First of all, I’d like to thank you for inviting me to your
blog! And what a lovely blog it is! It’s very well designed, and your articles
are very interesting. Last but not
least, I really like the fact that you have a friendly, welcoming atmosphere on
the blog. I’m very happy to be here!
Deirdra: What
are your favorite kind of books to read and why?
Maria: I have very eclectic
tastes, both in fiction and nonfiction.
My favorite fiction genres include fantasy, paranormal romance,
science fiction, classics, literary fiction, urban fantasy, Christian fiction,
historical romance, and contemporary romance.
I totally dislike the horror genre (a Stephen King fan I’m definitely
not!), and the only mysteries I enjoy are the ones featuring Sherlock
Holmes. I also dislike erotica, and am
totally appalled by the current furor over Fifty Shades of Grey! Disgusting!
My favorite nonfiction genres include psychology, theology, philosophy,
art criticism, poetry, and literary criticism.
I don’t review much nonfiction on my blog, though, because I don’t think
blog readers are as interested in nonfiction as they are in fiction. I do review such books, just not that often. I’ve tried reviewing nonfiction books on a
separate nonfiction blog, but really don’t have the time for a second blog, so
I’m giving it up.
Deirdra: How
many books on average would you say you read a year?
Maria: Sadly, not that
many. My reading time is pretty limited
because I have two jobs…. I wish I could drop at least my night job, but I do
need the money. Now that I have my blog,
I have even less time to read, paradoxically enough! I do try to get in as much reading as I can,
though, so I guess I’ll have to say anywhere from 30 to 40 books a year, which
isn’t much, I know…
Deirdra: What
is the most recent book you read? Can you tell us a little about it?
Maria: My most recent read
was a paranormal romance/urban fantasy novel, titled Midnight Reckoning,
written by Kendra Leigh Castle, a new paranormal author. It tells the story of a vampire, named Jaden
Harrison, who falls in love with a werewolf named Lyra Black. Theirs is a forbidden love, because vampires
and werewolves normally don’t mix. It’s
a very sweet, romantic story, too. Jaden
is a wonderfully tender man, and both he and Lyra are also very
idealistic. For her part, Lyra is a very
spirited woman, but is also very devoted to Jaden. This is not a horror novel, in spite of the
type of characters involved. Paranormal
romance is actually a great genre to read, although some authors do get a
little carried away with the foul language and the very graphic sex
scenes. I do my best to stay away from
those, of course. This particular novel
has some foul language, but not to the point where I’d have stopped reading
it. The love scenes were beautiful and
not that graphic. This was just a very
powerful, wonderful love story! I really
enjoyed it!
Deirdra: What
is the most disappointing thing authors do?
Maria: I have two pet
peeves in this area.
First, I hate reading
a poorly-edited book. Unfortunately,
indie authors are notorious for this. If
I were to write a book, I’d make very, very sure it was properly edited. I hate reading a book and getting involved in
the story, only to be constantly taken out of it by grammatical errors and poor
syntax. This just ruins the reading
experience for me!
Second, I hate it when
authors kill off a major character, especially when they do it because it’s the
easiest way for them to solve a problem created by their plot. I was so disappointed when a young adult
writer did this in a book I was reading not that long ago. I won’t name the author, but I will say that
the problem the author ‘solved’ was a love triangle in the plot. This writer killed off one of the members of
the love triangle. That totally spoiled
the book for me!
Deirdra: Who
are your top five favorite authors?
Maria: Oh, my gosh!! I don’t think I can limit myself to just
five. Well, I would have to mention
Charles Dickens, J.R.R. Tolkien, Charlotte Bronte, Stephenie Meyer, J.K.
Rowling, Hermann Hesse, Charles de Lint, Thomas Hardy, Fyodor Dostoyevsky,
Lauren Kate, Mary Balogh, Andrea Cremer, Lewis Carroll, Isaac Asimov, Ray
Bradbury, Mark Twain, and Lisa Bergren.
And this is just for starters!!
Deirdra: How
do you feel about e-books?
Maria: I’m so glad you
asked this! Now I can tell your readers
just how much I hate them!! Lol. I refuse to read them. I also refuse to buy either a Kindle or a
Nook! Yes, I know all the arguments
about convenience, and my printed books are indeed threatening to run over the
house. I still prefer them!! I love to turn pages. I love to feel the covers, and hold the books
in my hands. So, no ebooks for me! In case someone should point out that I do
read blog posts, I’ll answer that I don’t mind that at all. But reading an entire book on a
machine is a totally different matter.
Deirdra: If
you could give a message to authors what would it be?
Maria: The most important message I would give them,
in light of my previous answer, is this: “If you must publish your books
in digital format, please make them available in printed format, as well. Book lovers that detest ebooks (like me!)
will really appreciate it if you have printed copies of your works available,
as well!”
Deirdra: Have
you ever thought about writing a book?
Maria: Oh,
definitely! I’ve actually written some
fan fiction, which you can view on my blog.
I did start a fantasy novel some time ago, but sort of lost steam after
the first chapter. I’d like to continue
with it, but something stops me. That
something is the possibility of having to go through tons of rejection letters
from prospective publishers. But I
guess I should take inspiration from Stephenie Meyer. After all, her first novel, Twilight,
was rejected by several publishers. I’ll
bet they’ve been pulling out their hair ever since Steph hit it big!! Ha, ha!!
So I’ll go back to this first chapter, and go on from there. Hopefully, I’ll make publishers pull out
their hair, too, after my book starts selling big! Lol.
Deirdra: What
other talents and hobbies to you have?
Maria: Well, I was an art major in college,
although I haven’t done much with that.
Again, fear of rejection… I haven’t done any artwork in a very long
time. On the other hand, my love for art
is very visible on my blog, which I have designed myself. The template and background are the work of
Josh Peterson and “merrymoonmary”, who are Blogger designers, but I’ve
customized their designs, thus making my blog unique.
As you know from my answer to the previous question, I
enjoy writing. I’ve written some poetry,
too, by the way.
Other talents…well, I love photography, but would only do
it if I had access to a darkroom, so I could print my own pictures. I don’t, unfortunately…I had a couple of
photography classes in college, and enjoyed them immensely!
When I get around to learning PhotoShop, I’ll be able to
create digital art. I’d love to combine
it with the use of traditional media, such as painting and drawing.
Deirdra: Where is your favorite place to read?
Maria: I guess I would have to say in my husband’s
special recliner, which he needs because he has a bad back. I use it when he goes into the bedroom to
rest out his back. I wish I had a cozy
little corner, but there are none in our apartment.
Deirdra: Do you have a favorite reading snack?
Maria: Actually, no. I can’t read and eat at the same time. I am unable to concentrate on the book if I
do that. When I read, I want to get so immersed
in the book, that I’ll forget everything around me!
Deirdra: What books have made you cry?
Maria: I don’t think I have room here to mention
them all! The thing is, there are two
kinds of crying: “sad crying”, and “happy crying”.
One book that made me cry sad tears was A Tree Grows in
Brooklyn. I loved the book,
though! I couldn’t get through The
Diary of Anne Frank because every other page made me cry. Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities also
comes to mind, as does Tess of the D’Urbervilles, and Crime and
Punishment.. I
couldn’t finish book six of the Harry Potter series because of the death of a
beloved major character…in fact, I haven’t been able to go back and finish the
book, and this was more than a year ago!
I haven’t read the last book, either.
As for happy tears, the first ones that come to mind are
the books of The Twilight Saga. I love,
love, love, love these books!!
Two others that come to mind are Sunshine and Shadow, by Sharon
and Tom Curtis (husband and wife), and Night Magic, by Charlotte Vale
Allen.
Deirdra: What books have made you laugh?
Maria: Hmmm….I’m sure there must be several, but I
can’t think of any at the moment…I’ve heard that Douglas Adams’s The
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is hilarious (as are all of his books),
but I’ve never read it.
Deirdra: What kind of books are you looking to
read next? What is on your reading list?
Maria: Oh, I have so many!! Of course, I intend to keep reading my
favorite genres. As for actual titles,
here are some: Rapture, by Lauren Kate, Dark Kiss, by Michelle
Rowen, Dandelion Wine, by Ray Bradbury, the Mortal Instruments series,
by Cassandra Clare, 2312, by Kim Stanley Robinson, The Shadow of the
Wind, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, The Chronicles of Narnia, by C.S. Lewis,
Jellicoe Road, by Melina Marchetta, Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism,
by Gershom Scholem, Passions of the Mind, by A.S. Byatt, Possession,
also by Byatt, Time, Space, and Knowledge: A New Vision of Reality, by
Tarthang Tulku, and The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church, by
Vladimir Lossky.
Deirdra: Is
there any other message you would like to give the literary community?
Maria: I would simply like to say that books are
the world’s greatest treasures – printed books especially. I would encourage all readers to make every
effort possible to make sure they never become obsolete!
Deirdra, thank you so much for interviewing me! I’ve greatly enjoyed answering your
questions, and hope that you and your readers will also enjoy reading my
answers! Happy Reading To All!!!!
