Armchair BEA 2012: Life Beyond the Blog

Posted June 7, 2012 by Jana in About Me / 15 Comments

 

Armchair BEA is a fun online event that those of us who could not attend BEA in New York City can participate in! There’s ways to network with other bloggers, posts on blogging tips, giveaways, and happenings at BEA from people who are there. Visit the Armchair BEA blog to see a schedule of events!

Today’s topic is tricky for me. The creators of Armchair BEA have asked us to, “share your top tips for getting beyond your blog! Have you done any freelance writing? Are you monetizing your blog and how so? How do you make connections outside the book blog community on the internet?” I haven’t freelanced, I’m only an Amazon Associate, and there’s not a lot of ways to get involved in the bookish community where I live. Since none of these really apply to me, I’ve been encouraged to talk about a fun aspect of my life, separate from books.

There’s not a lot I do that’s separate from books! Haha. I’m a graphic designer, and I own my own business called Enchanting Simplicity Graphic Design Studio. Throughout my design career, I have freelanced for Microsoft working on some XBOX things, created a brand identity for a motion picture company, designed websites for schools and small businesses, done a lot of wedding announcements, and designed t-shirts, album covers, advertisements, and books for various performing groups and organizations. I love, LOVE what I do. In the future, I plan to get beyond my blog by designing book covers for self-published authors (and maybe someday I can get on a design team for a major publisher like Harper Collins, Random House, Macmillan, etc. That’s my dream!). Book covers are very exciting things to design, and I already know I love working with authors and other people in the book industry! If you’re looking for a book cover, let’s talk!

When I’m not designing, I love making jewelry, watching re-runs of my favorite shows (like Friends, Saved by the Bell, Wings, etc.), hanging out with my friends and family, and going to MOVIES. I am a major movie-lover. I also love traveling around the world. Reading has really opened my mind and taken me to amazing places. I’ve got this constant hunger to find the locations I read about, and if they don’t exist I like to find places that remind me of them.

Well, this is my life beyond the blog! What’s your life like when you’re not reading or blogging? And what are you doing to achieve the goals you’re hoping to achieve through book blogging? Link me up, and I’ll come visit!


Armchair BEA 2012: My Life With Books

Posted June 6, 2012 by Jana in About Me / 11 Comments

 

Armchair BEA is a fun online event that those of us who could not attend BEA in New York City can participate in! There’s ways to network with other bloggers, posts on blogging tips, giveaways, and happenings at BEA from people who are there. Visit the Armchair BEA blog to see a schedule of events!

Today, I get to talk all about my life with books, networking outside the book blogosphere, and what I have done to impact the bookish community locally, rather than just online. This is a topic I simply adore, just because doing this helped me discover that my love of reading is even stronger than I had thought.

After I graduated college in December of 2009, I kind of went through a mini “what now?” crisis. I had my degree, but just didn’t know where to go from there. I knew I wanted to own my own graphic design business, which I do now, but I didn’t know if I wanted to only do that, or if I wanted to do that as a side thing and find something else to do as well. Long story short, I had to feel useful until I knew what I was going to do with my life. I decided to start volunteering at a local elementary school, teaching children how to read and/or speak English. The school I chose did not have enough employees to reach every child who was in need of extra help. Most of the children come from low-income families, and almost all of them are Spanish-speakers. I knew this would be a wonderful use of my time.

I started working with children one-on-one for several hours a week, and really enjoyed it. My kids and I bonded, and it was amazing to see the transformations they went through. It was so fast! I had one little guy in particular who had just arrived from Mexico. Not only did I have to try and teach him to read, I had to teach him English! We went through the alphabet every day, and he would get so excited when he got things right. It was an amazing experience. I ended up being offered a job, and I snatched it up. I spent the whole next year tutoring in reading, teaching English and phonics to different classes of youngsters, smiling every time I heard “Miss Jana!!!”, and getting lots of hugs.

In a way, this blog is dedicated to them. I constantly think of my littles, and all the amazing things we learned together. They made me realize how important reading is, and how exciting it can be. I watched the tears fall when it was too hard, and we jumped up and down together when it all of a sudden became easier for them. Those breakthrough moments made me grateful for my education. I think about them every time I close a book. Some of them have excelled far and beyond beyond their grade levels, and some are still working. I like to think I was able to give something back to them, though, as they all changed my life forever.

Please, PLEASE link me to your awesome posts for today’s topic! I’ll come visit as soon as I can!

Oh, and can I just thank all of you? I hit 500 followers tonight, and could not be more thrilled! I love you all!


Armchair BEA 2012: BEA Books on My List + a Giveaway!

Posted June 5, 2012 by Jana in Giveaway / 86 Comments

 

Armchair BEA is a fun online event that those of us who could not attend BEA in New York City can participate in! There’s ways to network with other bloggers, posts on blogging tips, giveaways, and happenings at BEA from people who are there. Visit the Armchair BEA blog to see a schedule of events!

Today’s post consists of a few of the titles from the BEA 2012 Catalog that I would move Heaven and Earth to get if I were at the Javits Center. There are so many pretty covers and amazing sounding books! I can’t wait to get my hands on all of these! Scroll down to the bottom of this post for a giveaway I’m hosting in honor of amazing books everywhere!

Black City by Elizabeth Richards

In a city where humans and Darklings are now separated by a high wall and tensions between the two races still simmer after a terrible war, sixteen-year-olds Ash Fisher, a half-blood Darkling, and Natalie Buchanan, a human and the daughter of the Emissary, meet and do the unthinkable–they fall in love. Bonded by a mysterious connection that causes Ash’s long-dormant heart to beat, Ash and Natalie first deny and then struggle to fight their forbidden feelings for each other, knowing if they’re caught, they’ll be executed–but their feelings are too strong. When Ash and Natalie then find themselves at the center of a deadly conspiracy that threatens to pull the humans and Darklings back into war, they must make hard choices that could result in both their deaths.

A Gift from Tiffany’s by Melissa Hill

When Ethan Greene lost his wife to cancer, he never thought he would be able to replace her… until one woman stepped in and showed him how to be happy again.  Now, on a romantic Christmas trip to New York City, he has a plan to show Vanessa just how important she is to him, and maybe even give his daughter, Daisy, a complete family again. He’s going to propose with a perfect ring from Tiffany’s.Gary Knowles and his girlfriend Rachel are on the trip-of-a-lifetime in New York, at the most magical time of year. The only thing missing is Gary’s gift for Rachel. On a last-minute Christmas Eve visit to Tiffany’s, he quickly picks out a charm bracelet for her, and heads back to their hotel. But, in a moment, one small mistake changes everything.

Reached by Ally Condie

After leaving Society and desperately searching for the Rising—and each other—Cassia and Ky have found what they were looking for, but at the cost of losing each other yet again: Cassia has been assigned to work for the Rising from within Society, while Ky has been stationed outside its borders. But nothing is as predicted, and all too soon the veil lifts and things shift once again.

 

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

Crewel by Gennifer Albin

Incapable. Awkward. Artless.

That’s what the other girls whisper behind her back. But sixteen year-old Adelice Lewys has a secret: she wants to fail.

Gifted with the ability to weave time with matter, she’s exactly what the Guild is looking for, and in the world of Arras, being chosen as a Spinster is everything a girl could want. It means privilege, eternal beauty, and being something other than a secretary. It also means the power to embroider the very fabric of life. But if controlling what people eat, where they live and how many children they have is the price of having it all, Adelice isn’t interested.

Not that her feelings matter, because she slipped and wove a moment at testing, and they’re coming for her—tonight.

Now she has one hour to eat her mom’s overcooked pot roast. One hour to listen to her sister’s academy gossip and laugh at her Dad’s stupid jokes. One hour to pretend everything’s okay. And one hour to escape.

Because once you become a Spinster, there’s no turning back.

For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund

Generations ago, a genetic experiment gone wrong—the Reduction—decimated humanity, giving rise to a Luddite nobility who outlawed most technology.

Elliot North has always known her place in this world. Four years ago Elliot refused to run away with her childhood sweetheart, the servant Kai, choosing duty to her family’s estate over love. Since then the world has changed: a new class of Post-Reductionists is jumpstarting the wheel of progress, and Elliot’s estate is foundering, forcing her to rent land to the mysterious Cloud Fleet, a group of shipbuilders that includes renowned explorer Captain Malakai Wentforth—an almost unrecognizable Kai. And while Elliot wonders if this could be their second chance, Kai seems determined to show Elliot exactly what she gave up when she let him go.

But Elliot soon discovers her old friend carries a secret—one that could change their society . . . or bring it to its knees. And again, she’s faced with a choice: cling to what she’s been raised to believe, or cast her lot with the only boy she’s ever loved, even if she’s lost him forever.

Inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion, For Darkness Shows the Stars is a breathtaking romance about opening your mind to the future and your heart to the one person you know can break it.

The Lost Code by Kevin Emerson

The ozone is ravaged, ocean levels have risen, and the sun is a daily enemy. But global climate change is not something new in the Earth’s history.

No one will know this better than less-than-ordinary Owen Parker, who is about to discover that he is the descendant of a highly advanced ancient race—a race that took their technology too far and almost destroyed the Earth in the process.

Now it is Owen’s turn to make right in his world what went wrong thousands of years ago. If Owen can unlock the lost code in his very genes, he may rediscover the forgotten knowledge of his ancestry…and that less-than-ordinary can evolve into extraordinary.

So, what do you think? Are any of these on your list? Which books am I missing?

Now, on to the giveaway! I recently acquired an extra copy of Across the Universe, signed by Beth Revis (thanks to Tiffany Schmitt’s Breathless Reads Giveaway)! Interested? You should be! Sadly, I can only send this to US residents. I’m sorry. :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Armchair BEA 2012: Meet That Artsy Reader Girl!

Posted June 4, 2012 by Jana in About Me / 33 Comments

 

Armchair BEA is a fun online event that those of us who could not attend BEA in New York City can participate in! There’s ways to network with other bloggers, posts on blogging tips, giveaways, and happenings at BEA from people who are there. Visit the Armchair BEA blog to see a schedule of events!

Today’s post is all about networking, and getting to know other bloggers participating in the event. Hopefully we can all make some new friends! So, here are five things about me (the questions were provided by the creators of the event)!

Meet Jana

1. Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging?
Well, I’m Jana! I’m a graphic designer, substitute teacher, world traveler, art history lover, and bookahaolic! Oh, and I’m turning 25 this month. Oh. My. Heck. I started out blogging with The Broke and the Bookish back when the blog was born in June of 2010. Jamie, the creator of the Goodreads College Students group, thought it would be a fun idea, so about 10 of us joined together and entered the blog world. I’m not sure any of us thought the blog would grow so big so quickly. In November of 2011, I decided to break off of TB&TB (don’t worry! I still write there too!) and run a solo blog so I could post reviews more frequently. I absolutely love the blogging community, and have had so much fun getting to know all my blogger friends! I’ve also found a deeper love for reading than I ever imagined.

2. What is your favorite book you have read so far in 2012?
Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard (read my review!). I connected so much with that book. Bria, the artsy main character, had the courage to do something I had always dreamed about! She took off on an amazing traveling adventure, fell in love, and learned a lot about herself. About a week ago, I returned home from a 6-week extravaganza through Europe with my mom. I didn’t fall in love, but I learned SO much about myself. I came home wanting to read Wanderlove all over again, because I would be able to connect with it on a whole new level. Perhaps a re-read is necessary!

3. If you could eat dinner with any author or character, who would it be and why?
I recently hosted a tour stop on the Of Poseidon by Anna Banks official tour. I got to interview her after reading her amazing book! She is so hilarious and so down-to-earth. I’d love to have dinner with her (and I would hope she’d bring along Emma and Galen), and then go pedestrian-hunting. Check out the interview and giveaway of Of Poseidon here.

4. What literary location would you most like to visit? Why?
I want to visit the world in Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi. It’s a crazy-sounding place, with virtual realms and the Aether (which sounds SO much like van Gogh’s Starry Night). It’s a dangerous place, I know, but I would absolutely LOVE to see it!

5. What is your favorite part about the book blogging community? Is there anything that you would like to see change in the coming years?
I love all the people, the authors, the publicists, and publishers. Book lovers are the coolest people in the world. It does not matter where we live, what we do for a living, or what we think. We all love books, so we’re all connected. The bookish discussions and recommendations have changed my views on so many things, changed my preferences on books, and really shaped my own blogging persona. I’ve made some lifelong friends, and I know I will always have at least one person to cry over fictional characters with!

Thanks for stopping by! It’s so nice to meet you (or see you again)! Please leave me a link to your intro post so I can get to know you better, and if you’re not participating in Armchair BEA, please tell me something about yourself that I don’t know already!


In My Mailbox (#4)

Posted June 3, 2012 by Jana in Uncategorized / 10 Comments

Hi, guys! It’s been a while since I participated in IMM. I’ve been in Europe for the past 6 weeks, and just got home a few days ago. I received lots of books while I was gone, and can’t wait to tell you about them all!

Books Gifted:

Shopaholic Takes Manhattan by Sophie Kinsella
Shopaholic Ties the Knot by Sophie Kinsella
Shopaholic and Sister by Sophie Kinsella
Shopaholic and Baby by Sophie Kinsella
Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
On the Street Where You Live by Mark Higgins Clark

Books I received for Review:

Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne
Flirting in Italian by Lauren Henderson
Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama
Kissing Shakespeare by Pamela Mingle
Florence by Ciye Cho
The Lost Kingdom by Kris Ellsworth

Blogs/Reviews/Books Mentioned:

Rather be Reading
I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
Magan’s Review of Flirting in Italian by Lauren Henderson

Read about my fan-girling over Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
I’ve got a great summer read for you! – Girl at Sea by Maureen Johnson
Author interview and giveaway of Of Poseidon by Anna Banks (USA/CAN)