About Jana

Welcome to That Artsy Reader Girl! Thanks for popping in. I hope you’ll stay a while. I’m Jana, a 30-something cat lady, librarian, singer, graphic designer, art history lover, world traveler, and girl next door.

My love of reading started at a very young age, but then all but disappeared starting in middle school until I graduated high school. I think what intensified it the most, though, was the opportunity I had to teach struggling ESL children how to read. I had not fully understood the power of reading until I saw tears shed over the inability to do so. The glimmer of hope in their eyes, and the small milestones we reached together are what I think of every time I close a book.

This isn’t just a book review blog. This is a place to hang out, make new friends, and discover new and exciting books together. I predominately read adult romance (give me those swoons), and love it in all of its forms: contemporary, historical, romcom, fantasy, sci-fi, and suspense. What’s the point of reading a book if there’s no swoony kissing going on? I do make exceptions for a great mystery or thriller, though. My favorite authors are Christina Lauren, Tessa Dare, Julia Quinn, Sarah Morgenthaler, Sarah Hogle, R.S. Grey, Sarah Morgan, Jenn Deluca, Ali Hazelwood, Riley Sager, and Mary Higgins-Clark. They have earned my trust, and I’ll read anything they write. However, I love to meet new authors and explore all genres if a good book gives me a reason to do so! I know how hard it is to be a successful author, and absolutely love helping to promote authors and their books. If you’d like me to review your book or work with me in any way, please read over my review policy to make sure we’re a good fit, and send me an e-mail!

When I’m not curled up with a book, I’m either designing something, putting together a puzzle, obsessively organizing, or doing random things with my family.

P.S. I was a co-owner of The Broke and the Bookish from the very beginning (June of 2010) until we shut down in January of 2018. I brought Top Ten Tuesday and Broke & Bookish Secret Santa here when we shut down.

Memberships

American Library Association
Netgalley
Edelweiss

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14 responses to “About Jana

  1. Jackie Maroney

    Hi Jana!
    I just found your site while looking for a Christmas card exchange. I’m wondering if you will be doing that again this year? I’m also so glad I found your site because I am passionate about the same things! So excited to find you.

    • Jana

      Hi Jackie!

      It’s so nice to meet you, and I’m so glad you found me! I love making new friends. Yes, I will be hosting the Christmas card exchange again this year (and also an optional gift-giving secret Santa event at the same time). Sign-ups will be going up on Halloween (but potentially sooner because I am so excited and have no patience. LOL). I hope you’ll join us!

      • Jackie Maroney

        YAY! I am so excited!!!! I have no patience either when it comes to holidays, and especially Christmas! I want to take part in both the card exchange and the secret Santa! And I am excited to have lots of reading to do exploring your site! :)

          • Jana

            Yay! So glad you’re excited! Do you have a Twitter account? I’ve got a hashtag for the event and we all make a bunch of friends and post pictures of what we received (and little spoilers of what we’re sending). It’s one of my favorite things ever! Let me know if you have an account because I want to follow you!

            And I WISH I had a book club! How fun would that be?! Let me think on this and see if I can figure out a fun way to make it work. This upcoming card and secret Santa event keeps me pretty busy for the next few months, but maybe I’ll want to tackle a new project in the New Year! I’m on a discord server for romance books and we all read the same books together and discuss the books in there. Sometimes they have the authors make guest appearances. It’s fun!

            • Jackie Maroney

              I do not have a Twitter account- I am not much for social media accounts LOL. Will you be notifying folks when the Christmas card and secret Santa information is posted?

              I will keep an eye out for the new year if you decide to do a book club. How cool would it be to have one that spanned the country and possibly beyond!?

              • Jana

                lol. I understand! Sometimes I wish I didn’t have social media. I know I wouldn’t have twitter if not for this blog.

                I’ve already decided to move up sign-ups for the Christmas event, so all information will be going up here on my blog on 10/24. Sign-ups will run for 3 weeks, and then I’ll send out all the information of who you will be sending to. If you don’t stop by on the day it’s posted, I’ll have a link to the post in that green bar on the top of my blog, between “Top Ten Tuesday” and my social media icons. But you can also comment on any post if you can’t find it, and I’ll direct you!

                I’d love a big book club spanning multiple countries! That would be so much fun. :)

                • Jackie Maroney

                  I will be keeping an eye out and sharing it with a few friends! Of course it’s also on my calendar. Can’t wait! Thank you for doing this, Jana! <3

  2. Hi, just found your blog and wanted to participate on Top Ten Tuesday next month. Love the contents of blog that I have read so far!
    I am wondering how I could follow your blog or receive notification when you have a new post? I don’t have Bloglovin or feedly account.

    • Jana

      Hi Serene! Thanks for your kind words! I’m so happy to make a new friend. :) And I’m excited you want to start participating in Top Ten Tuesday! Welcome to the family! Google used to have an email subscription option through FeedBurner, which many of my followers used and loved, but it was discontinued earlier this year and there are no free alternatives. I do tweet out a link to new posts each time one goes live, and I see that you just followed me today! You can click the little bell on my twitter profile to be notified of any new tweets I make, but I tweet much more than just links to my new posts so you might get tired of that. lol. I’m sorry, I wish there was a better way!

  3. Dear Jana.what a lovely page and what a beautiful photo with a smile that can brighten a day . My humble request is for you to read Song of Songs , Books of Daniel and Revelation . An avid reader with such attitude to share and review books should never miss the joy of life ,the essence of each day and what was in the past , what is present and what is yet to come.Agape.(Humble request)With prayers