#ThrowItForward Thursday: Book Reviewer Becca from Becca The Bibliophile!

beccaSay THAT three times fast: book reviewer Becca the Bibliophile!

Yes, it’s Thursday! Which means around these here parts, it’s #ThrowItForward Thursday. Who needs pics of me as a kid (though I was a darn cute toddler) when we could be honoring those who honor, help, and promote authors, like romance reviewer Becca The Bibliophile.

Becca was the first major book reviewer to take a chance on A Man of Characterand I shall be forever grateful! (Want to read her review?)

Becca graciously paused in her whirlwind schedule to answer a few questions – so I hope you’ll enjoy getting to know a little bit more about the woman behind the review site.


Bibliophile Logo3What kind of romance do you most enjoy reading, and why?

That’s a really tough question! I love sports romance (hockey, baseball, football, race car drivers) I’m not so sure why LOL. I guess growing up with all girls in the family and my dad had all sisters so he was never really into sports… An athletic man – most are sarcastic and cocky yet can have a tender side, a romantic side once love hits them — I just kinda love that in a hero. And extremely close second is childhood friends that grow up and fall in love. There something about really knowing someone, all their secrets, all their insecurities and yet saying…despite all that…you’re my person. Love that!

For how long have you been reading romance?

I’ve only been reading romance for about 2 1/2 years. I’ve always been an avid reader, but always read classics or thrillers, mysteries. And like everyone else, I kinda fell into romance around the time Fifty Shades of Grey hit it big. I didn’t start with Fifty, though. I got an iPad for Mother’s Day in 2012 and our family was about to take a cross country road trip – 38 hours on the road to California (from Texas). I had no clue what type of books to download and so I went to the free books on iBooks and at the time the #1 downloaded free book was Perfection by R.L. Mathewson. I started reading the book and LOVED it. Funny, romantic, steamy…so by the time we hit San Antonio and lost wi-fi across the prairie… I bought her entire library (7 books at the time) and read all of the them by the time we hit Los Angeles. I was hooked! I asked friends of mine in LA for recommendations and they bought some more books for me… and I was off. Nora Roberts, Sydney Landon, E.L. James – I read the entire two week vacation and all the way back to Texas. As soon as I got home, I found a book club on FB and my whole world was opened up to the Romance world and Indie Authors.

Fountain penWhy did you decide to start a book review blog?

That book club I belonged to, well people started noticing that I read A LOT. Both of my kids were in school and I worked part time, so I had the time to read – and I’m a speed reader and so people started asking for recommendations. I started getting more and more emails heading my way and then I started fan clubs for authors I really loved on FB. So I started one for Raine Miller and The Blackstone Series. Ethan Blackstone was my husband in the alternate universe… I couldn’t get enough of him. I started up a friendship with Raine and she asked me if I ever thought about blogging. I really had no clue what it was and she warned me it was a lot of work…but she thought I would be good at it. So to launch my blog, she gave me the first ever interview with Ethan Blackstone and I had over 2000 hits that first day! And before I knew it… I was a blogger 🙂

What’s been the most fun thing since starting the blog?

For me it’s meeting all the new authors and traveling to signings and meeting other fans like myself. The book world is a magnificent world and there are so many different types of people who share this common passion — which amazes me.

What’s been the most surprising thing since starting your blog?

That people and authors recognize me. Ask for my autograph…That still blows me away.

How many review requests do you receive a month, on average?

At one point I was getting 20-25 requests a day from new authors or authors that I hadn’t read. Now I still get about 10 a day through email and 2 or 3 through my FB blog page. There are so many of you out there and I wish I had the time for everyone!

How many books are you able to read a month?

I average 8 a week so 32 a month. One month while on vacation for three weeks… I read 62 books that month. I easily hit 350 books in a year.

[ML notes: Jaw. Drop.]

Do you want to write romance, or stick to reading it?

I’ve had several people tell me that I should write. I am a storyteller…but I’m not a writer. I grew up moving so much (27 schools by the time I graduated) that I always seemed to miss grammar. LOL. I always had literature…thus my love for reading. I’m just not confident enough in my writing. And I’m ok with that.

Tell us two things about you people don’t know.

1. I play the violin and have since I was 5 years old.

2. I sing and have won several awards and competitions in singing and my dream job would be to sing on Broadway.

What’s one piece of advice you’d give aspiring authors?

old-books-11281939505MsrnWrite for you. Don’t write because you think you’ll be famous and get rich. Don’t write because your fans want you to write this way or that way. Don’t let people bully you into being a writer you’re not. When you start to write for anyone other than yourself…it shows. As long as you are proud of what you did – Own It. You can’t please everyone, but as long as you please yourself, you’ll make it far. Also when reaching out to blogger… Introduce yourself first. Know something about the blogger. Show your passion about your work. I get so many requests and the ones that I respond to the most are those you don’t just send me a “Hey my book’s on sale – can you post that for me?” I don’t even know who you are!! A nice “Hey! I’m so and so and I really appreciate you taking the time to look at my books…if they look like something you would like to read, I would love to talk to you and get on your schedule…..” That goes a LONG WAY!!!

Is there anything you want to talk about that I didn’t ask you?

Well, I could talk all day about a number of subjects!! Thank you for inviting me to hang on your blog! I truly loved A Man of Character and I can’t wait for book 2!

[ML notes: Eliza’s book, A Matter of Time, is coming this late fall!]


Woot! Wasn’t that fun? (I’m still trying to recover from the 350+ books-per-year revelation; I LOVE to read, but sadly these days am ecstatic if I manage 50 a year…). Want to stay in touch with Rebecca? Find her here:

Facebook:
Becca the Bibliophile https://www.facebook.com/beccathebibliophile
     Bibliophile Productions https://www.facebook.com/bibliophileproductions

Twitter: www.twitter.com/becbibliophile

Instagram: www.instagram.com/becbibliohile

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/becbibliophile

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/BeccaTheBibliophile

And of course, on her review site: http://www.beccathebibliophile.com

bibliophile


Thank you SO much for joining us today, Becca!
We wish you the best in all your future endeavors (and maybe a nap after reading all those books),
and look forward to all the reviews to come.
Bless you for being such a supporter of indie authors!