Nenia Campbell's Blog, page 13
April 2, 2022
BATTER MY FREEBIE 4/3 ONLY
Hi all!
To celebrate my newest book getting almost 50 ratings in less than a month, I'm making Batter My Heart free for ONE DAY ONLY.
You can check out a list of TWs in my Goodreads review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Grab a copy here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09...
Here's a list of tropes and themes:
◼️ bullying
◼️ beachy gothic vibes
◼️ sexual sadism
◼️ academic/intellectual hero
◼️ tortured hero
◼️ mental illness
◼️ secret societies
◼️ family secrets
◼️ privilege
◼️ medieval studies
◼️ heroine is a romance blogger
To celebrate my newest book getting almost 50 ratings in less than a month, I'm making Batter My Heart free for ONE DAY ONLY.
You can check out a list of TWs in my Goodreads review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Grab a copy here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09...
Here's a list of tropes and themes:
◼️ bullying
◼️ beachy gothic vibes
◼️ sexual sadism
◼️ academic/intellectual hero
◼️ tortured hero
◼️ mental illness
◼️ secret societies
◼️ family secrets
◼️ privilege
◼️ medieval studies
◼️ heroine is a romance blogger
March 24, 2022
My Top Five Favorite Books (That I Wrote)
Like all writers, I have a love-hate relationship with my work. I have written some books that I would probably love even if they were written by someone else, and I have some books that I wish I had done a little differently.
Here are my top five favorite books that I have written!
5. Through a Glass, Darkly. I have written about vampires before but I really wanted to write a dark and brooding vampire story that dealt with things like existentialism and death anxiety; I used to write a lot of vampire stories when I was younger but they were more straightforward horror novels (although when I was fourteen, I did write a pretty fucked up one that will NEVER see the light of day, although one of the characters in it was the foundation for the villain in my Shadow Thane series). I wrote this story in just under three months when I was really depressed and I think it helped me confront a lot of the feelings I was dealing with at the time. It's very loosely based off an RH storyline that I also wrote when I was fourteen but I'm actually not super into RH anymore so I ended up making it about two separate "love" interests, and the bad guy became a Scottish vampire instead of a fire demon. Yolo.
4. Wishing Stars: Space Opera Fairytales. This is the book of mine that even most of my readers haven't read which makes me sad, because I really like it. I wrote this one in just a couple months, too. It's pretty short, and it's basically a collection of short stories that are all space opera retellings of popular fairytales, with some of my fairytale-inspired poems included in the back (some of which I wrote as a teenager). Those That Struggle Always Drown is probably my favorite poem that I've ever written and it is included in this collection.
3. Star Crossed. This is book #4 in my series and it took me about a year to write after about three years of staring at the twenty pages I had written when I was in my early twenties and crying. I'm honestly so happy with how it came out and a huge part of that is because it kind of ended up becoming a struggle that I felt like I overcame in a really good way. I also just love the characters. Who doesn't love a psychic witch prince who enjoys melting people's arms off and is a bit psychotically obsessed with his love interest? Ikr.
2. Escape. It's another book #4! This one took me like seven years to write. SEVEN YEARS. I feel so bad but also... you would not have wanted what I had in store seven years ago, conceptually. I originally wanted to take the book in a completely different direction and had written like twenty pages (again) only to hate them all, scrap everything, and go in a completely new direction. Which just goes to show that sometimes you have to murder your darlings LOL. (In this case... maybe literally. Gavin is a psycho.) I'm honestly so happy with how this series ended though. The wild and crazy ending was definitely inspired by some of the old skool bodice rippers/gothics I have read and enjoyed. Which brings me to...
1. Quid Pro Quo. I had so much fun writing this book. Originally, this was going to be a reverse age-gap student/teacher romance but I couldn't bring myself to write that. So I made them stepsiblings instead. (Yay?) The hero is also probably my favorite hero... in the sense that he's one of the few who probably wouldn't kill you just as soon as look at you. Even if he, you know, is a little psychotic. Batter My Heart is set in the same universe as this one and it made me happy to give these characters a cameo in it because I didn't feel like giving them a sequel but also wanted to include a nice send-off. After all the hell I put them through, it felt like they deserved it.
But oh no, Untitled mafia romance might be coming for Nicholas's wig. I actually like the hero of this one a LOT... and I don't want to say too much about this book yet, but I can't wait for you to meet him and his woman. :)
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this behind the scenes about my work! My mom, in a recent well-meaning nag, said that I need to promote myself more and I really hate doing that (talking about other people's books and why you should buy them is so much easier), but I do like blogging, so I thought if I wrote a blog-style post about my books, I could manage a bit of ye olde "look at me, look at me, I'm an author, buy my shit" without wanting to bury my head in a hole.
Here are my top five favorite books that I have written!
5. Through a Glass, Darkly. I have written about vampires before but I really wanted to write a dark and brooding vampire story that dealt with things like existentialism and death anxiety; I used to write a lot of vampire stories when I was younger but they were more straightforward horror novels (although when I was fourteen, I did write a pretty fucked up one that will NEVER see the light of day, although one of the characters in it was the foundation for the villain in my Shadow Thane series). I wrote this story in just under three months when I was really depressed and I think it helped me confront a lot of the feelings I was dealing with at the time. It's very loosely based off an RH storyline that I also wrote when I was fourteen but I'm actually not super into RH anymore so I ended up making it about two separate "love" interests, and the bad guy became a Scottish vampire instead of a fire demon. Yolo.
4. Wishing Stars: Space Opera Fairytales. This is the book of mine that even most of my readers haven't read which makes me sad, because I really like it. I wrote this one in just a couple months, too. It's pretty short, and it's basically a collection of short stories that are all space opera retellings of popular fairytales, with some of my fairytale-inspired poems included in the back (some of which I wrote as a teenager). Those That Struggle Always Drown is probably my favorite poem that I've ever written and it is included in this collection.
3. Star Crossed. This is book #4 in my series and it took me about a year to write after about three years of staring at the twenty pages I had written when I was in my early twenties and crying. I'm honestly so happy with how it came out and a huge part of that is because it kind of ended up becoming a struggle that I felt like I overcame in a really good way. I also just love the characters. Who doesn't love a psychic witch prince who enjoys melting people's arms off and is a bit psychotically obsessed with his love interest? Ikr.
2. Escape. It's another book #4! This one took me like seven years to write. SEVEN YEARS. I feel so bad but also... you would not have wanted what I had in store seven years ago, conceptually. I originally wanted to take the book in a completely different direction and had written like twenty pages (again) only to hate them all, scrap everything, and go in a completely new direction. Which just goes to show that sometimes you have to murder your darlings LOL. (In this case... maybe literally. Gavin is a psycho.) I'm honestly so happy with how this series ended though. The wild and crazy ending was definitely inspired by some of the old skool bodice rippers/gothics I have read and enjoyed. Which brings me to...
1. Quid Pro Quo. I had so much fun writing this book. Originally, this was going to be a reverse age-gap student/teacher romance but I couldn't bring myself to write that. So I made them stepsiblings instead. (Yay?) The hero is also probably my favorite hero... in the sense that he's one of the few who probably wouldn't kill you just as soon as look at you. Even if he, you know, is a little psychotic. Batter My Heart is set in the same universe as this one and it made me happy to give these characters a cameo in it because I didn't feel like giving them a sequel but also wanted to include a nice send-off. After all the hell I put them through, it felt like they deserved it.
But oh no, Untitled mafia romance might be coming for Nicholas's wig. I actually like the hero of this one a LOT... and I don't want to say too much about this book yet, but I can't wait for you to meet him and his woman. :)
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this behind the scenes about my work! My mom, in a recent well-meaning nag, said that I need to promote myself more and I really hate doing that (talking about other people's books and why you should buy them is so much easier), but I do like blogging, so I thought if I wrote a blog-style post about my books, I could manage a bit of ye olde "look at me, look at me, I'm an author, buy my shit" without wanting to bury my head in a hole.
March 19, 2022
Friend cap? I don't know her
So I'm actually rapidly approaching the friend cap on Goodreads, which is REALLY weird because I'm basically a writhing ball of anxiety and insecurity and the fact that fifty people, let alone five thousand people, want to fuck with me and what I write is honestly so humbling. I never thought this day would come.
But since I only have about 700 spots left on here, I thought I'd drop my socials so you can connect with me on other sites. I'm not as active on weekdays since I work full time (which is why I'm so crap at making the first move, I'm sorry!), but I really try to chat with anyone who chats with me first. Also, I have a different personality on basically every site I use, so you can pick and choose what flavor of Nenia you want to have in your life.
Amazon Nenia: https://www.amazon.com/gp/profile/amz...
Did you know I REALLY like Korean beauty products and international cuisine? This is the Nenia who is interviewing for a fancy job or coming home to meet your parents. She's in her Sunday best and watching her language, while drinking her tea pinkie up. I'm a Vine reviewer so I get some free shit, but I also cross-post book reviews here, video game reviews, and reviews of allergy-aware Asian cuisine (OTTOGI IS MY BOY).
*
Twitter Nenia: https://twitter.com/NeniaCampbell
This is the Nenia who's had one two many glasses of wine. She's swearing because she did her eyeliner wrong or just fucked up that Rainbow Road track on Mario Kart. She's a messy bitch who's into politics and social justice, and doesn't play games (unless they're on Switch, and then ONLY if they're cute). Follow at your own risk.
*
Instagram Nenia: https://www.instagram.com/alwaysbeebo...
Positive vibes only. ♥ On this account, we stan romance novels (the older the better!) and cheer on new releases in ARC form. This is probably my most positive account, and I really try to keep it free from criticism (although occasionally I'm like LOL THIS BOOK IS SO BAD YOU SHOULD READ IT). If you like looking at cover porn, this is the account you should follow, because it's where I share my romance novel collection and all of my new ARCs.
*
Facebook Nenia: https://www.facebook.com/aficionenias
This is where you can find book updates for my published works, when I remember I still have a Facebook account (or Meta, or whatever they're calling themselves now lmao). I only have bandwidth for one shitty social media site that I hate-use, and since I feel like I'm too old and crotchety for TikTok, I've chosen Facebook. Hooray! If you want to follow me on there, please do, but I'm really bad at posting here. Eep.
But since I only have about 700 spots left on here, I thought I'd drop my socials so you can connect with me on other sites. I'm not as active on weekdays since I work full time (which is why I'm so crap at making the first move, I'm sorry!), but I really try to chat with anyone who chats with me first. Also, I have a different personality on basically every site I use, so you can pick and choose what flavor of Nenia you want to have in your life.
Amazon Nenia: https://www.amazon.com/gp/profile/amz...
Did you know I REALLY like Korean beauty products and international cuisine? This is the Nenia who is interviewing for a fancy job or coming home to meet your parents. She's in her Sunday best and watching her language, while drinking her tea pinkie up. I'm a Vine reviewer so I get some free shit, but I also cross-post book reviews here, video game reviews, and reviews of allergy-aware Asian cuisine (OTTOGI IS MY BOY).
*
Twitter Nenia: https://twitter.com/NeniaCampbell
This is the Nenia who's had one two many glasses of wine. She's swearing because she did her eyeliner wrong or just fucked up that Rainbow Road track on Mario Kart. She's a messy bitch who's into politics and social justice, and doesn't play games (unless they're on Switch, and then ONLY if they're cute). Follow at your own risk.
*
Instagram Nenia: https://www.instagram.com/alwaysbeebo...
Positive vibes only. ♥ On this account, we stan romance novels (the older the better!) and cheer on new releases in ARC form. This is probably my most positive account, and I really try to keep it free from criticism (although occasionally I'm like LOL THIS BOOK IS SO BAD YOU SHOULD READ IT). If you like looking at cover porn, this is the account you should follow, because it's where I share my romance novel collection and all of my new ARCs.
*
Facebook Nenia: https://www.facebook.com/aficionenias
This is where you can find book updates for my published works, when I remember I still have a Facebook account (or Meta, or whatever they're calling themselves now lmao). I only have bandwidth for one shitty social media site that I hate-use, and since I feel like I'm too old and crotchety for TikTok, I've chosen Facebook. Hooray! If you want to follow me on there, please do, but I'm really bad at posting here. Eep.
March 6, 2022
BATTER MY HEART soundtrack
So I just published a new book called Batter My Heart which came out a few days ago. I want to share the playlist that I made for it, which I listened to while editing and writing chapters.
Each song corresponds to roughly one chapter.
1. Broken Machine // Nothing But Thieves
2. Drug You // Half Moon Run
3. The Gaudy Side of Town // Gayngs
4. Dead Weight // PVRIS
5. bellyache // Billie Eilish
6. Underwater // Black Lab
7. I hope to be around // Men I Trust
8. Daisy Chains // Will Joseph Cook
9. Up to No Good // The Hoosiers
10. Cold Front // Laura Welsh
11. Tell Me Lies // The Black Keys
12. There Was Sun // Nothing But Thieves
13. Forever & Ever More // Nothing But Thieves
14. Strangers // Fizzy Blood
15. Sink Into the Floor // Feng Suave
16. This City Will Kill You // Garbage
17. Under the Sheets // Ellie Goulding
18. Heartless // The Weeknd
19. Kangaroo Court // Capital Cities
20. Put It on Me // Matt Maeson
21. High for This // The Weeknd
22. Crazy // Nothing But Thieves
23. Wicked Games // The Weeknd
24. The Arrow and the Aim // Nadia Reid
25. We Were in Love // ta-ku
26. Dark Again // Gold Fields
27. The Hills // The Weeknd
28. Holding on for Life // Broken Bells
29. Blood on My Hands // Michael McQuaid
End credit: Love Me Harder // Ariana Grande
Each song corresponds to roughly one chapter.
1. Broken Machine // Nothing But Thieves
2. Drug You // Half Moon Run
3. The Gaudy Side of Town // Gayngs
4. Dead Weight // PVRIS
5. bellyache // Billie Eilish
6. Underwater // Black Lab
7. I hope to be around // Men I Trust
8. Daisy Chains // Will Joseph Cook
9. Up to No Good // The Hoosiers
10. Cold Front // Laura Welsh
11. Tell Me Lies // The Black Keys
12. There Was Sun // Nothing But Thieves
13. Forever & Ever More // Nothing But Thieves
14. Strangers // Fizzy Blood
15. Sink Into the Floor // Feng Suave
16. This City Will Kill You // Garbage
17. Under the Sheets // Ellie Goulding
18. Heartless // The Weeknd
19. Kangaroo Court // Capital Cities
20. Put It on Me // Matt Maeson
21. High for This // The Weeknd
22. Crazy // Nothing But Thieves
23. Wicked Games // The Weeknd
24. The Arrow and the Aim // Nadia Reid
25. We Were in Love // ta-ku
26. Dark Again // Gold Fields
27. The Hills // The Weeknd
28. Holding on for Life // Broken Bells
29. Blood on My Hands // Michael McQuaid
End credit: Love Me Harder // Ariana Grande
Writing Status + New/Upcoming Projects!
Now that I've finally published Batter My Heart, I'm finally freed up to start thinking about other projects, so I decided to post a sort of "status" update about what I'll be working on-- or hope to be working on-- next.
I've written a book with my mom called The Other Woman. It's based off a story she's been tinkering with for 20+ years but she was too shy to publish it and didn't want to flesh it out, so I've been working on this in my free time. It's a domestic novel of suspense set in the early 90s about a married woman who learns something unsettling about her husband. I'm currently about 60% of the way done writing it, so this will probably come out this year,
I have a couple independent projects down the pipe but I'm not sure what order I'll get to them. The first one I'll probably start working on is Untitled mafia romance (note: not the actual title), which will be my take on a mafia romance. I've been thinking about it for MONTHS and have all kinds of ideas I want to explore with it. I also have an idea for Wildscape, which will be Luca's standalone novel from the Horrorscape series. I also have plans to write an enemies to lovers romance, and another reverse age gap romance (because that was honestly one of my favorite things about writing Quid Pro Quo).
So yeah, that's what I'll be working on. And also, big thank yous to everyone who purchased BATTER MY HEART. :D It's probably one of my most ambitious projects and I never in a million years would have thought I'd write a college drama story, so it was kind of fun to scratch that off the list.
I've written a book with my mom called The Other Woman. It's based off a story she's been tinkering with for 20+ years but she was too shy to publish it and didn't want to flesh it out, so I've been working on this in my free time. It's a domestic novel of suspense set in the early 90s about a married woman who learns something unsettling about her husband. I'm currently about 60% of the way done writing it, so this will probably come out this year,
I have a couple independent projects down the pipe but I'm not sure what order I'll get to them. The first one I'll probably start working on is Untitled mafia romance (note: not the actual title), which will be my take on a mafia romance. I've been thinking about it for MONTHS and have all kinds of ideas I want to explore with it. I also have an idea for Wildscape, which will be Luca's standalone novel from the Horrorscape series. I also have plans to write an enemies to lovers romance, and another reverse age gap romance (because that was honestly one of my favorite things about writing Quid Pro Quo).
So yeah, that's what I'll be working on. And also, big thank yous to everyone who purchased BATTER MY HEART. :D It's probably one of my most ambitious projects and I never in a million years would have thought I'd write a college drama story, so it was kind of fun to scratch that off the list.
March 3, 2022
BATTER MY HEART is LIVE in the Kindle Store!
So after almost a year, my book is FINALLY available for purchase: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09...
It's been a really trying year for me, so I'm quite proud of how this turned out. BATTER MY HEART is the longest book I've written to date and it's my first bully romance. I ended up doing a massive overhaul because I realized that I really didn't like the hero in the original draft. He's still not a good person in this final version (because obviously I wrote it, and I do not write about nice men lol), but I think he ends up coming across as way more relatable and interesting here.
Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who was so patient with me about the delay in publication and an especially big thank you to my beta reader and good friend, Heather Crews, for listening to me yammer about this book for nearly a year. She's an author too and you should definitely check her out (NOT THAT I'M BIASED OR ANYTHING).
I really hope you enjoy reading BATTER MY HEART. ♥
It's been a really trying year for me, so I'm quite proud of how this turned out. BATTER MY HEART is the longest book I've written to date and it's my first bully romance. I ended up doing a massive overhaul because I realized that I really didn't like the hero in the original draft. He's still not a good person in this final version (because obviously I wrote it, and I do not write about nice men lol), but I think he ends up coming across as way more relatable and interesting here.
Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who was so patient with me about the delay in publication and an especially big thank you to my beta reader and good friend, Heather Crews, for listening to me yammer about this book for nearly a year. She's an author too and you should definitely check her out (NOT THAT I'M BIASED OR ANYTHING).
I really hope you enjoy reading BATTER MY HEART. ♥
February 15, 2022
FEARSCAPE and CLOAK AND DAGGER are FREE in the Kindle Store
Hey y'all! I made my two most popular books on Goodreads FREE.
Fearscape: https://www.amazon.com/Fearscape-Horr...
Cloak and Dagger: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
The reason? I'm doing an author takeover with Drethi Anis to celebrate her new book, Organized Chaos, but I also just really like seeing people read my stuff. It brings my twisted, jaded heart so much joy. ♥
So please enjoy these free books. If all goes well in Amazonland, the freebie should last until 2/16.
Love!
Fearscape: https://www.amazon.com/Fearscape-Horr...
Cloak and Dagger: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
The reason? I'm doing an author takeover with Drethi Anis to celebrate her new book, Organized Chaos, but I also just really like seeing people read my stuff. It brings my twisted, jaded heart so much joy. ♥
So please enjoy these free books. If all goes well in Amazonland, the freebie should last until 2/16.
Love!
February 5, 2022
QUID PRO QUO will be FREE from Feb 6-Feb 10
Hello friends! My dark stepbrother romance, QUID PRO QUO, will be FREEEEEEE in the Kindle store for FIVE WHOLE DAYS. Why? Because it's one of my favorite things I've written and it makes me really happy to see people reading it.
Here is the link to the Kindle store: https://www.amazon.com/Quid-Pro-Quo-s...
Grab a copy and tell a friend (or two). I hope you enjoy it-- but if you don't, that's okay too. ^_^
Here is the link to the Kindle store: https://www.amazon.com/Quid-Pro-Quo-s...
Grab a copy and tell a friend (or two). I hope you enjoy it-- but if you don't, that's okay too. ^_^
December 25, 2021
QUID PRO QUO Is FREE in the Kindle Store!
Guess who made her book free in the Kindle store? Well, lots of people but also this bitch right here! YAY
Here's a LINK: https://www.amazon.com/Quid-Pro-Quo-s...
I thought it would be fun to make my newest book free for Xmas. Especially since I'm **ALMOST** done with the companion book set in the same universe (Batter My Heart).
So, enjoy the book (or don't-- I'm a book blogger too, so I'm all about those honest experiences, y'all). Regardless of how you feel about me or my work, I hope you have a lovely holiday with your friends and your fams.
Cheers. ♥
Here's a LINK: https://www.amazon.com/Quid-Pro-Quo-s...
I thought it would be fun to make my newest book free for Xmas. Especially since I'm **ALMOST** done with the companion book set in the same universe (Batter My Heart).
So, enjoy the book (or don't-- I'm a book blogger too, so I'm all about those honest experiences, y'all). Regardless of how you feel about me or my work, I hope you have a lovely holiday with your friends and your fams.
Cheers. ♥
December 8, 2021
FAQ You Pt. II: Electric Boogaloo
My last FAQ did so well that I decided to post a follow-up, since I have some new friends and followers on here and I'd love for you to get to know me better!
What was your majority in university?
Psychology!
What do you do for a living?
I'm in project leadership. So basically, I manage and co-manage projects and collaborate with other teams to see that those projects get done.
Why do you take so long to write books? You used to have multiple books out in a year.
I didn't get a job right out of college and then I was in some minimum wage positions that gave me more flexibility in terms of time but way less job satisfaction and money. During that time, I was writing and publishing a lot because the writing not only gave me something to escape to, it also padded out my income. I still write as much as I can, but now it's mostly relegated to evenings and weekends.
Is your hair real?
It's a wig! I get a lot of free wigs because I'm an influencer for Amazon (which feels REALLY weird to say, but there you go).
What is your favorite book?
I couldn't pick just one. I made several shelves to show off some of my faves, which are nenia-recommends, best-young-adult-books, and best-romance. These are entirely MY opinions, and therefore highly biased, but I think they're really good books and would recommend them to anyone in a heartbeat.
How did you start reviewing?
Originally, I signed up on Goodreads just to keep track of my books and didn't post any reviews, but now I review everything I read (or look forward to reading).
Why do you rate books that you haven't finished?
I mean, do you need to finish a meal to know that you don't like the meal? I think people get weirdly up in arms about this. If you go to a restaurant or try a new lotion, nobody expects you to finish the soggy pizza or continue dousing yourself in lotion even if it gives you indigestion or hives. A miserable experience is a miserable experience. Period. If a book is so unpalatable to you that you aren't able to finish, then that's valid. You tried, you didn't like it, next.
What is What the Actual Fuck Wednesday?
It's a new project I'm doing. I noticed a lot of bloggers had weekly features and I thought it would be fun to start one of my own. People kept sending me weird things to read to see me make fun of them so I decided to lean into that. Hard.
You mentioned that you like wine. What kinds of wine would you recommend?
Big, bold, and berry-flavored. I especially like Spanish and Italian style wines, like Riojas and Sangioveses.
Most controversial book take?
I really don't like TO CATCH A MOCKINGBIRD. I think it's a really boring book. I also found WILD and EAT, PRAY, LOVE to be both privileged and self-indulgent.
Most controversial non-book takes?
I would rather watch Batman and Robin than The Dark Knight. I don't mind pineapple and anchovies on pizza (although probably not at the same time). I don't get the fuss about Hamilton.
Why do you post about your political opinions on Goodreads? Keep your politics out of this book site, please.
Stepping away from politics is a privilege because the ability to step away from that discourse means that you won't seriously be impacted one way or the other by the outcome. That is the very definition of privilege: benefiting from the status quo. I don't think having privilege is necessarily a bad thing as long as you are open about having it and use that privilege to benefit those who have less when you can without coopting or commandeering their thoughts, movements, and creations for self-gain. Over the last four years, I've realized that I have a lot to learn about politics and privilege, and I'm trying to use my platform for good. My goal, as a human being and someone with a not-insignificant platform, is to do exactly that, whether it's supporting BLM, encouraging people to vote, or mentioning potentially triggering content in books. So, no, the politics are going to stay. #sorrynotsorry
What are you like in person?
Basically the same as I am online, except maybe a little more reserved and less sweary. I'm also probably taller than you think I am.
What was your majority in university?
Psychology!
What do you do for a living?
I'm in project leadership. So basically, I manage and co-manage projects and collaborate with other teams to see that those projects get done.
Why do you take so long to write books? You used to have multiple books out in a year.
I didn't get a job right out of college and then I was in some minimum wage positions that gave me more flexibility in terms of time but way less job satisfaction and money. During that time, I was writing and publishing a lot because the writing not only gave me something to escape to, it also padded out my income. I still write as much as I can, but now it's mostly relegated to evenings and weekends.
Is your hair real?
It's a wig! I get a lot of free wigs because I'm an influencer for Amazon (which feels REALLY weird to say, but there you go).
What is your favorite book?
I couldn't pick just one. I made several shelves to show off some of my faves, which are nenia-recommends, best-young-adult-books, and best-romance. These are entirely MY opinions, and therefore highly biased, but I think they're really good books and would recommend them to anyone in a heartbeat.
How did you start reviewing?
Originally, I signed up on Goodreads just to keep track of my books and didn't post any reviews, but now I review everything I read (or look forward to reading).
Why do you rate books that you haven't finished?
I mean, do you need to finish a meal to know that you don't like the meal? I think people get weirdly up in arms about this. If you go to a restaurant or try a new lotion, nobody expects you to finish the soggy pizza or continue dousing yourself in lotion even if it gives you indigestion or hives. A miserable experience is a miserable experience. Period. If a book is so unpalatable to you that you aren't able to finish, then that's valid. You tried, you didn't like it, next.
What is What the Actual Fuck Wednesday?
It's a new project I'm doing. I noticed a lot of bloggers had weekly features and I thought it would be fun to start one of my own. People kept sending me weird things to read to see me make fun of them so I decided to lean into that. Hard.
You mentioned that you like wine. What kinds of wine would you recommend?
Big, bold, and berry-flavored. I especially like Spanish and Italian style wines, like Riojas and Sangioveses.
Most controversial book take?
I really don't like TO CATCH A MOCKINGBIRD. I think it's a really boring book. I also found WILD and EAT, PRAY, LOVE to be both privileged and self-indulgent.
Most controversial non-book takes?
I would rather watch Batman and Robin than The Dark Knight. I don't mind pineapple and anchovies on pizza (although probably not at the same time). I don't get the fuss about Hamilton.
Why do you post about your political opinions on Goodreads? Keep your politics out of this book site, please.
Stepping away from politics is a privilege because the ability to step away from that discourse means that you won't seriously be impacted one way or the other by the outcome. That is the very definition of privilege: benefiting from the status quo. I don't think having privilege is necessarily a bad thing as long as you are open about having it and use that privilege to benefit those who have less when you can without coopting or commandeering their thoughts, movements, and creations for self-gain. Over the last four years, I've realized that I have a lot to learn about politics and privilege, and I'm trying to use my platform for good. My goal, as a human being and someone with a not-insignificant platform, is to do exactly that, whether it's supporting BLM, encouraging people to vote, or mentioning potentially triggering content in books. So, no, the politics are going to stay. #sorrynotsorry
What are you like in person?
Basically the same as I am online, except maybe a little more reserved and less sweary. I'm also probably taller than you think I am.
