Interview : The Book Lady's Blog author Rebecca.

In honor of BBAW, I was asked to interview Rebecca from The Book Lady's Blog. I was very honored to do this. The Book Lady is up for "Funniest/Most Humorous Blog". Please swing on by her blog and check it out. She has of course been blogging longer then I have. I do have to say please forgive me for not posting this yesterday the official planned date for these interviews. I have actually been absent from my computer for a good 48 hours due to health issues. For this, I apologize to Rebecca and the readers. I am however figuring out how to make my posts that are ready to go auto post so I can avoid this problem in the future.

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You were married in a Library. How did that come about?

When my husband and I got engaged, we were living in Kansas City--I was in graduate school, and he was working full time, and we didn't have much free time--so we hired a wedding consultant to help us pick a location and vendors and all those wedding details. We looked at several popular wedding sites, but they all seemed kind of generic, and we knew people who had been married in most of them, and we really wanted to do something unique and that felt like us. I checked email one day to discover that our planner found out that the library did special events, so we looked at it, and fell in love with it, and booked it immediately. It was the perfect place for us, and it provided an easy way to create a "theme," which I really needed help with because I was not one of those girls who'd been planning her wedding since she was five.

You're nominated for "Funniest/Most Humorous" blog for the BBAW awards. Which post do you consider your funniest, or have gotten the most reaction from?

I don't think I would have been nominated in that category if not for my Adventures in Bookselling series. For the last several weeks, I've written posts about the crazy customers and weird encounters I have working in a bookstore, and those have gotten a really positive reaction. It's been a blast hearing other people's funny stories in response, as well.

How long have you been blogging and what you got you started?

I've been blogging for about two and a half months. I started on July 1st with a blog called Readerville, and in early August, I moved to this blog because there were trademark issues with the name Readerville that I didn't know about when I set it up. How I got started is kind of a long, winding story. Elizabeth Emerson Hancock had contacted me about doing a book signing of Trespassers Will Be Baptized and I saw a reference to The Literate Housewife on her blog. That led to a trail of other blogs, which I read ravenously for a couple weeks. After I figured out how the whole blogging thing works and how to get connected in the community, I started my own.

What's the craziest thing you think you have posted about?

That's a tough one. I haven't posted about anything I'd consider really crazy, though I'm sure some people might find some of my content or book selections a bit risque. I have a background in psychology and sex therapy, so I occasionally read books that fit into those categories (most recently, Bonk by Mary Roach), and I enjoy discussing them and the related issues. But I do try to stay away from anything offensive or that would alienate readers.

Where or how do you get your post ideas?

Well, book review posts kind of create themselves. I participate in memes on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays, so those posts are also structured for me ahead of time, though I do add in extensions to them when they trigger other ideas. Other posts just come to me randomly--if I hear someone at work say something funny or if I see someone do something weird in public, I'll make a note of it. I just try to be aware of what's going on around me, and then I keep a mental list of what I'd like to write about

How many books do you think you read in a year?

You know, I've never really kept track of this until now. In college, I read a couple books a month (plus books for class), and in the three years since I graduated, my reading has picked up a bit each year. I've been reading a few books a week for the last year or so, so I'd guess I read around 100 per year. When January 1st rolls around, I'll have been blogging and logging my reading for six months, so I guess we can take the six month total and double it for a yearl estimate.

What is your ideal reading set up?

Oooh, good question! Pajamas, a comfy spot on the couch, snuggled next to my hubby and my dog, with a glass of wine or a cup of hot chocolate ready to go. That's the idea, but I'll read pretty much anywhere.

About how many books do you own? What do you do with them when your done?

I've never counted, but I'd say it's several hundred. I like to underline passages and make notes in my books, so I keep them when I'm finished reading, and I often go back to find those passages or re-read the whole book. Underlining turned out to be a very good thing when I wanted to find literary passages for my wedding readings, and it finally got my husband to admit that maybe it's not such a bad thing to write in books. I also share books with my best friends via media mail.

Please name 3 books you could not live without. (Stranded on deserted island)

This is hard, but I'll follow the rules and stick to 3.

1. A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

2. The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell

3. Any one of Toni Morrison's novels. They're all wonderful. Paradise and Beloved are probably my favorites, though.

What other hobbies do you have besides reading?

Entertainment-wise I like to see movies, listen to music, go to concerts, and watch witty TV shows (I *heart* The Office, Entourage, and How I Met Your Mother, amongs many others). I also like to cook and bake, and I LOVE food, so any social gathering that involves good food is always a plus. I love trying new restaurants. I also enjoy going on walks with my hubby and our dog and making up silly song lyrics as we walk. Like everyone else, I enjoy spending time with friends and family members. And I have a deep and profound love for my yoga instructor.

Last but not least. Tell us something that your readers don't know about you.

I have been known to turn on Christina Aguilera's song "Dirrty" and dance around the house in my undies.
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Thank you Rebecca, and good luck on your award category.

You can read The Book Lady's Blog here.