BookBlogWriMo | Why We Blog and Why We Read

Welcome to Day 4 of BookBlogWriMo 2014!

Today's topic is a very personal one. Each of us has our own reason for reading and blogging, and they might be extremely different. Since this topic is so important, feel free to leave a comment below with your answers, or with a link to your post.

Why We Read

Max

Reading is an adventure, you know? Every new book is a new story you get to live through, in a way, and I think that's just fantastic and a meaningful way to pass my time.

Tessa

I have always been a shy person, so reading has given me the opportunity to experience so many different things without going outside of my comfort zone. Reading has also given me the courage to do things in real life that I might not have done otherwise. I have learned infinite things through my favorite (at least favorite) books. Honestly, I do not know what kind of person I would be if I did not read. 

Why We Blog

Max
Blogging helps me to communicate my thoughts about books and learn more about the community, like what I should read, and what I shouldn't, and gives me new insight on the world of books and what's inside of them.

Tessa

I started blogging because I wanted my own little nook of the Internet to share my passions: reading and writing. I still blog for those reasons, but now I have many more reasons. One of the top ones being the awesomeness of the book blogging community. Yes, that means you! I have learned so much from all of you, and my TBR list has grown significantly. I love being a part of this big blogging family. 

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Picture Courtesy of Goodreads

The Maze Runner

Author: James Dashner
Series: The Maze Runner #1
Release Date: October 6th, 2009
Pages: 374
Review by: Tessa




"If you ain't scared, you ain't human."

The only thing Thomas knows is his name and that he is so scared that he might need another pair of pants.
His memory is gone, but things are even worse when he stumbles out of the black pit he was in.

Welcome to the Maze.

For two years, boys have been sent to the Maze through the same box Thomas just escaped. All of them are stuck together until the Maze is solved.

We are not talking about a regular corn field maze here. Every night, the maze rearranges itself to a brand new source of torture. While the Maze is in its nightly construction, dangers run amok.

Without their memories to guide them, the boys rely on each other to live through every night, but everything changes when the first girl arrives.

BookBlogWriMo | Where We Read

Welcome to the third day of BookBlogWriMo 2014. So far, I have read some great posts from other participants. I cannot believe that every day this month, 45 book blogs will join together and share their blogging experiences. It is a truly beautiful thing. *sniff* *sniff*

I will stop with the emotions now and actually get to today's topic, which is...

Where We Read

Max

I'll read anywhere. Literally.
I prefer somewhere comfy and warm, but if I'm really into a book, I'll read it just about anywhere.

Tessa

I personally can read anywhere-- in bed, on the couch, in the car (I have the special talent to repel motion sickness), even on the floor. Silence is not necessary, and I actually like to listen to music while reading too. The only time I cannot read is when the TV is on. Every time, an interesting commercial will come on (I am a sucker for funny advertisements) or the show will get extremely dramatic at the same time my book does. Then I have to flip a coin to decide what to do (and yes, this is a valid way to make important decisions).

Cassia

I can read anywhere, really. I prefer silence, but since my house is almost never quiet, I've learned how to tune it out. If I really need to concentrate and get to a certain point in the book, I retreat to my bedroom. Outside is nice, too. In the winter, I like to read wrapped in a fuzzy blanket and next to the fireplace.

BookBlogWriMo | How We Read

Welcome to Day 2 of the BookBlogWriMo challenge!

I hope you enjoyed the history of our blog. If you missed the post, you can find it here.

Today's Topic is.....

How We Read

Max
There's not really a method to my madness. I have a Kindle, which I use a lot, and when I'm not using my Kindle, I prefer to read hardcovers. Paperbacks are cool too, don't get me wrong. I'm awful at using bookmarks, though (aka I always lose them) so I just memorize page numbers, etc.

Tessa

I really do not think that there is a wrong way to read. I do not have an e-reader (But Christmas is only 52 days away!). Sometimes when I know that I want to write a review for a book, I will keep a pad of Sticky Notes handy to write down my amazing ideas. I also read very quickly, but only when I am interested in a book. 

Cassia

I read very slowly. I read a lot, when I have the time (which isn't a lot at all lately), but it takes me a while to finish a book. However, if I love the book, I can finish it in a couple of days. I also have a Kindle, and I like it, but I like a real book better. I occasionally make notes, but usually only if it's an e-book. When author's ask me to review books and I get it as an e-book, I like to take notes and highlight on my Kindle.

BookBlogWriMo | History of Crazy for YA

Welcome to Day 1 of the #BookBlogWriMo 2014 Challenge hosted by Book Bumblings!

If you are hopelessly confused right now, you should check out our introduction post, where we explain everything about the challenge.

And for those of you who were too lazy to click the link, here is a summary:

BookBlogWriMo is a form of NaNoWriMo for book bloggers. We will be posting everyday about something is the book blogosphere. The posts will be about everything from our bookish pet peeves to our favorite book covers.

Today's topic is......

The History of Crazy for YA

Let's start at our humble beginning....

One day, Cassia, Max, and Tessa were talking about books (like every other day), but this day was different. The conversation eventually turned to the topic of book blogs and reviews. We, being very naive, thought that making a book blog would be a great, and easy way to talk to others about books (and maybe get some free books out of it).

Since the only genre that all of us read is young adult, we decided that was going to be the theme of our blog. I am the clever one who came up with our name. If you have not noticed, it is a pun (we love puns). We are crazy for young adult books, but we are also crazy for "you," our readers. Funny, right?

We also made a very important decision for our blog. We are all going to use the names of our favorite characters. Tessa Gray from The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare, Max Ride from The Maximum Ride series by James Patterson, and Cassia Reyes from The Matched series by Ally Condie. We did not (and still do not) think that revealing our personal information is a good idea. Honestly, it does not affect our blogging. 

I will not bore you with the incredibly long and dull story of how we set up the blog and why we chose Blogger, etc. Basically, we had no idea what we were doing and randomly began. 

Our first post was our introduction. 

Our first review was City of Glass by Cassandra Clare (which does not make sense, considering our review of City of Bones was not posted until two weeks later....) 

In our first year, we did not really know what a huge commitment blogging would be. We only had a couple posts in our first months. Honestly, we had no idea about SEO, or memes, or anything really. It's the thought that counts, right?

We started messing with our blog layout. We needed a new header, several different backgrounds, and the lovely labels that you see to the left of your screen (I am so proud of those!). It took two weeks to get it to what it is now. 

So, last summer, we participated in our first blog event, The Sweet Summer Read-a-thon. Only three blogs participated, but it showed us how fun blogging could be. 

Over the summer, we really kicked up our blogging pace. We posted about 5 times a week and everything was great. We started to get more followers, but another obstacle needed to be dealt with....social media. 

We decided that we wanted to have more of a presence in the blogging community. So, we started a Facebook page, a Pinterest account, and a Bloglovin profile. 

That brings us to the present. We know a little bit more about book blogging, but we have also learned that being yourself online is just as important as in real life.

Now, we (try to) maintain Facebook, Pinterest, Booklikes, and Goodreads. We still do not have a Twitter, and we never will (I have a passionate hate for hashtags).

Thanks for reading my ramble about our blog beginnings. I hope you look forward to a whole month of us rambling and ranting about our blog adventures. Personally, I cannot wait!