The Cake-Flavoured Books Tag

I would like to open by admitting that I am stealing the blog version of this tag from Cait @ Paper Fury, a) because nobody tells me what to do when it comes to cake or blog tags, and b) because she told me I could.

Please. I'm badass, but I'm no thief.

Originally, this was a #Bookstagram tag, so don't forget to go check out all the pretty pictures! Unfortunately very few of them actually feature cake - although, let's be honest, even if they all did it still wouldn't be enough cake - but maybe you could look at them ... then look at some cake?

Oh, I see. You've already eaten it.

#1 ~ CHOCOLATE CAKE

a dark book that you absolutely love

Not only is Deidre Sullivan's Needlework one of the most unapologetically fearless books I've read in my entire life, but it's properly dark. Beautifully dark. There are so many gritty YA books that seem like they're being gritty for the sake of it. They feel like some poor misguided person has decided all they need to do for the teens to like them is be "edgy". But this was dark because it needed to make a statement. And I adored it.

On a slight side note, I GOT TO MEET THE AUTHOR AT YALC TODAY, and she is genuinely one of the nicest people ever. I will treasure that signed copy for ever.

#2 ~ VANILLA CAKE

a light read

Oh gosh I think The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli might have caused me to lose an eye thanks to excessive squeeing. It was cute and fresh and cute and self-discovering and cute and diverse and cute and did I mention how cute it was yet?

There's also an awful lot of lovely food descriptions going on, so I'm pretty sure its characters would be very happy to be in a vanilla cake category. Preferably one with mini eggs on the top? And lots of super-special cookie dough that's made specifically to be eaten raw? (Actually, I'm now imagining Molly baking a cake like that for Reid and now I'm dying of the feels AGAIN.)

#3 ~ RED VELVET

a book that gives you mixed emotions

This would absolutely have to be Me Before You by Jojo Moyes.

The full review I was planning to write on the blog at the time never materialised, but you can get an idea just how torn up I was feeling after reading this book by reading my Goodreads review. On the one hand, I guess I was kind of glad that disability was being represented to the masses? And, unlike an awful lot of people, I felt that the ending was at least in character, despite it being a little bit problematic.

But I'm also of the opinion that any portrayal of pretty much anything that ends up being this patronising has not been researched or thought out properly. Lou's absolute inability to think anything through when it came to what might be difficult for Will was properly frustrating (it's possible to do an awful lot of things in an electric wheelchair, but not through sheer optimism. You need a PLAN. And almost everyone else in the book would have told her that, if she'd bothered to ask.); the author's constant assumptions that a disabled person definitely wouldn't be reading the book left me furious, and the general feeling that lives with physical disabilities are inherently tragic was just utterly heartbreaking.

Is that mixed enough for you?

#4 ~ CHEESECAKE

a book you'd recommend to anyone

Oh WOW so so many. I hate to be prescriptive about what people read, because of course there's no book that everyone's going to love equally. (The original draft of this post contained a very elaborate metaphor attempting to explain how stupid it would be to expect everyone to love one book, but ... it was a fashion metaphor and I know exactly nothing about fashion.)

My point is, there's no book that everyone's going to love. But there are books that have subject matters so important that I think everyone should at least try to read them.

What springs to mind right this instant is The Hate U Give by Angie Stanton, because, to quote the slightly all-over-the-place notes I wrote immediately after reading: "As a white person, I'm sure I probably won't ever fully understand how important this book is, but I will spend my entire life trying."

You heard me. Go read it!

#5 ~ COFFEE CAKE

a book you started but never finished

I really wish that this wasn't the case, but I never got to the end of The Handmaid's Tale by Margret Atwood. I KNOW. I'm TERRIBLE. It really makes me sad - I absolutely definitely wanted to finish it before the TV show started so I could watch it and be well informed.

But then it was long and there were other books on my TBR that just seemed more interesting and apparently I'm terrible at making excuses.

#6 ~ CARROT CAKE

a book with great writing

Since the astronomically late Wrap-Up that I posted on Wednesday, I have actually finished The List by Sioban Vivian, and while it wasn't one of my favourite books of the year (mostly because it ended about four chapters before I think it should have - much growling), I can't deny that I have absolutely no clue how the author managed to keep all the different characters and their viewpoints separate, to the point where I could tell who was narrating each chapter within sentences, without reading their name headings and despite long breaks between readings.

I thought it was very well written, anyway. But it appears that Goodreads disagrees with me.

#7 ~ TIRAMISU

book that left you wanting more

First of all, I have a serious problem with this prompt. Tiramisu does not leave me wanting more, it leaves me wanting something very sweet to wash it down with and preferably a time machine to prevent my past self from naively biting into what I can only describe as a bitter, coffee flavoured hell.

Anyway.

I have been waiting for Obsidio, the final book in Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff's Illuminae Files, for almost six months now and there are still another nine to go. I am absolutely dying. So I guess you could say that the amazing Gemina left me wanting more.

*quietly explodes* 

#8 ~ CUPCAKES

a series with 4+ books

Uhhhhh ... brain coming up completely blank ... somebody please help.

Harry Potter?

*cowers under weight of own unoriginality*

#9 ~ FRUIT CAKE

book that wasn't what you expected

Oh, The Sellout by Paul Beatty, absolutely without a doubt. I decided to join my Mum's proper-grown-ups book club last year, which was possibly a mistake since the books they read are, like, intellectual and that. Me with my immature nature and my stack of teen books didn't know what I was getting into. But when I heard that this book was a satirical look at racism within America and its judicial system, I was interested. I like challenging racism. I'm interested in law within America.

But what I got was a horrible confusing mess that SOUNDED LIKE it might have been trying to condone slavery. I know it's satire, so clearly that wasn't what it was actually doing, but the sarcasm was just too advanced for poor safe-minded me.

I expected interesting. I got confusing.

How sad.

#10 ~ LAMINGTON

favourite Australian books

I was going to change this one into Victoria Sponge, because being British I actually haven't read that many Australian books. (Utterly heartbreaking, I know, but if you're Australian please don't hate on me. Just ... send me recs to help rectify the situation?)

Luckily, I then remembered about the existence of The First Third by Will Kostakis, which is possibly my favourite book portraying Cerebral Palsy (which is my disability, in case anyone wasn't paying attention) of, well - ever.

There's a full review and interview with the author over on the Disability Diaries section of the blog, but in short: disabled person existing in a book. Disabled person being ridiculously realistic in a book. Disabled person having thoughts and feelings independent of their disability in a book.

Disabled person (!) who is also gay (!!) having romance (!!!) IN A BOOK (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

I was going to tag every blogger I knew who liked cake, but then I realised that if I did that I'd literally be tagging everyone. Feel free to steal it if you fancy!

Kate @ The Magic Violinist - because those cupcakes she made for her Tony's party were absolutely extraordinary.

Ely @ Tea & Titles - because she obviously needs tea with her cake.

Marie @ Lots of Livres - because we have a newbie to the community! HUZZAH!

***

In the comments: (Because we all know this is the only question that matters) - WHAT'S YOUR FAVOURITE KIND OF CAKE?

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The Beauty & The Beast Book Tag

I'm HAPPY. You want to know why?

Well, firstly, I'm doing a tag, courtesy of the brilliant Soudha from Of Stacks and Cups, and secondly, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST!

Hey. You knew I was a musical nerd. Don't act surprised that I like Disney.

Be Our Guest

(5 characters you'd invite to your dream dinner party)

Ella from Gemina: Oh my gosh ... Ella is possibly my favourite character. Ever. She's a fifteen year old hacker who manages to hold her own in a intergalactic version of the Russian mafia (and handle a pistol suprisingly well) from a wheelchair and surrounded by a candy shell of "I'm going to protect my daughter / sister /cousin because she can't do anything for herself".

I need some advice from her on dealing with life.

Alice from Alice Jones: The Impossible Clue: So, I was considering inviting Alice's Broadway-auditioning, drama-queen twin sister Della to this dinner party, but a) I figured her histrionics might be a little irritating, and b) I'm pretty sure the Ella / Della thing might have got confusing pretty quickly.

Alice, however, is smart enough to derail business espionage in the tech sector (and dammit, we all know that's the most cutthroat sector of business espionage) using just the power of her own brain and a bicycle. She sounds like a fascinating dinner guest ... although I might have to be careful not to reveal Ella's - uh - upbringing to her. I'm not sure an investigation would set the kind of mood I'm looking for in this party.

Jo from These Shallow Graves: All I'm going to say is that being a 1920s undercover detective when you're both female and from one of the most uptight, reputation-oriented families in New York, requires an awful lot of badassery.

I can imagine it also makes you the kind of person who has a lot of anecdotes to tell at parties.

Jasmine from Something In Between: I relate to Jasmine on a level so deep that it borders on psychic connection. I mean, overachiever. Constantly tired. Pressure.

I ... I'm also kinda broken. Can you tell?

Anyway, I feel like I need to talk to Jasmine. We'd get on ... comparing revision notes, asking for tips on how to break exam stress, complaining about bad teachers. I mean, it would be utterly mind-numbing for my other guests, but they're interesting people. I'm sure they can entertain themselves.

Lucas from The First Third: Lucas is hilarious. And just because I refuse to call him Sticks doesn't mean he's going to lose his outrageous powers of humour overnight. He seems to be an expert in having CP in the modern world - I was thinking maybe we could exchange survival tips? And probably laugh while we're at it?

Belle

(A character whose dreams of adventure inspire you)

What's A Girl Gotta Do? by Holly Bourne
So, I don't know if a quest to get into Cambridge university counts as a dream for adventure to most (read: normal) people, but it inspired me, okay? You've no idea how reassuring it is to read about a character like Lottie managing to achieve her Oxbridge dreams while actually having a life and fighting for the things she cares about.

And, of course, there's the whole "I'm going to call out anything sexist whatsoever for a whole month and do you know what I'm going to use a klaxon to do it" thing. That is an adventure, for sure - and inspiring doesn't even cover it.

The Beast / Prince

(A character who went through an unexpected transformation)

Heartless by Marissa Meyer
This was not a good character transformation.

Cath went from being a kickass, independent baker who argued with the Cheshire cat about whether tuna has any place in cake to a selfish whiner whose only motivations were to do with a love interest. And it made me so sad. I mean, I know this was an origin story for the Queen of Hearts. I knew she was going to have to become an antihero eventually. But this was not the way to do it.

On the plus side? This book wins the award for being the only one ever to make me dislike an unsympethetic character more after hearing their backstory. So ... I guess it had that going for it?

The Enchanted Rose

(A book with a terrible curse at the heart of the story)

Sorry. It appears I'm fresh out of curses? If any of you guys have any suggestions, please let me know.

Tale as Old as Time

(A classic romance story that you love)

Flambards by K.M. Peyton
It's been a long time since I read this, but it remains one of my favourite classics - because a) horses, b) very early aeroplanes, and c) actually readable prose! (I ... don't get along with Regency novel - a lot of people love them, and fair enough, but to me it just feels like reading a brick.)

What makes the romance in this one is the characters. I absolutely adore Christina, and am more than a little bit in love with Will; if you guys think being a misfit in today's era is difficult, then geez. Try it in pre-WWI Britain, when being a girl means you should fall in love with the correct guy (or else) and being a boy means that you do what your father tells you. Even if said father happens to be an alcoholic obsessed with horses, and you're terrified of them.

I ... I just love it, okay?

The Dance

(Your favourite romantic scene from any book)

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
If you've read this book, then I mean the scene. You know the one I'm talking about. There were forests and fire and kisses ... *tries and fails to remain coherent*

*swoons reluctantly*

The Last Petal

(A book character who managed to break a terrible curse)

The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson
Oh, I absolutely adore this series. It's gorgeous. American! Protagonist! Hilariously! Attempts! To! Negotiate! British! Life! WHILE TRYING TO HUNT DOWN A SERIAL KILLER WHO IS PROBABLY A GHOST!

No, you calm down.

And - wow - if there was ever a character to break a terrible curse, it's Rory. I mean, it took her a few chapters to get her head around the fact that the British Isles and the United Kingdom aren't the same thing, and work out how she's supposed to survive a game of hockey with a bunch of public schoolgirls who've been attacking anyone who gets on the wrong side of their stick since they were five ... but she's also kind of kickass.

Beauty and the Beast

(Your bookish OTP)

Waking in Time by Angie Stanton
I think I must have a thing about couples in which one of the participants is called Will? Or couples in which that very same participant is from the early twentieth century? Honestly, though, I think it's mostly about my love of culture clash between book characters. GAH. They were both struggling to adjust to accidental time travel and making faux pas that also happened to be incredibly cute.

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

Kate @ The Magic Violinist (because she's as obsessed with musicals - and Emma Watson - as I am)

Eve @ The Twist in the Taile (because she's the blogger I think of when I think "music")

Cee Arr @ Diary of a Reading Addict and Alyssa @ I Am a Writer, Hear Me Roar (for commenting on 99% of my posts lately and being EPIC cheerleaders)

If anyone else fancies stealing the tag, I'm not one to stop you. BE MY GUEST.

***

In the comments: Do you guys have any suggestions for books revolving around curses? Or some more dinner party guests? Who would you invite?

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The Sunshine Blogger Award

Don't we all need a little bit of sunshine right now? I mean, I know some of you live in places where it's summer right now and therefore you have sunbeams coming out of your ears. But hush. For the rest of us it is dark and dreary and we aren't even getting any snow for our troubles.

It's lucky that the lovely Ely @ Tea and Titles tagged me for the Sunshine Blogger Award, really. As far as I can tell - other than the general theme of sunshine and happiness - there are no rules. Just answer your eleven questions and you have the right to ask eleven of your own to the people you tag. Any theme. Any topic. As weird as you like.

This is going to be fun.

What are the little things that make you happy?
Curling up with a book under clean sheets. Singing without worrying what I sound like. Finally having revised enough that I feel prepared. Having all my friends around me. Opening the first page of a book I've been waiting for forever. Remembering a bookmark - for once. Finding a fellow Harry Potter fan. Good disability representation. My Mum's marzipan crumble and the rush you feel after singing a solo properly.

Christmas. Family. Necklaces. Bookshops. Libraries. Sherlock. YouTube. Caramel. Puzzles. Musicals.

Oh, and sunshine!

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you pick?
Oh, London, without a doubt. I guess I'm lucky that I only live a couple of hours away from it, because ... well, it has the West End. And HUGE BOOKSHOPS.

I think the best thing, though, is the energy. I've never felt anything quite like it, but - the only way I can describe it is that when I'm in London, I know I'm in London.

It sounds totally cheesy, but it's a great feeling.

What's the best book you've read this year?
Really, Ely? WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME? It's a very tough decision and ... well, you're basically making me choose between my children.

Which I will happily do, of course. (No-one ever let me have kids until I've changed my mind on this, 'kay?) These were particularly brilliant:

FROM TOP LEFT TO BOTTOM RIGHT: The First Third by Will Kostakis, These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly, One by Sarah Crossan, The Butterfly Clues by Kate Ellison, We Were Liars by E. Lockhart, Am I Normal Yet by Holly Bourne, and Jolly Foul Play by Robin Stevens.

What subject do you wish you knew more about?

All kinds of things - I want to know as much as possible about everything partly because I can use that information to help the truth prevail, and partly because the fact that knowledge is power and power corrupts will greatly help me in my quest to become an evil mastermind.

If I had to pick just one, though, it would probably be Maths. GCSEs are hard, okay?

Who is your biggest blogging inspiration?

I would say that it's a what, not a who.

It's the books that I read: the characters I meet and the stories I am party to. The pages that I turn. The emotions I am taken through as they drive me to laughter, tears, and ... well, everything else. There are so many people who work so hard to put a book together and deliver it to me - from the author to the editor to the girl who puts the books on their shelves - and I feel like I owe it to them to tell them I appreciated their work through my blog.

So maybe it is a who, actually. Just hundreds of people instead of one.

Why did you start blogging?

The funny answer is to avoid homework. Because - well, technically I was. My expertise in procrastinating knows no bounds (no wonder I'm so bad at keeping to schedules) but even for me that was a bit ridiculous.

I usually just say that I thought it would be a good publicity platform if I did ever write a book. Which did cross my mind at the time. But now you know the WHOLE TRUTH.

Don't tell anyone, 'kay?

Which character do you wish was your best friend?
Book Ginny.

My case is closed.

Do you have a favourite actor/actress?

Yes. Let me introduce you guys to Ali Stroker, AKA My Favourite Person to Ever Be On Glee.

Okay ... so technically she was only in it for one episode. I don't really care. She was in a full season of The Glee Project before being (I think totally unfairly) pipped to the post in the final. And then she was in the Broadway revival of Spring Awakening, which I never got to see thanks to living thousands of miles away, but was apparently incredible.

I told you I was obsessed with all things musical theatre.

You can only eat one food for the rest of your life, what do you pick?

Hmm. Usually, my favourite food is something like ice cream or that kind of chocolate cake that's gooey in the middle, but I don't think eating just them for THE REST OF MY LIFE would be anywhere near sensible. I'd probably spend most of the time being sick and going to the dentist to fix my sugar-rotted teeth.

Can I cheat and say pancakes, or would I only be allowed one kind of topping? On pancake day, my Mum always makes a full meal where every course is a different flavour of pancake.

I'd eat that all year round, no problem.

What type of weather is your favourite?

That moment just after a summer shower when it stops raining and the sun comes out. It always cheers me up a little just because I was expecting to get drenched and then, suddenly, I wasn't - there's always this freshness in the air, and of course it's always quiet because everyone else is still sheltering inside.

Maybe it's about the metaphor of hope or something else overly imaginative (I mean, I am a writer), or maybe it's just the beauty of the sun breaking through and illuminating the droplets that have settled everywhere. All I know is that it makes me smile.

Something good that’s happened in the last week to you, or someone else.I bought Christmas presents for everyone. That's something good happening to my friends really soon.

What? I happen to be the gift master and ... trust me. What I've found is perfect.

Here are the questions for you guys to answer:
(Honestly, I had the most fun of the entire post coming up with these questions. You'd better answer them well, people.)

• Who's your least favourite character EVER? Describe - in detail - what it is that makes you hate them so much. "They're just the worst" or something similar is not acceptable (What? I thought you guys already knew about my bossiness!)

• Do you have any yellow/ orange books? What do you want to tell me about them?

• What does reading smell like to you?

• How often do you have doubts about being a blogger?

• Where would a book have to be set for you to pick it up immediately, no questions asked?

• What's your reading speed? Do you like it that way, or would you rather it was faster / slower?

• Tell me about a quote you can write down almost word for word without looking it up (almost everyone's got one, I reckon). What does it mean to you? What's made you remember it so clearly?

• At what time of year are you happiest?

• What childhood toy do you have the fondest memories of?

• How do you feel about school? What is/was it like for you? Love it or hate it?

• If you could change one thing about your blog without having to do it yourself, what would it be?

(You're supposed to tag eleven people, but ... I don't have eleven online friends. These people are enough though because they are awesome)

Kate @ The Magic Violinist

Julia @ The Tree of Books

Cassidy @ Quartz Feather

No pressure, you guys, but if you want to do this I'd really like to hear your answers. And, if anyone else wants to jump in, go for it! Consider yourself tagged!

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The Secret Life of A Book Blogger | Tag

I was just looking back in my blog archives, and I haven't done a tag since August. AUGUST.

AUGUST.

That's an awful long time for someone with a mild blog addiction and a serious affinity for tagging, so ... well, I'm rectifying the situation. I stole* this Secret Life of a Book Blogger Tag from Lizzy @ MyLittleBookBlog, but after what seems like hours of googling, I can't for the life of me work out who created it originally. If it was you, give me a shout!

*(Yes. I have been stealing to fuel my addiction. This may be a problem.)

How long have you been a blogger?

Photo by Mohammed Fkriy

Since ... *squints* ... *brief pause as I urgently scroll through my post archive* ... April last year. I'm only an eighteen month old blogger baby, and I'm already having toddler tantrums. BRACE YOURSELVES FOR THE TERRIBLE TWOS, PEOPLE.

Anyway - it's not that long in the grand scheme of blogging, I suppose, but I already feel like I've been doing this forever. It's kind of second nature by now, to the point where I get really twitchy - as in "you make a twitchy little ferret" levels of twitchy - if I haven't blogged for a while. And I really do think that I talk to bloggy folks online more than my real life friends some days.

So yeah. Eighteen months.

At what point do you think you’ll stop blogging?

Photo by Bethany Legg

In an ideal world? Never. NEVER NEVER NEVER. Did you miss the part where I got twitchy without it? Blogging has opened me up to so many new opportunities and possibilities - I honestly feel like if I lost it, it would be like losing a part of myself.

However, lately I've been not having as much time to blog - school happens to be getting crazy just about now; apparently just because the teachers constantly encourage you to take as many extra-curricular activities that come your way doesn't mean they're willing to let up on homework - and at times like that trying to keep up a regular posting schedule ends up as unnecessary pressure. I can imagine that, if I ever stopped, it would literally just be because I had no time and trying to blog was stressing me out more than anything.

What is the best thing about blogging?

Photo by Helloquence

Oh, the people, without any question whatsoever. I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH, OKAY? I can log on to Twitter at pretty much any time of day I want and have a conversation about Harry Potter, or diverse representation in YA, or scary crime shows with someone halfway around the world. It's amazing how, when you start a book blog, your reading isn't just about you and a book anymore. It's about this brilliant community who will accept you and look after you and cry with you about people you only know in your imaginations. And ... that was something I could never fully imagine before I started blogging, but now it's something I can't fully imagine being without.

It's a sparkly spiderweb network of unicorns and things that smell like books, and I love it more than anything.

What is the worst thing? What do you do to make it OK?

Photo by Rayi Christian Wicaksono

Like I said above, probably the whole thing about being stressed and never having the time I really want to dedicate to this lovely little corner of the internet. This site's kind of like my baby; I want to look after it the best I possibly can, and when I don't have the time or skills to do that, it's frustrating. 

To make sure I do as much as possible with the time I've got, I do try to schedule posts and spend my extra time doing other maintenance. That said, most of what I do to make the  whole thing ok is just letting go of perfection, I guess.

How long does it take you to make/find pictures to use?

Photo by Mario Calvo

Oh, it used to take absolutely forever. I'd trawl around the internet for probably more time than I spent writing the post to find some images to use, locate the perfect ones ... then remember that they aren't royalty free, and have to spend twice that amount of time again trying to take my own photos and edit them enough that they look like I know how to hold a camera.

Then I discovered Unsplash. Unsplash is a blogger's best friend.

All the pictures on there are donated by professional photographers, and licensed under Creative Commons Zero, which pretty much means you can do whatever you fancy with them with or without crediting the artist (although most photographers would prefer you credit them if possible). They might not have as much variety as some other CC0 sites, like Pixabay, but the quality is ridiculously brilliant. I use their photos whenever I possibly can just because they're so beautiful.

Who is your book crush?

Photo by Mayur Gala

Um ... I ... don't tend to get crushes on book characters? Very much? Am I going to be ostracised from the book community for that?

*backs off slowly, hoping no-one cares*

What author would you like to have on your blog?

Photo by Álvaro Serrano

All of them? Authors are magically brilliant people and I would pretty much want any of them to visit my blog. I mean, obviously, J.K. Rowling would be ideal, but she's probably busy being the Queen of all Literature, so Alison Cherry would be an amazing guest. She was the person that gave me the confidence to talk to authors on Twitter when I first started blogging, has a brilliant sense of humour and shares hilarious stories about living in NYC.

She's probably too busy being awesome as well, but a girl can dream, right?

What do you wear when you write your blog post?

Photo by Jeff Sheldon

Pyjamas. School uniform. My funny t-shirt that says "well behaved women rarely make history". Leggings. Sweatpants. A party frock.

Basically, whatever I happen to be wearing whenever I have both the time and inspiration to blog.

How long does it take you to prepare?

Photo by Veri Ivanova

Um ... preparation? Are we supposed to do that? *looks sideways in panic*

I don't think I'd ever get many posts written if I tried to plan them too hard - it takes up way too much time and energy for me. Of course, I do have endless admiration for people who draw up proper schedules and brainstorm posts and stuff like that, but personally? I just come up with a post idea (which can take hours if my brain's being particularly uncooperative), start typing, and hope for the best.

As you can probably see from the sheer messiness that is my stream of consciousness in some posts, the best doesn't always happen.

How do you feel about the book blogger community?

Photo by William White

I'm reasonably sure I covered this with my assertion that "it's a sparkly spiderweb of unicorns" earlier, but the book blogger community can be incredible. It can be beautiful. It can be my favourite thing about blogging.

But - and I mean ever so occasionally - it can have a dark side. I've never experienced this myself, but I've heard stories of bullying, of plagiarists being defended, and of other generally upsetting things, and it makes me so sad. The book blog community is, for the most part, absolutely awesome, and it has the power to support so many people. It's horrible to think that those incidents - which might not be small, but in my experience are few and far between - can put people off participating in the community, and stop them getting that support.

What do you think one should do to get a successful blog?

Photo by Josh Felise

Enjoy yourself. I wrote this whole post a year or so ago about how I don't think a successful blog has to be a popular one, but basically I believe you're being a successful blogger as long as you're having fun with it. 

So ... why don't you just go have fun?

Ely @ Tea and Titles (because I always want to hear what you want to say, Ely)

Trisha @ That Slytherin Writer (because I'm a nosy person who wants to know all the Slytherin secrets)

Mia @ Mia in Narnia (because the secrets of Narnia just have to be interesting, right?)

I'm going to let you guys know on Twitter, and I'd love to see your version of this tag, but no pressure! I promise not be cross if you decide to ignore me ;-) And if you fancy doing this and I haven't named you, consider yourself tagged! It's not like I got it through completely legitimate means ...

***

In the comments: Do you agree with my answers to these questions? Or are you going to ostracise me for not having book crushes? Don't forget to link me to any versions of this tag you make!

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