Friday, December 2, 2011

Follow Friday and TGIF! (12-2-11)

Happy Friday, everyone! I hope that you are having a great first weekend of December and getting some of those things on your holiday to-do list done. I'm pretty much done with my shopping and just need to wrap it all, then my gifts are all done! Yay! Next weekend, I will be in NYC (cannot wait!), and then the holiday baking starts ... oh boy. I love baking, and have a few new recipes that I want to test out to see if they are worth making for the holidays. I will have to post pics of all the delicious things that I make. Now, onto the Friday fun ...


Parajunkee asks:

What is your biggest pet peeve when it comes to books? Maybe you don't like love triangles or thin plots? Tell us about it!

I have a lot of book pet peeves (I'm picky, what can I say), but I will not list them all here, just my biggest ones.

I hate when chapters aren't consistent in length. I know, this is weird. But I like having chapters that are all around the same length. Authors, choose either short or long! Nothing aggrevates me more than when one chapter is 35 pages, and the next chapter is only 3 pages. It really throws me off and I can't get into a steady reading rythym (whenever I'm pressed for time, I like to say, "I will read one chapter now." Or, "I can read about five chapters now.") Like I said, this is a weird pet peeve.

I also hate it when characters have no depth. When the character doesn't bring anything to the table, I sometimes feel like I just want to walk away from the book. If they aren't bringing anything to the table, then why should I stay and read?!?


GReads asks:

Writing Reviews 101: What's your process for writing book reviews? Any tips or suggestions you would recommend to other bloggers?

My biggest tip to bloggers would be to write your review as quickly as possible. It's sometimes hard to remember the details of the book a week or so after you finished reading the book. If you realize something after you read the book, then just go back and change your review (easy to do if you plan out your reviews and have them scheduled a few weeks from now). That's my biggest tip and the thing that I do consistently when I write my reviews.

Do you have any review tips? What are your book pet peeves? Let me know, and have a happy Friday!

6 comments:

  1. lol! I have never heard of anyone having chapter beef before!

    Old Follower
    Beth ^_^
    http://sweetbooksnstuff.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Kristen, new follower. I can't say I've ever heard someone complain about chapter length before, but I know exactly what you mean about rhythm. It's a very interesting point.

    You're exactly right about flat characters, especially the primary characters, but even minor characters should offer something more than just cardboard walk-throughs or cannon fodder....

    The Overnight Bestseller
    http://michaeljmccannsblog.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  3. I have to definitely agree with the lack of depth, but the only time the chapter thing annoys me is if the lengths are drastically different. Like the 35 pages to 3 pages. If, however, it fluctuates between 10-25 pages, it doesn't really bother me that much so long as it fits the story.

    And I agree with writing the review as quickly as possible. I don't even like starting my next book until I've started my review for the one I've just finished. I still need to get a few more books ahead of myself before I can really start scheduling them in advance, though. I want to reach that point, just may take a bit, yet. Most advance I really get is a day or two.

    New Follower. Here's PiF's!

    ReplyDelete
  4. New follwoer!

    I can see how chapter lengths can get aggravating. I hadn't thought about it before :)

    Here's mine:
    http://carabosseslibrary.blogspot.com/2011/12/follow-friday.html

    ReplyDelete
  5. I think writing book reviews without delaying them for too long is a good idea. Details and emotions get blurry and faded the more time passes between when you finished a book and when you review it :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. I totally agree with you about the chapters! I'm reading Crossed by Ally Condie and she is killing me. One chapter will be 30 pages long and the next chapter will be half a page! It's so annoying. But the book itself is fantastic!

    ReplyDelete