doing, but I wanted to share a couple things real quick because I was blessed to be involved in two bigger-than-normal things last month, and I'm all about celebrating the good shtuff. (FYI, I tried and tried to format this better, but the photos and I weren't getting along, so I finally gave up.)

Anyway. The first of two Good Things that happened in September took place in the coastal town of Pismo Beach. The day before Good Thing #1 happened, we came across this sign after dinner:


For those of you unaware of what Boba is, this is what I found online to describe it: 

Boba tea (also called pearl tea, or bubble tea) is a sweet drink that combines milk, flavored tea and tapioca pearls that are sucked up through an extra large straw and chewed. The pearls have a soft, chewy consistency similar to that of gummy candy.

Boba can be good, bad, or meh, but this little shop in Pismo was straight-up YUMMY. And, visitors from all-over had put up Post-It notes around the Boba menu, which was really cool. We had so much fun checking them out and finding out what towns had passed through before us!

Me, Boba in hand, showing off the view right outside the shop.

The day after our Boba finding, I participated in the Central Coast Book and Author Fair. (I am showing you my table because it looked very nice, whereas the photos of me IN the shots were horrible as I was facing the sun and had serious squinty-eyes.) I met some wonderful people, and am definitely going back next year! Check out my table:

EEK! Isn't it lovely? See my owl candy jar? :D

Then, the following weekend, a fellow YA author and I spoke at my local library! We each had a half-hour time slot, and boy did the time fly. It was great getting to talk not only about my books and YA in general, but also how to spread the #booklove! 

(This is my I LOVE BOOKS face! I am a nerd.)

And... there you have it...  two fun things I was involved with in September!

I also made a HOW TO SPREAD THE BOOKLOVE chart (you may have seen it a few weeks back on Twitter).  I'm including it below, in case you want to share it!

To add to Pinterest, CLICK HERE

Have a blessed week, and don't forget to enter my #JLBbirthdaybash over there in the sidebar! -->

Welcome to the #ExcusetoRead read-a-thon! :D

Hi, all! Welcome to EXCUSE TO READ read-a-thon, day one!!!! :D Are you excited to get some reading done? I sure am! 

Today, July 28th, we're showing off the books we've chosen to read over the course of the week. I've chosen a LOT of books, and though it's not likely I'll finish them all, I wanted a nice variety of YA so I can read according to my mood. Here they are:

My official Excuse to Read TBR

A quick breakdown:

GOOSE (Paper Aeroplanes, #2) by Dawn O'Porter (eARC) 

Why I'm reading it: I need to read this before it's no longer available on NetGalley (end of August). I've never read anything by her before, but the description of GOOSE drew me in and I wanted to know more. I actually had no idea that this is actually book two until I was setting up this post, so now I suppose I should read Paper Aeroplanes first!

Add to Goodreads

THE WESTING GAME by Ellen Raskin 

Why I'm reading it: I came across this in the 99 Cent Store, and it looked like a great, fun mystery. Not what I usually read, which is why I'm quite excited about it! :) 

Add to Goodreads

LOOKING FOR ALIBRANDI by Melina Marchetta

Why I'm reading it:
Two words: Melina Marchetta.
Jellicoe Road.
Lumatere Chronicles.
(oh wait, that's six.)
I love Melina's writing, and have heard great things about Looking For Alibrandi.  

Add to Goodreads

FALLING INTO PLACE by Amy Zhang (ARC)

Why I'm reading it: Because I've wanted to for a long time (the premise, young age of the author, and cover had me curious) and finally recently received a copy from Britt (@Kalebsmome) using the #booksfortrade on Twitter! :D 

Add to Goodreads

A STRANGE MACHINE (Time Loopers, #1) by Dan Rix

Why I'm reading it: Mainly because ever since reading Myra McEntire's Hourglass &Timepiece, Loop & Twist by Karen Akins, and Nicole Zoltack's The Test of Time, I've been looking for more time travel books! This series looks fun, and I'm always looking to add to my list of indie reads.  

Add to Goodreads

TIN STAR by Cecil Castellucci (ARC)

Why I'm reading it: I've wanted this book in my hands ever since I saw the cover and read that it had to do with aliens. This is another ARC I got from Britt and #booksfortrade. 

Add to Goodreads

THE WALLED CITY by Ryan Graudin (ARC)

Why I'm reading it: A) haven't read a dystopian in a while B) I love those three lines on the cover C) most of my GR friends have enjoyed it, and that's saying something! (Thanks again to Britt for this ARC! hehe)

Add to Goodreads

MARK OF THE THIEF (Mark of the Thief, #1) by Jennifer A. Nielsen

Why I'm reading it: After reading The Ascendance Trilogy (The False Prince, etc) by Ms. Nielsen, I've been looking forward to reading something else by her, so I pre-ordered Mark of the Thief not long after it was announced. Then it arrived, and... I never got around to reading it! :( 

Add to Goodreads

FROM THE WRECKAGE (From the Wreckage, #1) by Michele G. Miller

Why I'm reading it: I came across this a while back on Amazon, and it's been sitting on my Kindle ever since. Basically, it looks good, has tons of great ratings, the author already has two more books in the series out (ACK!), and I'm tired of it taunting me on my screen!  

Add to Goodreads





And... that's my breakdown! WHEW!!!! I'm so excited to get started! 

***If you're participating in the read-a-thon, link up below so we can cheer each other on! If you would like to join in and read along with us, please do! THE MORE THE MERRIER! (Here's a little info that explains what's going on.)

An InLinkz Link-up

EARLY READER PROGRAM INFO (#ARCs #bookbloggers #reviews)

It's official: I've decided to do something different regarding new releases and book reviews. Usually, eARCs (electronic advanced reader copies) are sent out to readers interested and willing to read and review (R&R) a book before or not long after it comes out; and then a few hardcopies are given to either people out of the US, or readers interested in reviewing later on, once the book has already been released.

But lately... I've been feeling like it's time to get back to actual, physical copies. There's nothing like holding the book in your hands, flipping the pages, staring at the cover, reading the back flap, and being able to pass it along to another reader who might enjoy it.

I'm not saying that I will never henceforth from this moment on ever share eARCs again, but for now, with a few projects in the works and other things possibly happening next year, it's looking like physical ARCs are going to be my main MO.

Because of this, and due to the fact that ARCs cost money to both print and ship, I'm looking for readers who are genuinely interested in reading and reviewing my books to be a part of a Early Review group.

After figuring out the cost of doing this, it's become obvious that there has to be a limited amount of spots available. (Would I love to send everyone a book? Sure. But then, um, writing more books would be hard, because I'd still be trying to pay for those darn ARCs, so how would I get the next ones out?) Therefore, I'm asking that those who DO show interest in this program only do so if they think they will be able to read and review. (Not saying read and lie; please be honest about what you think.) 

My other stipulation to this group is that those accepted need to be aware of and agree upon the stipulation that while posting a review on Goodreads is lovely, it generally does not help an author make sales. Which means I will be requiring that those in the Early Review group post their review on either Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, The Book Depository, or iBooks. (Can be some of those, all of those, whatever, as long as you do at least one.)

If, after reading all of that, you're still down to be an Early Reader (I sure hope so!) please FILL OUT THIS FORM. Those accepted into the program will be contacted in the next few weeks. Thank you in advance for your interest in my work! 

Have a blessed weekend!

2nd Annual 11 Reasons I Love Book Bloggers

Hi, guys! This is my second annual 11 Reasons why I Love Book Bloggers post, and just like last year, I figured it would be perfect to do it the week of Valentines Day! *tosses heart-shaped confetti*

Last year, I had quite the detailed list, including unique blog titles, great reading challenges, and some of my favorite memes. This year, I'm going to keep the post a bit simpler with my 11 reasons; then sharing some challenges I've come across recently that you might want to participate in! So, without further ado...

11 REASONS WHY I LOVE BOOK BLOGGERS

1) Honesty. Yep. That's one thing you're always going to find with bloggers. They're honest not only about their bookish opinions, but about what's going on in their lives, what they care about, their interests, their families, and then some. (Which makes you want to meet them IRL even more. *cries*)

2) Discoverers. I have found sooooo many books under the radar that have become my very favorites, all because bloggers have taken the time to SHARE them on social media! KEEP SHARING, MY FRIENDS!

3) The squee-factor, same as last year. They read/squee. I read/squee. Then we all squee together. It's fangirl/guying at its finest, and one of my favorite things about bookish camaraderie. And it never. Gets. Old.

4) Talkers. (Even if not much of that is actually done in person.) Booktube. Book chats. Twitter. Interviews. There are soooo many ways to engage in great book conversation, all because bloggers make themselves available for book discussions.

5) Reviewers. Bloggers spend so much of their lives reading books for the sole reason that they've agreed to write out their opinions afterwards. (I agree to read about five, and I'm in a panic. How do I say it all? How do I not offend people? How do I make my review worth the authors giving me their books? How is this not more stressful for more people? How can you do that all year long? It's amazing.) Cookies to all of you.

6) Encouragers. I mean, yeah, books are our top love, but bloggers are there for so many people with words of advice and encouragement. They are so quick to build each other up!

7) Committed. Life is full of drama. Blogging is full of drama. Reading is full of drama. (Ha.) And yet, bloggers are committed to not giving up. They keep at it for whatever reasons, and that makes them awesome. *shakes pom poms*

8) Sharing. There's not much competition in the blogosphere. It's not about who has the most of anything. Instead, everyone's posts and feelings are celebrated and discussed and passed to one another (encouraging the boosting of Facebook feeds (Boost It Tuesdays), and hosting a place to post weekly reviews, giveaways and the like at Saturday Situation are just two examples of what I mean).

9) Creativity. Becca from Pivot Point Reviews makes totes. Hafsah from IceyBooks makes downloadable wallpapers (and a wholeeee lot of other stuff). Jen from Jenuine Cupcakes makes cupcakes... and so many other bloggers not only read, review, and blog, but they also create awesome ways to spread the bookish word that go beyond the usual blogosphere. 

10) Giving. Giveaways, Rafflecopters, sharing ARC love... Bloggers are always doing stuff that will enable readers to get their hands on more reads. YAY.

11) Fun. What can I say? Bloggers are fun. They're enjoyable. They're relatable. They're great to interact with. And I have to say, that's my favorite part. :)

READING CHALLENGES (click the photo to go to the challenge):

Jessica at Books a True Story has seven listed in THIS POST, including an ebook challenge, mythology challenge, and an audiobook challenge!

Also, I've been keeping a list on Twitter for quite a while now, so if you're looking for more lovely bloggers to connect with, you can peruse it HERE.

Last, I came across this Top Ten Tuesday post recently, and thought I'd share. Check out Lori and Jamie's Top Ten Reasons I Love Being a Reader/Book Blogger, then scroll down to see hundreds more! So many bloggers! (So much awesomeness!)

Thank you for all that you do, book bloggers! 

Make sure to do a shout-out of your favorite bloggers in the comments! Let's spread the blogger love!

September's Reader Interview with Geeky Chiquitas, part two

Welcome back to part two of this month's reader interview with Geeky Chiquitas! You can read part one, HERE.

Here's a question I ask pretty much every time: Tell us one character you'd never want to trade places with.

Beryl: Okay, this one's hard. Uhm I'd probably choose Hazel Grace from The Fault in our Stars. She may have a pretty romantic love story but it's just the worst to have cancer and the love of your life dying.

Audrey: I would never want to trade places with Katniss Everdeen. I admit she is badass but her life is terrible. Like I am never, ever, ever, ever, EVER, trading places with her. If I was in her place, I would probably sleep through the whole thing. Then they'd draw me out with fire, but I would be too lazy to run through my sleepy haze so I would probably die. Yeah.

Kimi: I would never trade places with Tris from Divergent. I think everyone knows why.

If someone were to borrow a book from you, what would be the first thing they'd notice?

Beryl and Audrey: If someone were to borrow a book from us, they wouldn't really notice anything. The only thing that we do to books is wrap them so, I don't know. Maybe they'd notice that?

Kimi: They'd notice how nice the book is and how Much I take care of my books so they'd get scared of ruining it or folding the covers or something.

Do you prefer an e-reader, paperback, or hardcover?

Definitely paperback! E-reader can easily strain our eyes plus you can't smell and feel the pages. For hardcover, it's more expensive than a paperback and it's even bulkier so we think paperback is the best.

Favorite book swag:

We haven't actually received a lot of book swags from authors BUT our favorite is the one we got from Marie Landry, few months ago.

The popularity of social media has made interacting with authors easier than ever for readers/fans. In previous Reader Interviews, both Nikki and Matt said they prefer Twitter over other social media platforms. Do you agree? Why or why not?

Twitter has definitely helped us reach out to authors and different bloggers, so yes we agree but Audrey still does not have twitter because she's too lazy. Although, she also agrees with us.

Tell us your favorite book cover of all time.

Audrey: I like the cover of Fangirl. It is adorable!! SUPER adorable, like if it's a person, I'd pinch its cheeks. Yeahhh.

Kimi: I love love love the cover of Landline! It's beautiful!

Beryl: I love the cover of The Museum of Intangible Things by Wendy Wunder! It's super cute, fun and easy on the eyes. 

Thanks so much for being here, ladies! :) 

For more about Audrey, Kimi, and Beryl, check this out!

September's Reader Interview: Geeky Chiquitas, Part one

Welcome to Reader Interviews, a monthly feature here at Let Me Tell You a Story!

This month's readers are Beryl, Audrey and Kimi. Together, they run a blog called Geeky Chiquitas!

Welcome, ladies! Thanks for being here! :) Please share a quick bio about yourselves so we can get to know you better! 

Geeky Chiquitas is a blog owned by three teenagers from the Philippines, namely Kimi, Beryl and Audrey (who are actually cousins!). This is primarily a book blog, and occasionally a blog about lifestyle, food, DIY, TV, film, and all things random. 

What inspired you to start Geeky Chiquitas? 

The idea to create a blog came to mind during a carride - and the rest was history. At first, the blog was simply personal and for fun, but we decided we wanted to make it into something more. We started to revamp and promote the blog in December 2013, and officially opened on January 1, 2014.

Since "officially" starting to blog at the beginning of this year, have you learned anything about blogging that you'd like to share? 

A LOT really. We have learned how to write better. Writing reviews isn't also easy just as we thought before. It takes a lot of reflecting and analyzing. It's also really important to always write an honest review, so that readers would trust your opinions as well. It doesn't matter if the book is given to us for reviewing purposes. Honesty is the best policy. We also learned to appreciate the hard work of all the bloggers and authors out there. 

What is your favorite part about the book blogging community?

The best part is absolutely the people in the blogging community. Everyone's just so nice and enthusiastic. We have already made some friends since we officially started this year. 

Most readers have a specific book or series that they can pinpoint as what pulled them into their love of reading YA. Do you have one? If so, what was it? Tell us one thing that you appreciated about it.

Audrey and Beryl: Eleanor and Park is the book which lead both of us into reading YA. Audrey loved reading even before her love for YA started, but Beryl actually didn't, so for her, Eleanor and Park was the book that lead her into loving reading.

Kimi: I've loved reading ever since I was a kid, and I read anything I could gobble up. My love for YA came about though when I read Princess Diaries, and I fell in love with YA ever since!

The three of you write a lot of reviews. Would any of you like to share your methods for people who have been thinking about reviewing but are a bit intimidated about the entire process? 

Beryl: I don't actually do anything in particular, but before I write a review I basically tell Audrey the recap (who doesn't really listen) about what I love and dislike about the book and that really helps get my thoughts organized. 

Audrey: I write my first draft right after reading the book so that I am still able to communicate my emotions well. After that, I wait for maybe a day or a couple of hours to reflect on the book. When I'm sure about what I think of the book, thats when I fix my first draft. I just proofread and just edit a little bit then BAM! I'm done.

Kimi: My review process is actually a bit complicated and not the same for every book. Sometimes it's so easy for me to pinpoint what certain parts I liked and didn't like, but sometimes it takes some time for me to figure out what to write about a certain book. I'm always speechless when it comes to beautiful books, and what I usually do when that happens is I read the book again until I finally am able to write about it. 

Most recent book that made you laugh:

Beryl: I haven't been reading any books recently that is for reviewing since school started everything's been so hectic. School is VERY time consuming which really sucks, but I would say that the most recent book that made me laugh is Summer in the Short Bus by Bethany Crandell. I wrote a review about it, if you maybe want to check it out. :) 

Audrey: Umm, Confessions of a Shopaholic. I have only started reading this but already, I find that it is quite hilarious. I can totally relate. Haha, when I like something, I'm always like, "oh I NEED this!!!" even though I really don't. Like not even remotely need it. 

Kimi: Made me laugh? Well, I've mostly been reading sad books lately but I recently reread Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell and it was so cute and funny!

Most recent book that made you cry:

Beryl: This is very embarrassing to admit but I don't remember crying in any particular book. Maybe I should read more, cause I'm definitely missing out on something. Haha.

Audrey: I don't cry. I don't have emotions. I am a robot programmed never to feel sorrow. But, seriously, I have never found a book that has made me cry. I'm sticking with the robot story if anyone asks why. Oh my God, that rhymed!

Kimi: I love crying after or while reading a book! I don't really cry easily but when it comes to a really good book, my tears just easily flow out. The most recent tearjerker I've read is We Were Liars by E. Lockhart.

Click HERE for the second half of Geeky Chiquita's reader interview. :)

11 Reasons Why I Love Book Bloggers

Recently, as I went through my favorite books, couples, and quotes looking for fun things fun to share on an feature at  Kayla's The Bibliophilic Nerds, it occurred to me that I was limiting the post to only authors and their fictional characters. But what about love with the readers? And love shared by those readers, with everyone else, all over the interwebs?

 Whoa! I thought. I’ve got an idea for a feature.

Which turns out to be quite apropos, considering If I Speak True’s blog tour just ended and I am seeing (for a second time) just how much work bloggers do on a daily basis. (Not that I didn't see it before... but when you're watching the process of a post from start to finish you definitely appreciate it more.)

So, without further ado, here’s my “love” list for Valentine's Day, because I love all ya'll, and you are SO appreciated:

11 Reasons Why I Love Book Bloggers

1) Book bloggers are the best. Eclectic group. Ever. Doesn't matter if they're thirteen and from the US or ninety-two and from Costa Rica; tall or short; love coffee or don't (gasp), all of them rock and share one thing: Their love for books. Therefore, they are equally amazing.

2) Book bloggers take time out of their busy schedules to share the books they’ve read with others. Not just once, not just twice, but time and time again, week after week, month after month, year after year. That's dedication, folks. 

3) Sometimes, after sharing the books they've read, they even recommend them, so others can fall in love with them, too.

4) Book bloggers love to squee about favorite characters. Which then gives the rest of us permission to squee with them. And then we all get to squee, and everybody’s happy. Until we read the next book. Then, we do it all over again. (Repeat this for every other emotion, too.)

5) Not only do book bloggers share their feelings about the books they’ve read on their blogs, but a lot of times they go that extra mile and share those thoughts on websites (like Barnes and Noble or Amazon or Goodreads, for example). This is two-fold awesome: a) it helps lead readers to books and b) enables readers to make informed decisions regarding whether a book is their kind of thing. 

6) Book bloggers host giveaways constantly. Have you noticed this? I mean, nowhere else except in the blogosphere can you click around and enter book/swag giveaway after giveaway for free, just BECAUSE. They are like, full of sweet-book-sharing-awesomeness that never stops. (I don't know about you, but I imagine my favorite circus music when I see giveaways. Come one, come all, to the greatest giveaways on our blogs! Ahem. Anyway...)

7) Book bloggers bring their personalities to the table. You hardly ever see the same blog design twice, which is crazy, considering how many bloggers there are! I love checking out everyone’s designs. (I also tend to swoon over owl ones, as well as anything that mentions coffee. But you already knew that, didn't you, friends?)

8) Book bloggers do cool cover features (like this one, or this one) and make fan art and sometimes even start Pinterest boards (which sends #booklove fans into crazy town and makes authors feel so stinking special).

9) Some of the best memes have been thought up by book bloggers, like Top Ten Tuesday, Waiting on Wednesday, What's Next, New Releases, GIF posts, Hot Off the Presses, and so on. (If you're looking for more/new memes, holy canole does Bookshelf Fantasies have a list for you.)

10) Their blog titles are so stinkin' unique. Here are just a minute few, so you can see what I mean:

Perpetual Page Turner
Such a Novel Idea

Chasm of Books

Turning Pages

The NerdHerd Reads

A Day Dreamer's World 

The Book Addict's Guide

Feed Me Books Now

Oops I Read A Book Again

A Book and a Latte

Page Turner's Blog 

The Story Siren

Me My Shelf and I

Lit Up Review

YA Midnight Reads

Geeky Chiquitas

The Escapist

I'd So Rather Be Reading 

11) Not only do bloggers come up with/do fun memes and have great blog titles, but they do reading challenges, too! Like, all the time! A tiny smithereen of examples:

Standalone Reading Challenge 

2014 Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge

2014 Reading Challenge: Indie-Fever

2014 TBR Pile Challenge

(This isn't on a blog, per se, but I even came across a reading challenge board on Pinterest and it lists quite a few.)

Now of course, there are way more than eleven reasons why book bloggers are awesome, but these are the ones that came to me. I know a LOT of us appreciate the book blogging community for various reasons, so everyone please feel free to add your reasons in the comments (or, better yet, do your own post on 11 reasons why you love book bloggers--using the banner the lovely Hafsah (@iceybooks/@iceydesigns) made)!

Okay now, fall in, everyone! Time to give all of the bloggers one big ***SQUEEZE***!!! 

Thank you for everything you guys do! *throws coffee bean confetti*


Disclaimers:

* as stated, there are many more bloggers who equally deserve thanks and credit. Each and every one of you is greatly appreciated, full of awesome, and most of you smell nice, too. If you aren't mentioned on this post, it's only because Lovemuffin put too many shots of espresso in my coffee and I'm on caffeine overload and my brain is going a thousand places at once and I can hardly even concen

** sometimes, authors are book bloggers, too, which means that they count as both. So to all of you authors who also blog and share the love of books with fellow authors/readers, you are totes included in the bloggerly love.

*** bloggers! If you have something you'd like to share, like a meme or reading challenge, ect. please feel free to do it in the comments! (YA and up appropriateness, please) 

**** when I said it would be cool of you to do your own 11 Reasons Why I Love Book Bloggers post, I wasn't kidding. It's Valentine's week. Heck, it's Valentine's month. Which means, basically... Go forth, and do it. Do it NOW.

***** wasn't trying to be demanding in that last comment... go forth and do it... please? Also: Here's a cookie.