Tuesday, June 7, 2016

Ten Reasons Jamie Loves The Online Book Community


For future Top Ten Tuesday topics & info on how to participate, click here!
This week's topic: Ten Reasons I Love X -- could be a certain book, character, author, your indie bookstore, a fandom, a tv show, reading, a hobby, a genre. Honestly anything you want to gush about. 

6 years ago this month, these fabulous ladies and I started planning this blog and what we wanted to do with it. While our blog anniversary isn't until the end of the month when we actually debuted the blog, today I just want to spread some love and talk about why I love the online book community so much in honor of 6 years in this great community!


1. You will never run out of things to read -- seriously being around you people makes my TBR grow exponentially! It's kind of ridiculously how many books I've added because of this community over the past 6 years.

2. When you NEED to talk about a book or some bookish problem, there is ALWAYS someone available for you: The best thing about being friends with people online is that people are from ALLLL AROUND THE WORLD. So like when I finish a show that breaks my heart into a million pieces or a book that I just HAVE to rave about -- there is always someone there for me. Like that time I watched Dance Academy and got to THAT PART at 2am and thank the lord because so many of my friends across the pond were there for me!!

3. Along with that, having friends around the world pretty much means every time I travel I PROBABLY have a friend I can visit wherever I go:  It was so nice last month when my husband and I were in London because I got to meet up with some London bloggers I adore!  FRIENDLY FACES ALL OVER THE WORLD.
  
4. Everyone is so generous and wonderful -- I see the generosity of this community constantly -- sharing books, giving advice, authors taking time to chat with fans or give encouragement about writing, rallying together around people, raising money for important causes or for our friends in the community! It's such an amazing community.

5. It's so easy to meet friends or make really great connections because of the way books are so personal: What I mean is that I find the nature of talking about books a pretty personal thing because every reader brings their own life and experiences into it and I LOVE how this easily opens us up to connecting with people just by talking how we relate to something in a book or by gushing about our favorite characters or thinking critically through a book together.

6. Creativity abounds: I've been in this community for 6 years and I am ALWAYS so impressed by the creativity in this community.

7. We are made up of passionate readers: WHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD CAN YOU FIND MORE PASSIONATE PEOPLE WHO LIKE TO TALK IN ALL CAPS ABOUT BOOKS????? The bookish online community is unparalleled LETS BE REAL. I'm so proud of this community for being so passionate about reading and literacy and connecting people with books they love. I've seen that passion do many things for the publishing industry and for readers. I'm seriously so proud of what our passion has accomplished and how we champion books and authors we love and use that passion also for better representation and to fight some of the broken things in publishing. This community CARES SO MUCH about books and readers and authors and just publishing as a whole and pour soooo much time and energy into it.

8. There's so much to learn from it: I don't think I have ever learned so much from any other community I've been apart of. When I started this journey of blogging back in 2010 I wasn't aware of sooo many of the things the bookish online community has taught me. I thought feminism was stupid and in these years I learned what feminism really is and am proud to be a feminist. I didn't know much about sexism. I really didn't know about many of the racism issues that happen or the daily microaggressions I've now seen people I care about have to deal with. I didn't realize diverse representation was a problem. I really didn't know much about the LGBTQIA+ community. THERE WERE SO MANY THINGS I JUST DIDN'T KNOW. And it was humbling because I realize how many things I've said were just SO WRONG in my life because I JUST DIDN'T KNOW -- slurs and sexist thoughts and so many other things that I never knew were harmful which is something I would have never wanted to do. I'm happy to learn and do better. This community has taught me SO many things and I get to learn from such a diverse group of people.

9. I am able to get personalized book recommendations: I mean, I can't walk into many places and have someone be like JAMIE JAMIE JAMIE this book is for you. But the online book community doesn't hesitate to let me know if they think I would love a book because they KNOW me or what kinds of books I like. Or when I am looking for something super specific I can shout it out on my blog or Twitter and people rush in with very specific recs to my very specific reading needs. IN AN INSTANT.

10. Because y'all make me feel like I belong: seriously, this community has been a lifesaver for me in SO many ways over the past 6 years. It would take me forever to explain why. What I do want to say is that this community made me feel like I found my people and gave me the courage to BE the person I am rather than the person I was putting on. I embraced things I loved that I previously hid. I just really grew into my own because of this community -- because I felt like I was heard, understood and that I could be so ridiculously open in a way that I couldn't with a lot of people in my life. I was more myself HERE then I was IRL.  All of this really translated into my IRL life through the years and I finally felt like I knew who I was and I was happy with it.

SO...I love all you online book people whether you blog or vlog or take pictures of books or tweet or WHATEVER YOU DO. If we've connected over books....I HEART YOUR FACE.




Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly link-up in the community where we provide a prompt and other lovers of listmaking join in on it with their own top ten list. Feel free to have less than 10 or more if you need to at times and put a spin on the topic if you need to! Just please link back to us if you are participating :)

To join, link up below with the URL to your blog POST (not your blog), your name and your email (which will remain hidden). Then bounce around the Linky!

 Taylor @ Stay on the Page   Shayna @ The Bibliotaph   Tasha @ The Bookie Monsters  
 Bonnie @ A Backwards Story   Bekah @ Will Bake for Books   Eve @ Functioning Insanity Reviews  
 Kate @ Parchment Girl   The Literary Counsellor   Andi @ Andi's ABCs  
 Sarah @ Scheherazade Reads   Stephanie @ My Bookish Itinerary   Jim @ YA Yeah Yeah  
 Reg @ She Latitude   Michelle @ Pink Polka Dot Books   Bruna @ Bruna Writes  
 Dana @ DanaSquare   Tom @ Reading Nook Reviews   Annemieke @ A Dance with Books  
 Becca @ The Bookkeeper's Apprentice   Katey @ Read, Write, Design   Hannah @ Broc's Bookcase  
 Alexandria @ Heart Full of Elves   Emily @ Infinite Lives, Infinite Stories   Christine @ BookishlyB  
 Brandy @ Random Musings of a Bibliophile   C @ Thoughts From Libraries   Alison @Hardcovers & Heroines  
 Emma @ The Testy Badger   Islandgeekgirl @ Overflowing Bookshelves   Brandi @ Brandi Janee's Bookshelf  
 Becksa @ Ranty Runt of a Reader   Wendy (Literary Feline) @ Musings of a Bookish Kitty   Girl with her Head in a Book  
 Alyce @ Everything Alyce   Bonnie @ For the Love of Words   Jessica @ Peace Love Books  
 Diana @ Voices in my Head   Amelia @ Keep Your Feet   Tasheena @ Dear Reader  
 Mia- Top Ten Oldies But Goodies!   Megan Easley-Walsh   Cait @ Paper Fury  
 Jamie @ Watch Game Read   Liv @ Curlyhairbibliophile   Evie @ Just Another Belle  
 Tanya @ Girl Plus Books   Find Me at the Library   Jennifer @ YA Book Nerd  
 Courtney @ Incessant Bookworm   Aj @ Read All The Things!   Shelf Worn Books  
 Abbi@Christian Novels   Megz @ Barefoot Whispers   Meggan @ Between The Pages  
 Aubrey @ Aubrey's Book Nook   Kelsey @ librasaurus   Liza @ Quite the Novel Idea  
 Lisa @ Captivated Reader   Kayla @ Sunday Morning Coffee   Deb Nance at Readerbuzz  
 Curious Daisy   Carrie @ Reading Is My SuperPower   Rissi @ Finding Wonderland  
 megan @ love literature art and reason   Kyra Morris   Pretty Deadly Reviews  
 Amy @ Amy's Bookish Life   Jessica @ a GREAT read   Serenity @ Book Charmers  
 Lauren @ Always Me   Anushka @ Going Through Books   Jen @ Decorate The Soul  
 Sarah @ Exploring All Genres   Lynn Williams   Alyssa @ Book Club Babe  
 Austine @ NovelKnight   Kati   Brittany @ Beauty and the Bean Boots  
 Jenna @ Fictional Neverland   Ara @ Open Pages   Nicole @ Reading Books With Coffee  
 Esther @ Chapter Adventures   Cora @ Tea Party Princess   Sonia @ The Book Wielding Harpie  
 Kristin @ Lukten av Trykksverte   legolegislegimus   Maggie @ The Novel Orange  
 Giovanna @ BookComa   Sarah's Book Shelves   Trish @ Love, Laughter, Insanity  
 Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies   Emily @ Midwestern Book Nerd   Maybe Books Will Be Our Always  
 Arwen@ I Love A Good Book   What Aimee Read Next   Cassi @ My Thoughts Literally  
 Keanna @KeyReadThat   jessicabookworm   Jenna @ Reading with Jenna  
 Sara @ A Gingerly Review   Heather @ Based on a True Story   Deborah @ The Road of a Writer  
 Ellen @ The Canon   Sandy @ Somewhere Only We Know   Amy @ Read What I Like  
 Puput @ Unboxing My Thoughts   Stephanie @ Adventures of a Bibliophile   Beth @ Betwixt the Pages  
 Amber @ YA Indulgences   Emma   Laura & Jen @ Reads We Review  
 Tracy @ Cornerfolds   Bri @ Transported By Books   Kerr and Rachel @ Paein and Ms4Tunes' book blog  
 Jacquie @ Rattle the Stars   Marie @ Drizzle & Hurricane Books   La La in the Library  
 Zahra @ To the Bookstore and Back   Bobbie @ A Page to Turn   Mishma @ Chasing Faerytales  
 Emma @ Awkwordly Emma   Amanda   Rivalie @ Forever Obsession  
 Katrina @ Kaleidoscope of Books   Jordon @ Simply Adrift   Mari @ Story and Somnomancy  
 Amy   Anna @Adventures with a Book Nerd   Lindsey @ Bring My Books  
 Mariela & Allyson   Vanessa @ Cross My Heart and Hope to Read   Ricki and Kellee @ Unleashing Readers  
 Sue @ Crushingcinders   Rachel @ Go Read A Book   Majoring in Literature  
 Jen @ Book Lovers Alliance   Bettina @ sweesomastic.de   Analee @ Book Snacks  
 Got My Book   Elien @ So Bookalicious   Savannah @ ReadingBifrost  
 Kristi @ Hidden Staircase   Valerie @ He Said Books or Me   Sydney @ Singing Librarian Books  
 Bri @ Paperback Bri   Aimal @ Bookshelves & Paperbacks   Akilah @ The Englishist  
 Cindy @ Oodles of Books   Jen @ Star-Crossed Book Blog   Rachel Troyer @ Obsessed With Fairy Tales  
 Rachael @ A Little Bit of Literature   Aria @ Stuck in Wonderland   Becky & Angharad @ Two Book Thieves  
 Marie's Reads   Erica @ Novel Ink   Cassie @ Rants and Raves of a Bibliophile  
 Miranda @ A Real Writer's Life   Jaime @ Two Chicks on Books   Lindsay @ Lindsay's Library  
 Amy @ Every Book You Need to Read and More   Holly @ Nut Free Nerd   Caroline @ Stardust Words  
 Gillian @ Writer of Wrongs   Diana @ Little Miss Drama Queen   Kirstie @ Upside-Down Books  
 Stefani @ Caught Read Handed   Amy @ Book Babbles and Blues   Chrissi Reads  
 Nori @ readwritelove28   Shon @ Tangled 'N' Books   Lefty @ The Left-Handed Book Lover  
 Candace&Kattie@LiteraryDust   Mandy @ The Reading Diaries   Deanna @ A Novel Glimpse  
 Yasmine @ Swissbookworm   Lisa & Becca @ Lost in Lit   Lori @ Palmer's Page Turners  
 Jade @ BookMuffin   Tiara @ The BiblioSanctum   Lindsey @ Lindsey Reads  
 Milka@ReadReadRead   Jessica @ A Cocoon of Books   Amanda @ Cover2CoverMom  
 Lois @ My Midnight Musing   Elisabeth @ The Dirigible Plum   Brianna and Angelina @Fables Library  
 Mikayla @ Mikayla's Bookshelf   Rachael @ Parawl Perwyl   Katherine @ I Wish I Lived in a Library  
 Ashley   There will be books   Dashie  
 Alba in Bookland   Alice@ The Geeky Burrow   Katrina @ Chased By My Imagination  
 Sheri @ Read in a Flash!   Alicia @ A Kernel of Nonsense   Lauren @ My Expanding Bookshelf  
 BookSophisticate   Ashley @ What's She Reading?   Stephanie@Don't be Afraid of the Dork  
 Martha @ I'd Rather Be Reading   Alice @ A Readers Fiction   Kelsey @ kelseyempfield  
 Camila   Kourtni @ Kourtni Reads   Kate @ Fangs and Fur  
 Mallory at Story at a Time   Kendra @ Reads and treats   Jennifer @ Feminist Fairy Tale Reviews  
 Helle @ Bookish Utopia   Lisa @ Loca For Language   Dawn @ Dawn's Dreams  
 Amanda @ Good In The Stacks   Maggie@ Never Done It That Way Before   imyril @ there's always room for one more...  
 Gabby @ 500 Books   Olivia @ Rainbow of Books   Ronyell @ Rabbit Ears Book Blog  
 Kathy @ Kathy Reads Fiction   Chelsea @ Books for Thought   Kristine @ The Writer's Inkwell  
 JJ@bookloversblog   Jess @ Such a Novel Idea   Amy @ Pages of Starlight  
 Marianne @ Let's Read   Rachel Patrick   Aliaa @ Mademoiselle Le Sphinx  
 Elena @ ElenaSquareEyes   Grace @ Rebel Mommy Book Blog   Jocelyn @ 52 Letters in the Alphabet  
 Charlie @ A Books Eternal Glory   stacey@books,dreams,life   Selah @ A Bibliophile's Style  
 Aly @ Of Wonderland   Quinn @ Quinn's Book Nook   Debbie Rodgers @Exurbanis  
 Miriam Michelle Gonzalez   Jen E @ critic and fangirl   Sam @ Suicide By Books  
 Joseph @ thoughts and afterthoughts   Julie @ Keep Calm With Books and Coffee   Lynn @ Smoke & Mirrors  
 Lillian @ Mom with a Reading Problem   Sam Whitehouse   Kelly F. Barr  
 Beckie B.   Kat @ A Myriad of Books   Tanaya @prettypagesblog  
 Ely & Michelle @ Tea & Titles   Marie @ Pages to Explore   Ayla @ Books & Babbles  
 AngelErin @ Angel Erin's Book Obsession   Camryn @ The Writing Crafter   Jackie  
 Barb (boxermommyreads) @ Booker T's Farm   Jess @ Little Book Heaven   Estefani @ FICTION JUNGLE  
 Lenoreo & Curly Carla @ Celebrity Readers   Ara | The Bookish Agenda   Courtney @ The Green Mockingbird  
 Charnell @ Reviews from a Bookworm   Marcilia @ The Plot Bunny   Kate @ Mom's Radius  
 Heather @ Feminism in Cold Storage   Ashley @ Running While Reading  

(Cannot add links: Registration/trial expired)



19 comments:

  1. Great topic, Jamie! Love it. :)

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  2. OMG YES to pretty much all of this for sure. I ended up picking something similar (book events) but yeah so much fun and many of the ideas cross over. I love the bookish community!

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  3. An apt topic to pick with your six years drawing in. I really love all the reasons you've shared in your list, and in many ways you've summed up the bookish community so perfectly.

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  4. I love all of these! And I especially agree with point 8, I'm still fairly new to the online book community but I've learned so much already! About genres, tropes, (under)representation etc.

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  5. This is a great list Jamie! I agree especially that there is so much to learn! I've only been doing this a couple of year and every day I feel like I learn something new! Love it!

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  6. Yes to all these!!! Wonderfully said!

    Here's my Tuesday Post

    Have a GREAT day!

    Old Follower :)

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  7. Aw that's so sweet but SO true!! I love that there's always someone online to talk to - it makes the book community feel like an entire new universe of AWESOMENESS. And omg, my TBR, the question do I thank or scowl at the community for making it so large!?

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  8. Here! Here! and Amen!

    http://readerbuzz.blogspot.com/2016/06/i-love-authors-and-you-should-too.html

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  9. Great list! The bookish community is the best!

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  10. I just had to add my Ten Reasons I Love Classic Literature
    and I really enjoyed reading your reasons for loving the blog and also some of the others. As always, such a great way of thinking about our reading.

    Marianne from
    Let's Read

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  11. Fantastic list!! I love the bookish community and I have learned a lot from being a part of it as well, :D

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  12. Great topic :) There are so many reasons I'm glad I joined the book community and talking about books is one of them!
    My TTT

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  13. Here comes my answer! My blog i originally in swedish but you can easily translate it into english or whichever language you'd prefer :) http://tickmick.blogspot.com/2016/06/top-ten-tuesday-vecka-23.html

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  14. Lovely list! These are some of the reasons I've decided to join in. :)

    C @ thoughtsfromlibraries.blogspot.com

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  15. I totally agree with #8! It's amazing how much I've learned from the book blogging community. I've picked up so many more diverse books and been exposed to lots of topics and issues I never thought about before. I'd like to think the online book community has contributed to me becoming a better person!

    My TTT

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  16. For anyone in the bookish community who loves Liane Moriarty please check out the #ReadSavannah event that is coming up in Sept. at www.shereads.org (may need to scroll down to find it but it's there!). This one-day event will feature a moveable feast, lots of authors, with the final headliner being Liane. It's sure to bring the book community out in force and we'd love to see you there!

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  17. Yeeeeessssss to all of this! The bookish community is so incredibly amazing for so many reasons!
    -Amy

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