The One Thing That Successful Authors Never Do

It has recently come to my attention that there is something crucial that most if not ALL successful authors do.

They don’t read reviews of their books

I know. Bummer.

And here I am three years later thinking how all the reviews written on this blog and on Goodreads were left unread by all my fav authors

But why?

It’s simple. They do it for their peace of mind.

I mean you tell yourself I’m going to read so and so many reviews to see how my book is doing. But one mean word about your book baby and you’re left shattered

Books are hard work. They don’t just take time and commitment, authors are sending out a piece of themselves. Sometimes people talk about things in their books that they have NEVER dealt with before.

To have that tossed around like an English Literature project must be hard to come to terms with.

I mean as a successful authors who knows they’re successful, why would you need to care what people think anyway. Bottom line is people either liked it or they didn’t. The evolving nature of our society means that people will move on to the next best thing anyway

Of course there are authors who do read reviews, but for the most part, I think the successful ones prefer to live in shadows

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The Harsh Truth About Blogging That No One Ever Tells You

Blogging is hard

Now I’m sure you’ve heard that from every content creator out there but trust me blogging is hard.

There are periods where you’ll be bursting with ideas and your content will be on its A-game. You’ll express a rush and a high like no other.

And then one day, you’ll sit down at your laptop and the words just won’t come.

This darker period could last weeks or months and there is nothing you can do about it.

You dnn’t like the content you’re generating, you don’t like your stats but don’t wanna do anything to change it.

I call it being stuck in a rut.

Above everything else, there are so many distractions pulling you from blogging. Social media, other people’s blogs, school, friends, life.

Soon enough your blog goes neglected for months on end and the next thing you know it is harder than ever to come back.

There comes a point when you just run out of ideas. I’ve been doing this thing for three years and I’m wearing thin. There’s only so many book reviews you can write in your lifetime.

I crave that period when I’m on top of my blogging world.

My Favourite Bookstagrams

Among other things taking aesthetically pleasing photos of books is an art in itself. I compiled a list of my favourite book dedicated Instagram accounts so we can sit here and marvel together!

First up is Cait from Paper Futy 

I mean just look at the beautiful flower theme and just ahh like goals. Absolute goals. 

Next up is the loonytuney Insta which is glorious in all its pastel and rainbow glory 

I just love people who can stick to an Instagram theme. Monochrome is always a winner so this one goes to sammy!

Can’t go wrong with a couple of fairy lights. Kori’s Instagram looks just delightful and magical 

Ahh look how cute and colourful! It’s bright and fun and fresh. Love 

Give a follow to all the people mentioned in this post and I hope they don’t mind me sharing their creations! 

If you’d like to please follow me on Instagram as well @infinity.reads 

If You Like This…You’ll Also Like This

So who doesn’t like book recommendations. Especially around this time of the year when we’re all trying to better ourselves and broaden our horizons. So here goes

If you like….

You will also like…

Both books filled with these sweet love stories that encompass mental health issues and body image and growing up. It’s almost a given that if you’ve read one you’ll read the other

If you like….

You will also like..

If you love a good contemporary read, these two books are your go to! One takes you around Paris and its romance while the other has its own charm with high school romances and yummy recipes.

If you like…

You will also like…

Illumnae is heavily focused on science-fiction and takes place outside of Earth yet it’s got humour and philosophy, which is where it is similar to WALU. We All Looked Up goes behind the philosophical meaning of existence as an asteroid prepares to destroy Earth.

I hope you found some good reading suggestions in this post. Don’t worry, I hope to do many more in the future because who doesn’t love book recommendations?

How To Start A Blog

With the new year do you feel the itch to start a new journey? Have you always thought about starting a blog but never got around to it or never had the right direction? Well this post is dedicated to all the newbies out there.

A step-by-step guide on starting your own blog from a rather experienced blogger.

Step #1: Choose a passion 

Before you get down to the technicalities, it’s important to first know exactly WHAT you would like to blog about.

Have you always loved reading? start a book blog

Like putting together outfits? start a fashion blog

Does taking photos interest you? start a photography blog

Whatever path you choose, make sure it’s something you’re highly passionate about because blogging is a commitment and it’s going to show if you don’t absolutely love what you’re writing about.

Step #2: Choose a platform

Nowadays you’ve got the option of starting your blog from wherever the heck you want. There’s Squarespace. WordPress, Blogger.

Of course I work from WordPress and as someone who isn’t tech-savvy I’ve found it pretty easy to handle. But make sure you do your research

Step #3: Choose a name

I cannot stress the importance of choosing a catchy blog title. It is the first thing people will see and the first thing they’ll remember. It is your identity.

As more people start blogging, it means there are fewer names for you to choose from. Just let your creativity wander and the right name will come to you.

Step #4: Choose a theme

Speaking of my experience with WordPress, there is an abundance of free themes to choose from. These have colour schemes and different fonts you can choose from. Of course if you wanna go the extra mile you can buy a paid theme.

But trust me, you’re gonna change your theme. If not often then at least twice in your blogging career.

Step #5: Start Writing!

So, you have your platform. You have your name. You have your theme and you have your passion. Now it’s time to channel that passion out into the world. Show them what you’ve got. Follow my tips on how to write a kick-ass blog post.

Starting out a blog can be daunting and it can feel like you’re not reaping any rewards but here are some life lessons I’ve learnt from blogging, which shows you that it really is worth it in the end.

2017 | The Year of Positivity

Happy New Year fellow reader!

A new year brings about a new chance to set new goals and reflect on what you can do better this time around.

2016 was not pleasant, reading wise, I mean I passed high school with flying colours and made a ton of lovely memories but that meant I had to sacrifice this part of my life. This year, by no means, is going to be a small year. However, I’d like to promise myself and promise YOU that I’ll be more consistent with blogging.

Will I take breaks? Yes, when the time calls.

Will there be periods that I’m unable to get a post up? Yes .

But I promise I will try my level best to put up quality posts.

This year I would really love to not just blog about books but also topics that I really care about. These might include world crisis or how the rise of social media means we’re getting dumber every year.

Most importantly, I’d like to walk into 2917 with the attitude that no matter what life throws at me, I will always hold onto being positive and having hope that things will work out. I’d like it if you walked with me on this journey into making 2017 the best year of our lives.

10 Things I Love About Magnus Chase And The Hammer Of Thor

The second installment in the Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard series by Rick Riordan was even better than the first one. I came up with ten reasons as to why this book and series is a must read for all young adults out there.

It addresses sexuality

When a gender fluid character was introduced in the novel I absolutely loved it. This is the first YA novel I’ve read which openly discusses gender fluidity and the stereotypes associated with that. What is even more incredible is that Magnus, our protagonist, is attracted to this said person which goes to show that you can love whoever you want to love.

It addresses religion

This was also one of the first novels which openly discusses Islam and its practices. The novel just helps to open people’s minds and I think that that is important in today’s society.

It’s adventurous

Moving on from the heavy topics. The novel is FUN. You get to visit all these different worlds and the characters always get themselves into these weird scenarios which have such creative solutions.

It has diversity

This novel and I believe all of Rick Riordan’s novels introduce the reader to such a large group of diverse people. We have social outcasts, smart people, homeless people, criminals, fashionistas, you name it.

It addressees homelessness

At the begin of the series Magnus is a homeless guy which means that for the rest of the series we hear a lot about Magnus’ experience being homeless and what it feels like. Given that Rick Riordan has a younger dynamic to cater to, I believe it’s important children are bought up learning about the topic of homelessness.

It’s educational

Not only are the readers learning all these life lessons. We also get to learn sign language because one of the characters is deaf and of course we learn about Norse Mythology

It’s emotional

Not going to elaborate on this one because feels

It’s funny

As with all of Rick Riordan’s novels, this one is peppered with dad humour and funky jokes that make it quite entertaining

It’s captivating

I found it very hard to pull myself away from reading and doing something else because every chapter had me turning the pages.

It ends on a cliff hanger

As usual. But this is an exciting cliff hanger because Magnus is about to meet one of my favourite characters in the next installment!

Where Is All This Going?

Recently I’ve been thinking a lot about the future of this blog.

Now that I have a lot of time on my hands I’m able to post more often and in an ideal situation I would be buzzing with post ideas and new creations. However, something has been lacking lately. I’ve always been the kind of person that works on creating genuine connections rather than focusing on the numbers. But it gets hard sometimes.

This blog has been static for the majority of the year and that’s because school took priority for me. I now wonder if that will be the case next year as university and finally my career takes priority. It’s just really hard to rise above that feeling of being stuck, with post ideas and inspiration, just being stuck.

I mean there are only so many book reviews a person can write or only so many cover to covers I can do. I’ve always been the sort of person who likes being challenged and whenever things start to get repetitive I take off. I mean do you guys even like the stuff I do here?

When you think about it, less and less people are starting to read these days. We just wanna lay on our beanbags and watch Youtube right?

I’m sorry I guess I’m just a little frustrated. I’ll see you tomorrow.

Book Review | PS I Still Love You

Jenny Han’s sequel to To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before takes you on an equally thrilling journey involving boys, baking and a whole lot of emotions.

The story centers around Lara Jean and her relationship with her new boyfriend Peter. I admired that the novel addressed cyber bullying and the effects it has on a personal level but also the effect it has on the community. When it comes to emotions, Jenny Han is the Queen, oftentimes I found myself sighing at just how accurately she described adolescent love from a male and female perspective.

The novel does not get weighed down by the emotions in it though. Han finds an admirable balance by involving baking (I might try one of her recipes on here oo), fashion and Lara Jean’s relationship with her sisters. She also focuses on some heavier topics of single parenting and growing up without a mother. The novel is a healthy blend of all things life.

Something I haven’t come across often in young adult novels is elderly people. Especially elderly people having a perspective or any say in the novel. This novel depicted young love from the perspective of the elderly who are long past it yet they still yearn for their days. It added quite a unique element to the novel. Sometimes the elderly need a little spotlight too.

From caramel cakes to dreamy boys and retirement homes, Jenny Han writes a light yet thought provoking novel that is perfect to read any time of the year.

Rating

Cover to Cover | The Little Paris Bookshop

Today I am going to do something I have never done before.

A cover to cover on a book I have not read and know very little about. The gist of the novel is that a bookseller sets off on an adventure in the south of France to find the love of his life. It sounds romantic and deep and it has France in it. Also the covers are gorgeous

The English Edition

This cover was the first thing that made me so keen and curious about this book. It’s so vintage and almost like from another time. I love it

The other English Edition

Now this cover seems to make a statement. I love how the blue just pops put of the colour scheme. It also has an old school feel to it. Almost like these novels I used to read in middle school. This cover would look great on a hardcover edition.

The German Edition

I love the subtlety of this cover. It reminds me of a wedding colour palette. Lavenders are of course amazing and the textures happening on the cover also appeal to moi.

The Croatian Edition

I love this cover! I love the magic happening around the words. I love how the picture of Paris looks like it came out of a movie. So vintage again ah.

The French edition

When you think about it there isn’t much happening on this cover. But I wanted to include it for the sake of it being French.

The Bulgarian edition

I really like this cover. Again. the storybook kind of feel and the colours are great.

Which one is your favourite?