Armchair BEA: The Future of Book Blogging

Good morning, readers!

Today is my final Armchair BEA post. The topic is "The Future of Book Blogging," where I share my thoughts on what makes or breaks a good book blog. The thing is, though, that I don't believe there's one exact formula that works well for everyone. Instead, I'll share with you what I enjoy seeing on book blogs:

• An "About Me" section. Even if it's short. I like to know that I can relate to the blogger, whether it's crafts we have in common, or the types of books we like to read. When bloggers don't have this section, I rarely opt to follow them. I enjoy knowing a little bit about each person I follow. It humanizes their blog for me, and makes it easier for me to comment and feel like it's a friendship (in the blogosphere)
• A list of books read. We all know that I'm not big on YA. I don't follow too many blogs that are solely YA, or more than 40% YA. I use these lists to determine if I want to follow this person--do we have similar tastes in books? Do we like the same authors? Do I trust their recommendations and believe I would appreciate the book as much as they did?
• A rating system. Sometimes, I'm too busy to get through the entire review. So, as a lazy person, I look at their rating. I trust that the bloggers I follow have similar tastes to myself (discovered mostly through the list of books read). Therefore, I believe my rating would likely be plus or minus a point. If someone I'm following rates a book "one star", I likely won't pick it up, based on their explanation. I really do rely on these ratings, and love when people have then, and at least a paragraph as to why the book deserves that rating.
• Non-book posts from time to time. I've found I really appreciate these in some of my fellow bloggers because, again, it humanizes them. I get to know their likes and dislikes, or about their family. Sometimes people will do a non-book post once a week. Other times once a month. Either way, it's a treat. So those of you doing it, please keep it up.

It's not to say that if book blogs don't have these, I don't follow them. I'll be honest with you, there's a handful of YA blogs I follow just because I like the personality of the blogger. Also, it's kind of nice to know a little bit about what's going on in the YA world. Frankly, most of the blogs I follow are because I feel some kind of connection with the blogger based on what I've read of them.

Well, that wraps up my first week of Armchair BEA. I hope you enjoyed it! Leave your comments below so I can swing by your posts as well! Happy Friday! :)

Armchair BEA: Beyond the Blog

Hello again, readers!

Today's Armchair BEA theme is "Beyond the Blog". It can be about anything; writing, other hobbies, the works. Just something maybe beyond what we typically blog about. This is the most challenging post for me, because I use my blog as a reflection of my passions. If I want to talk about crafts, I do; if I want to talk about baking, I do; if I want to talk about wine, I write a post somewhere around my 3rd glass (kidding!). But ultimately, this blog was created to discuss my interests; most of which revolve around books and coffee.

So, you already know about all the crafts I do. And you already know about my mad Puppy Chow making skills. I don't feel like there's much more I can talk about...

...except journaling.

I suppose this is one minor detail I've kept from you all. This blog is somewhat of a journal for me, yet, but I still have my beautiful pink Italian leatherette journal I keep in my desk drawer. So, today, I wanted to just tell a story about my journaling experience and how, ultimately, it lead me to this.

When I was young, I, like every other girl in the 3rd grade, was obsessed with Lisa Frank. Remember her products? Bright colors, lots of pinks and purples? And outrageous prices to boot. My journal looked something like this one. I'm not 100% sure on that, though, because I've left it at my parent's house. All I remember is that it had penguins and a little lock to keep my secrets safe.

I journaled about one to two times a week, roughly. I talked about school, boys, my cats, and whatever else I did in my day-to-day life. Looking back, it's a lame journal. But seeing through the eyes of yourself as a child is pretty priceless.

In middle school, I started going through a little bit of a darker time in my life. Nothing too terrible, I was just in the "trying to find myself" stage. Ultimately, I spent hours and hours with my journal every night. There were so many emotions and thoughts I needed to get on paper and I could never write fast enough to do so. Journaling really got me through all my struggles. Some of those journals still exist today, and I've kept them to reflect on my life. I also hope to someday allow my kids to see them and recognize everyone goes through rough patches. The best part about these journals? I wrote them in gel pens. Oh, yes, I'm definitely a child raised in the 90s...

High school was extremely busy for me, so I didn't journal much. I was out of my weird little stage and didn't feel the need to commit as many thoughts to paper. In my earlier high school years, I did online diary entries. Eventually, MySpace came along, so I wrote my thoughts as blogs (...ah, the beginning...). Before I closed out my MySpace account, I actually copied all of those blogs to a Word document so I could always look back at them. But whenever I was struggling, my physical journal came through for me. After high school, I bought a new journal to college, to start fresh. I wrote so much my freshman year, as I struggled with the typical college issues of roommate disagreements and academic stress. Throughout my four years of college, I was able to use my journals to ground me again. I'd also look back through old journals to see how much I'd overcome--it would give me confidence to get through one more thing.

And today, I still journal from time to time. Not on this blog, of course. Personal thoughts, feelings, and aspirations. I probably only write an entry every 2-3 months. Ultimately, I know my journal has been there for me throughout the years, and will continue to be there for me. I love reflecting back on my journal entries, too, to see how far I've come and how far I have to go.

Are journals totally outdated? Does anyone else keep one, just to have it handy?

Armchair BEA: Networking

Hello again, readers!

This is my third post for Armchair BEA, which continues throughout the week. Today's topic is "Networking". We're supposed to discuss partnerships within the community, book clubs, etc.

I will admit I do not have a local book partnership. To be honest, I've only visited our local bookstore twice before, simply because I have so many of my own books. Likewise with the library. I love and respect libraries, but it seems silly to pick up books from the city library when I have a small library of unread books in my own home!

While I do not belong to any formal book club, my friends frequently approach me looking for book recommendations. I love discussing these novels with them, particularly after they have read the novel. I also network with my mom and her coworkers a fair amount through books. They will read a book, pass it on to her, who will pass it on to me, and I'll give it back upon completion. It's crazy to think that one book will go through so many hands. I frequently visit with my mom about books, as we pass them back and forth like crazy!

Partnership with bookstores and book clubs can be quite the challenge when one travels as much as I do. For that reason, I have sustained from doing so, but I fully intent to join at some point in my life. It's very likely I'll be joining a book club on Goodreads within the next year or so...

Have a happy Wednesday, and I hope to read about your networks as well! :)

Armchair BEA: Giveaway Day!

Happy Tuesday, readers!

It's that time again...

Time for a giveaway!

This week's giveaway is in honor of Armchair BEA. I will be giving away a copy of Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James.

Here's what you need to know:

• Because I'm funding this out of my own pocket, I'm only able to ship to addresses in the USA. Sorry, my international friends!
• You must be a follower of Leah's Literature and Coffee. To follow, please click "follow" on the Google Friend Connect icon on my page.
• This giveaway will close at 11:59 Central Time on Friday, June 8th.

CLICK HERE TO ENTER TO WIN

Thanks for your interest; Good Luck!

Armchair BEA: Introductions First!

Welcome, visitors, to my blog!

This is the first post to kick-start Armchair BEA. I'm excited!!!

The topic for this post is an introduction. On Armchair BEA's website, they have listed 10 questions for book bloggers like myself to look at as an interview. Fortunately, we are only asked to choose 5 of those questions to answer, then hop around to other sites participating in Armchair BEA.

Here are the questions (with answers) I chose:

• Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging?
• I'm Leah (I think that's obvious from my blog's title). I work at a college in North Dakota and LOVE my job. I began blogging in October 2010. My job requires me to travel frequently, so I found myself feeling the need for an outlet of some kind. I lived alone at the time, so I would travel, work, and be at home alone. Blogging allowed me an outlet to not only share my passion with others, but also to give me a sense of responsibility and personal satisfaction.
• What is your favorite feature on your blog (i.e. author interviews, memes, something specific to your blog)?
• Something I have started on my blog and am LOVING is my "highlights" feature. At the end of every month, I recap what I did during the past month--which books I read, if I did any crafts, travel, etc. I also look at what the future has for me on the horizon.
• If you could eat dinner with any author or character, who would it be and why?
• Hands-down, it would be John Steinbeck. How was he able to capture the inspiration and so eloquently put it into words? He has been my literary hero for ages.
• What literary location would you most like to visit? Why?
• That's a tie between Stephen King's house and Shakespeare's house. Either way, I would hope for their talent to rub off on me. 
• What is your favorite part about the book blogging community? Is there anything that you would like to see change in the coming years?
• I love that it's so connected. I just recently joined Twitter, too, and am now seeing this literary world I never knew existed.
  As far as the future, I would love to see more non-YA bloggers like myself. Sometimes I feel a little alone, as though I'm the only adult who doesn't have 60% or more of their blog dedicated to YA novels. It would be nice for me to be able to follow more blogs without the YA focus.

Well, readers, that's what I've got for today's theme. Tune in tomorrow for the opening of my giveaway for Fifty Shades of Grey. The giveaway will close on Friday, June 8th.

Happy reading! :)