2016 Love-a-Thon Kickoff and Questionnaire

I had a really great time participating in the Love-a-Thon last year, so I knew I would be carving some time out to join in this year! I am planning on going skiing tomorrow (Sunday) so I’m not sure how much I’ll be around, but I will definitely be giving it my all for as many hours as I can! This year it is hosted by Alexa, Cee, Hazel, and Mel.

For those not familiar with the Love-a-Thon, here’s what was shared on the sign-up post:

The Love-a-Thon is an event dedicated to spreading positivity and love. It’s time dedicated to visiting other bloggers/Instagrammers/BookTubers, leaving a comment or two, making new friends and fostering positivity among the members of our amazing community. As in the previous years, the event will include mini challenges, Twitter chats and giveaways galore!

The first event is a kickoff questionnaire so other participants can get to know you a little better! Here are my answers…

What’s your name?

Lauren! I’m the only blogger here at Bookmark Lit.

Where in the world are you blogging from?

I’m blogging from a small town in Connecticut, USA.

How did you get into blogging in the first place?

I was a HUGE reader in my younger years, all the way until college. During school, I wasn’t able to read nearly as much as I’d hoped, but I kept it going during summer and winter breaks. (Thank you, lunch breaks at my internship!) Anyways, once I graduated from college, I slowly got back into reading instead of binge-watching shows on Netflix. I had always used Goodreads to track my reads, but never really knew that people blogged about books. I had started and abandoned SO many blogs about various topics, but reading was really the one thing I thought I could talk about forever. Everything clicked into place when I read Before I Fall and wanted to discuss it with people/review it. I found a great community after my blog got started, and that’s the origin story!

How did you come up with your blog name?

I googled so many literary puns it’s not even funny. Part of me really wishes I just did something simple with my name and books (I love Alexa’s blog name!), but I settled on Bookmark Lit instead. It’s a pun on the phrase “bookmark it” and “lit” being short for “literature.” I’m not in love with my blog name, but I don’t want to go through the hassle of changing it or rebranding myself!

What genre do you read and review the most on your blog?

While YA is really a target age range instead of a genre, that’s the best way to broadly define the books I read. I read a lot of YA contemporary, but have recently been expanding my horizons. I love fantasy books and am trying to read more of them. I also used to read a lot more “adult” contemporary women’s fiction, so I’ve been getting back into that as well. AND, New Adult is a newer interest of mine, but I don’t read too many of them. (I don’t like a lot of angst!)

What other types of posts do you do on your blog, apart from reviews?

I have various discussion posts about blogging and reading, as well as some original features and guest post opportunities. Inside & Out is a feature where bloggers share their favorite book cover and bookmark. I have Cover Colors, where I use the colors from a book cover that I love and create Polyvore collages and/or quote graphics based on it. I also have Reading Recaps (where I share my recent/current/upcoming reads) and Bookmark Lit Bulletins (monthly recaps).

Best blogging experience so far?

I really enjoyed having the opportunity to go to BEA last year and ALA Midwinter this year. I’m not sure the next conference I’ll be able to attend, but they’re definitely fun! I love seeing everyone, snagging books, and just spending time with people you don’t get to see often.

Favorite thing about the blogging community?

I love being able to talk books with other people! I don’t have a lot of heavy readers in my life. I think it’s so fun to find out about upcoming books and get excited about them too. It’s like there are constant recommendations from people so you never run out of books to read. I could send out a tweet looking for a very specific type of book and have so many responses right off the bat. Everyone is kind, helpful, funny, and nerdy. It’s the best place on the internet!

Name the 5 books you’re most excited for this 2016!

I’m going to stick with books that haven’t been released yet that I’m really excited for:

Name 5 books you want to read this 2016 that you didn’t get to in previous years!

If you’re interested in tackling books you were hoping to read last year but didn’t get to, I have a super casual link-up-style challenge this year to help you out! Here are a few on MY list:

What’s an underrated book or series that you think everyone should read?

I do have an underrated shelf on Goodreads for this exact purpose! The one I seem to recommend the most in this category is The One Thing by Marci Lyn Curtis. I just really, really loved that book and its characters. Totally flew under the radar and I think lots of people would enjoy it! Another underrated book I always recommend is Aspen by Rebekah Crane! Loved it.

Which book boy or girl would be your book BFF?

I have another shelf for this one (MC-be-my-friend)! I love being organized on Goodreads. Anyways, I think of two people right off the bat. Gabby from Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid is someone I REALLY quickly identified with. I would also be best friends with Caymen from The Distance Between Us by Kasie West, because her sarcasm and sass is off the charts. Love.

Which book boy or girl would be your book boyfriend/girlfriend?

Hehehe. I did some valentines for these boys during last year’s Love-a-Thon and have another trusty Goodreads shelf. I always say that my number one is Matt Finch from Open Road Summer by Emery Lord. That hasn’t changed yet. I’ve also recently grown VERY attached to Zach from Firsts by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn. God, he was the best. I already want to reread to see him again.

Who would you recruit for your apocalypse squad (5 characters max)

Oooh, this is tough! I’ve never thought about this before. Here are five people and my reasonings:

→ Katniss from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins because this is self-explanatory
→ Feyre from A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas because she’s badass and resourceful
→ Cammie from the Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter because I feel like having a spy on your team (with plenty of talent getting the bad guys) would be super helpful for me
→ Fowler from Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan because he’s an archer (and brave AF)
→ Everyone from The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer because SORRY I don’t care if it’s cheating, you will never find a better group of people to go to battle with and I LOVE THEM ALL OK?

Apart from reading, what are your other hobbies or interests?

While I do spend most of my time reading, I’ve been trying to get better at balancing my hobbies. I used to love watching Netflix for hours and genuinely MISS doing that. My biggest hobby is football and I hate when the season ends. (GO PANTHERS) I like to collect and built Lego with my boyfriend, as well as travel to conventions (think BEA but for Lego, minus the free stuff). I love going out to eat and shopping, watching movies, and blogging (duh). I also like decorating my planner for the week and have been trying to get craftier. And yes, Netflix is the best ever.

Apart from book shopping, what else do you like shopping for?

Honestly, my shopping has declined a LOT. We go out shopping quite a bit but I hardly ever buy anything. I love Old Navy and find that to be the biggest store where I spend money. I love buying washi tape and stickers on Etsy or at Michael’s. We also visit the Lego Store a lot, too.

At a party, the DJ suddenly changes the song – and it’s your song.
What song would be playing?

This is tough one. I mostly listen to Classic Rock, so it’s highly unlikely that they would pop on Led Zeppelin or Lynyrd Skynyrd. As for actual party-like music that could get put on the stereo, I can’t help but love Take You Down by Chris Brown. I don’t agree with his actions as a person, but damn do I love that song an unhealthy amount. I could also say anything by Lil Wayne, because I still know all the words to countless of his (older) songs. More about my favorite music here!

Pick out either a book you want turned into a film/TV show,
or a film/TV show you want turned into a book.

I loved my TTT topic on this a while back, so I’ll steal one idea from there. I think a Rusk University TV show would actually be very cool, based on the series by Cora Carmack. I said,

“There are plenty of football-related TV shows, like Friday Night Lights, and plenty of college TV shows, like Greek… but I would totally watch a Rusk University series! I think because these are new adult books, it would work pretty well on HBO. I mean, these books are STEAMY and I would definitely want to see that in the show. I could see it being kind of like Greek, where there are multiple “main characters” who start dating each other and hang out in one big friend group. I’m not sure how they would work out the timelines and make sure there isn’t too much going on at once, but this could be a solid TV show.”

What would your dream library look like?

I have a whole post about this! Some of the highlights from that post explain that I want built-in bookshelves around every wall, with one space left to fit a daybed. I’d have bookish decor above the bed or in the shelves, like my Funko Pops, fandom prints, and maps. I want bright colors and a cute floral print comforter on the bed, plus string lights EVERYWHERE. I would love to have a desk and/or comfy chair to sit in as well. I can just picture it now and can’t wait!

Author you want to meet and sit down to tea with?

There are quite a few authors that I could choose for this one, but I think Sarah Dessen would be my number one. Her books are some of the first YA contemporary stories that I read and I will reread them for the rest of my life. I don’t know what I would say (I’d be so nervous!) but I would love it.

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