Category: WWW Wednesdays

#WWWednesday No. XVIII | Jorie dives back into reading via #WyrdAndWonder!

Posted Wednesday, 10 May, 2023 by jorielov 2 Comments

#WWWednesdays graphic created by Jorie in Canva.

I ♥ the premise of this meme {WWW Wednesdays} due to the dexterity it gives the reader! Smiles. Clearly subject to change on a weekly rotation, which may or may not lead to your ‘next’ read providing a bit of a paradoxical mystery to your readers!! Smiles. ♥ the brilliance of it’s concept!

This weekly meme was originally hosted by Should Be Reading who became A Daily Rhythm. Lovingly restored and continued by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words. Each week you participate, your keen to answer the following questions:

  • What are you currently reading!?
  • What did you recently finish reading!?
  • What do you think you’ll read next!?

After which, your meant to click over to THIS WEEK’s WWWWednesday to share your post’s link so that the rest of the bloggers who are participating can check out your lovely answers! Score! Perhaps even, find other bloggers who dig the same books as you do! I thought it would serve as a great self-check to know where I am and the progress I am hoping to have over the next week!

Join the Convo via: #WWWWednesday

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Wyrd And Wonder banner created by Imyril. IMAGE CREDITS: Magic portal artwork by Tithi Luadthong via www.123rf.com/profile_grandfailure. Banner is used with permission.

the event of fantastical JOY has returned,
join me as I dive back into reading via #WyrdAndWonder!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

About: *Wyrd & Wonder*

Wyrd and Wonder is an annual celebration of the fantasy genre. Sign up to join the party as we explore worlds of myth and magic, re-imagine traditional tales, cheer on heroes (prefer villains? Sure, we won’t judge you) and discover the secret doors that lead from familiar streets to adjacent realms where a discourtesy or a misstep may land you in hot water.

This year we’re focusing on all things magical, whether that’s magic users, magical creatures, magic systems, or things that raise the hairs on the back of your neck (in a good way). As always, you’re free to read and post outside the theme – we love low fantasy too! – but magic will be the theme for our banners and prompts this year.

We’ll be reading books, watching movies, playing games and sharing our thoughts online through blog posts and social media with as many like-minded adventurers as care to join us – there’s always room by the fire for a newcomer with a tale to share.

(Paraphrasing official 2022/23 blurb) : visit Imyril’s Announcement for Y6

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

You might be curious where the heck, heck Jorie has been these past several months as past a certain point, I was unable to continue to UPDATE my blog and the only time I was able to re-surface was via tweets celebrating my JOY over S3 of Star Trek: Picard. Something I will go into further details about when I formulate the words to anchour a life update into a forthcoming Sunday Post as it is all connected. For now, I’d like to take a breath and re-focus on my top favourite bookish event of the year — as I happily co-host our Year 6 of Wyrd And Wonder!

For those of you who are used to me being more visually present during the opening week of Wyrd And Wonder and for a chase-up to the event itself in the months ahead of May — this year clearly went a bit differently for me as a reader and as a book blogger. My best foot forward is actually visible on our #bookstagram feeds on Insta wherein I’ve been quite active this Year 6 by finding 12x different prompts to respond to visually with book photos and commentary. I’ve been enjoying that pursuit and learning more about Insta and layouts for text additions by Annemieke who has kindly been tutoring me on the ins/outs of how much to say and the ways in which to say what you want to share. FYI: For those of us who are longer winded (ie. bookish chatterboxes), adding graphics is an easier solution than lengthier posts which dip too much into the comment sections!

Smashing, eh?

I couldn’t be happier as working on those photos in a new environment (ie. flat) and having a blank canvas (ie. bookshelves) has had a bit of a cleansing effect on me. Whilst at the same time, as I have only a few boxes unboxed at the moment, my photos are a bit different than in the past as I don’t have any props to use except the books and the shelves themselves. Ergo, I am focusing on the themes of the prompts and using my words on the graphics or in the post itself to celebrate the theme of the day so to speak.

Also: note to self, where EXACTLY did I pack ALL my bookmarks!?

I do personally feel Wyrd And Wonder snuck up on me this year because I had a bit of an insurrection of personal time and space to prepare for it. When you have to undergo a major relocation which was both unplanned and unwanted in your life, it is hard to shift back into something that gives you a lot of JOY. I’ve found myself unmotivated to blog, read or participate in a lot of things socially online since February and it is all connected to the relocation. I do admit, I like living here better as it is a quieter space – there isn’t a lot of jarring outside noises (ie. sirens, heavy traffic or whatnot which came with living off a major highway) but at the same time, it doesn’t quite feel like ‘home’ either. The other flat was happily lived in for eight years and everything had its proper place and it was ‘cosy’. This one still feels like we’ve ‘just arrived’ and we’re just making do. Oy. Towards that end, I think it has affected my desire to read or listen to audiobooks – although, that does seem a bit silly in one respect because I have better set-up for reading now than I did previously and my books are easier at hand than they were as well. *le sigh* To say I just feel overwhelmed going into May would be an understatement. Plus, of course, last year and all years prior Dad was living with us at home, and I admit, that is still an adjustment for Mum and I.

I guess to be frank, this #WyrdAndWonder just feels a bit more muddling to me and I’m just trying to make the best of it as I go along with what I am attempting to read, blog and share socially. Likewise, I’m trying like mad to sort out a way to be more present on our feeds via Twitter for @WyrdAndWonder as well. I’d be thrilled if I could sort that out before week’s end.

I am sure others might feel this way too, this year, as I know some of my fellow co-hosts have had their fair share of strife as well this early half of the year. Whilst I am sure our participants might feel similar angst as us, too. Sometimes the timing just feels ‘off’ for whichever reason but I refuse to let it take all the JOY out of May for me and that is why each day/week I am striving towards participating in some small way even if I can’t fully achieve what I had hoped to do when I first set plans in mind last year.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

What Jorie is currently reading:

Howl's Moving Castle RAL graphic created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: jorielovesastory.com

 Wyrd and Wonder’s RAL: Howl’s Moving Castle
by Diana Wynne Jones, narrated by: Jenny Sterlin *audiobook

  • Week 1: Chapters 1 through 7 – hosted by Dear Geek Place
  • Week 2: Chapters 8 through 14 – hosted by The Fantasy Hive
  • Week 3: Chapters 15 through End – hosted by The Fantasy Hive
  • Discussions will be via Discord on our Other Worlds channel

Hosted by: @deargeekplace and @TheFantasyHive
Read the Announcement of the RAL via deargeekplace.com

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

So far, I can attest to the fact I am grateful for this choice as one of our RALs this year! I decided to borrow the book (in print) for my book photos during #WyrdAndWonder, but in truth I am actually listening to the audiobook which is narrated by Ms. Sterlin. Of whom is doing such a smashing job of getting my attention to listen to the story which on one side of the ledger is a bit scary (in respect to the Wizard Howl by the way in which he’s described!) and engaging on the other in respect to the girls’ themselves. I am quite charmed by Sophie who speaks to hats as I’ve long been fascinated by hatters and those who work in the shops where they are sold. 
Read More

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Posted Wednesday, 10 May, 2023 by jorielov in #WyrdAndWonder, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Memes, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, WWW Wednesdays

#WWWednesday No. XVII | Dipping my toes back into reading this January, 2023!

Posted Wednesday, 18 January, 2023 by jorielov 0 Comments

#WWWednesdays graphic created by Jorie in Canva.

I ♥ the premise of this meme {WWW Wednesdays} due to the dexterity it gives the reader! Smiles. Clearly subject to change on a weekly rotation, which may or may not lead to your ‘next’ read providing a bit of a paradoxical mystery to your readers!! Smiles. ♥ the brilliance of it’s concept!

This weekly meme was originally hosted by Should Be Reading who became A Daily Rhythm. Lovingly restored and continued by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words. Each week you participate, your keen to answer the following questions:

  • What are you currently reading!?
  • What did you recently finish reading!?
  • What do you think you’ll read next!?

After which, your meant to click over to THIS WEEK’s WWWWednesday to share your post’s link so that the rest of the bloggers who are participating can check out your lovely answers! Score! Perhaps even, find other bloggers who dig the same books as you do! I thought it would serve as a great self-check to know where I am and the progress I am hoping to have over the next week!

Join the Convo via: #WWWWednesday

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

About time to start dipping me toes back into reading
& sorting out
how to be a ‘thriving reader’ again!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

One of the things in my life that I simply had to ‘leg go of’ these past several months since October was the ability to read and blog. My emotional upheavals (ie. the death of my cats, my father’s ongoing medical emergencies and crises) prevented me from the kind of focus one needs to enjoy reading and/or interacting with other readers who are fellow book bloggers. I ached to do something to divert my attention anywhere else than work, grieiving and advocating for my Dad but sometimes, you get so consumed by LIFE itself, anything EXTRA is just a bit too much to tackle. For me, this is why reading just started to slip through my fingers.

Although, as you’ll see in this small recapture of what I did accomplish during that drought of interest was a bit of joy in the rains of darkening clouds. I am thankful I can begin anew this January and find my way again with stories and authors alike One goal of mine is continuing the idea I had written about previously – about focusing on the stories on my shelves, curing my backlogue of reviews and sorting my way with borrowing audiobooks and/or listening to the ones I already own. I definitely want to be more proactive in seeking out the stories off my shelves that truly interest me to read right now and not focus on when those stories originally arrived in my life. Stuff happens, life derails and at some point, we realign ourselves.

Whilst Mum had fallen in love with crochet, I want to return back to knitting. I used to love getting lose in the stitches and rhythms of knitting. It has been an age since I’ve even worked on the prayer shawls I started so many years ago now. It was one of those things that just fell away and I never was able to restart despite several attempts. I think knitting would be a calm companion right now alongside looking forward to adopting an emotional support cat in February. I never understood crochet and being a dyslexic knitter on the onset, you could say, I’d rather not overcomplicate fibre arts because I’m just thankful I learnt how to knit at all. I’m proud of Mum though – she has the ability to self-learn through video tutorials and that is one avenue that throws me off as everything appears backwards to me.

So, I am hopeful in one of my next updates — I’ll have resumed two passions of mine: knitting and reading alike! I do know I will be seeking out as many audioreads as I can this year as I’m noticing that my pacing with reading books in print has slowed down quite a heap and I know listening to audiobooks will be a more enjoyable choice for me. It has been shifting towards this since [2016] when I first fell in love with audiobook narrations. Honestly, let’s face it – that first voice that hooked me into them was Jake Urry! (see this Review)

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

What Jorie is currently reading:

WWWWednesday photo collage made by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: jorielovesastory.com

The Brass Key (prequel) & Death on the Boardwalk by Caleb Wygal
(*) the thin book above “Death on the Boardwalk” is “The Brass Key”

A Light in the Window by Julie Lessman (*re-read & continuation)
: a favourite author of Jorie’s and one of the first authors she interacted with in the book blogosphere before she became a book blogger herself (circa 2012/13)

→ My first #HistoricalMondays for 2023
The Other Side of Certain by Amy Willoughby-Burle

→ listening to the audiobooks for the Blackstone Legacy:
Carved in Stone (book one) & Written on the Wind (book two)
in preparation for reading Hearts of Steel (book three) : for the blog tour!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

I can thankfully start reading Wygal’s stories due to having received the prequel “The Brass Key” and for my mind/heart to finally be able to focus on his quirky Cosy Mystery series. I had to keep pushing my readings of this series forward as previously blogged about for differing reasons. The latter delays I believe are established enough without having to restate them again. I have been wanting to get back into reading Mysteries, Suspense and Thrillers for awhile and I am hopeful this kicks me off into the right direction to where I can weekly or monthly re-establish myself into those genres as I have personal copies of stories to read as well as backlogued review copies, too. Sometimes it is nice to tuck into a Cosier side of the Mystery genre as well as it gives you what you’re seeking in Mystery but is more gently told if your not ready to embrace the grittier side where Cosy becomes a bit more Hard-boiled. Read More

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Posted Wednesday, 18 January, 2023 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Memes, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, WWW Wednesdays

#WWWednesday No. XVI | And, it’s audiobooks for the win! Find out why audio reads are luring Jorie back into reading whilst #SelfPubFanMonth kicks off this September!

Posted Wednesday, 31 August, 2022 by jorielov 4 Comments

#WWWednesdays graphic created by Jorie in Canva.

I ♥ the premise of this meme {WWW Wednesdays} due to the dexterity it gives the reader! Smiles. Clearly subject to change on a weekly rotation, which may or may not lead to your ‘next’ read providing a bit of a paradoxical mystery to your readers!! Smiles. ♥ the brilliance of it’s concept!

This weekly meme was originally hosted by Should Be Reading who became A Daily Rhythm. Lovingly restored and continued by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words. Each week you participate, your keen to answer the following questions:

  • What are you currently reading!?
  • What did you recently finish reading!?
  • What do you think you’ll read next!?

After which, your meant to click over to THIS WEEK’s WWWWednesday to share your post’s link so that the rest of the bloggers who are participating can check out your lovely answers! Score! Perhaps even, find other bloggers who dig the same books as you do! I thought it would serve as a great self-check to know where I am and the progress I am hoping to have over the next week!

Join the Convo via: #WWWWednesday

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

And, it’s audiobooks for the WIN!

Find out why audio reads are luring Jorie back into reading!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Who knew the best way to JUMP START your readerly life which has been on an unexpected sabbatical for the Summer was to queue up some audiobooks!? You did? I did not. Until I started hearing narrators in my ears who were luring me back into reading in such a fantastic way! I might have had a few misses this week, as you’ll notice throughout this post but boy! Was I charmed and grateful for the narrators all the same! Just because I wasn’t able to fully anchour myself into each of their narrated stories – what did pull me through the week was the JOY of discovering their style of narration and the dexterity they had for giving us such a promising selection of voices, accents and characters to tuck close to as their voices reached my ears and imagination.

I’ve also been kinder to myself about the time I have to read and/or listen to audiobooks – rather than block out HOURS to devout to one story or audiobook, I’ve been selectively choosing which hour, half hour or afternoon/evening where I am off work and able to give attention to stories again. By breaking it down into smaller helpings of reading and listening to audiobooks, I’m finding my way forward and out of the drought that Summer gave me where I was unable to focus on reading and thus, found myself quite miserable because the lost hours between May and August almost felt like too deep of a chasm to climb out of and return back to my regular patterns of reading.

Even those short moments are improving my state of mind when it comes to resuming my visitations with stories and also, unlike months and years in the past before I worked two full-time jobs as I have been doing this year (er, wells, technically since mid-October, 2021 as I went back to work originally in February, 2021) — where I could devout more substantial time to reading, blogging and engaging – I am happy to announce I am finding my new rhythm and it is wonderful. It is hard when you have to take a pause on something you love and just get through the daily grind until something improves lateron. For me, I missed the discovery of characters, the immersion of story and the joy of seeing a writer’s vision come through their narrative and world. I ached to re-experience those moments again and finally, at long last I can say with confidence, I am back reading regularly — albeit with a bit of a different methodology of execution but all the same, I’m reading and listening to audiobooks and it FEELS GREAT!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

What Jorie is currently reading:

The Living Waters by Dan FitzgeraldDead as a Dodo (Wonderland Detective Agency) by Jeannie Wycherley

A Peculiar Combination by Ashley WeaverThe Secret at Sunset Hill by K.T. McGivens

A Peculiar Combination by Ashley Weaver (*audiobook) via NetGalley

The Secret at Sunset Hill by K.T. McGivens (*re-read & continuation)
: guest of @SatBookChat from July, 2021

→ My first #WyrdAndWonder Wednesday selection:
The Living Waters by Dan Fitzgerald (*re-read & continuation) : (see also Post)

→ My first #SelfPubFanMonth selection:
Dead as a Dodo (Wonderland Detective Agency) by Jeannie Wycherley (*audiobook)
*the writer behind my beloved Wonky Inn series : (see also Reviews)

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Back in May, I found out about the Wonderland Detective Agency novels which were released into audiobook by the author behind my beloved Wonky Inn series which is narrated by Kim Bretton. She has brought Alf to life so dearly brilliantly – her narration goes through til Book Five. I’ll be purchasing the following books ahead of #SpooktasticReads (in October, 2022): The Witch Who Killed Christmas (in paperback as it’s a special release), Fearful Fortunes & Terrible Tarot (Book Four) and The Mystery of the Marsh Malaise (Book Five) — which is why I’m shifting forward during #SelfPubFanMonth to start listening to another of her series – brought to life by Joanna  Lee!

She fast became an autobuy/autolisten author of mine – due to the fact I dearly LOVE to DEVOUR her stories and I love her wickedly entertaining sense of wit and humour, too! I can’t wait to see what awaits me in the Wonderland Detective Agency and I am thoroughly blessed for the chance to listen to Dead as a Dodo during my first year participating in Self Pub Fantasy Month! Read More

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Posted Wednesday, 31 August, 2022 by jorielov in #SelfPubFanMonth, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Memes, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, WWW Wednesdays

#WWWednesday No. XV | Jorie Returns, after a long hard Summer and only a faint echo of Wyrd And Wonder now that it’s August.

Posted Wednesday, 24 August, 2022 by jorielov 0 Comments

#WWWednesdays graphic created by Jorie in Canva.

I ♥ the premise of this meme {WWW Wednesdays} due to the dexterity it gives the reader! Smiles. Clearly subject to change on a weekly rotation, which may or may not lead to your ‘next’ read providing a bit of a paradoxical mystery to your readers!! Smiles. ♥ the brilliance of it’s concept!

This weekly meme was originally hosted by Should Be Reading who became A Daily Rhythm. Lovingly restored and continued by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words. Each week you participate, your keen to answer the following questions:

  • What are you currently reading!?
  • What did you recently finish reading!?
  • What do you think you’ll read next!?

After which, your meant to click over to THIS WEEK’s WWWWednesday to share your post’s link so that the rest of the bloggers who are participating can check out your lovely answers! Score! Perhaps even, find other bloggers who dig the same books as you do! I thought it would serve as a great self-check to know where I am and the progress I am hoping to have over the next week!

Join the Convo via: #WWWWednesday

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

August is nearly consumed,

Summer’s fiery wrath is unrelentingly brutal

but Jorie is returning to reading after an unplanned sabbatical!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

I hadn’t intended to be GONE for such a long time — in regards to updating Jorie Loves A Story, engaging on Twitter and being an active reader. Nearly 90 days since Wyrd And Wonder and I’ve had one heck of a Summer this year. In fact, it is a bit ironic that this year rather than 2020 or 2021 was the year where I felt the months fell forward and into each other without a lot of downtime to read, blog or engage with the bookish community.

To be honest, I’ve been working more hours and picking up more shifts whenever I could and dealing with a lot of personal and professional stress throughout June, July and now, August. Just to login to my blog has felt wonderful despite the fact everything goes back to Wyrd And Wonder with only a few posts between then and now to sustain my followers (and myself!). Not exactly as I had envisioned my Summer to go but at the same time, considering everything that has happened, I’m just thankful to recapture the joy of reading and blogging again.

I am sure I’m not the first book blogger whose found herself in this kind of a pickle – where IRL priorities supersede the joys of reading and the hours needed to blog and/or engage. However, it has been personally frustrating because I haven’t had any time to just do something outside of WORK. And, for good reasons – as by early June, my car’s air conditioner died and I spent a month and a half commuting in HIGH HUMIDITY and extremely high temperatures – as Summer’s fiery wrath was in full swing. It’s at least 90 but over 100+ with the heat index and humidity. I swear I live on the volcanic edge of sanity. The fact I could qualify for a new to me used car was an unexpected and much needed blessing which turnt the tides a bit by mid to late July.

However, as much as May was a bit marred by unexpected woes and stress at the start of Wyrd And Wonder and which nearly upset my plans a bit — this Summer has been a brutal one personally. I usually have to deal with lightning storms and intense thunderstorms – as Summer brings heavier rains and can knock connectivity into oblivion. That’s been a bit diminished compared to years past, especially considering it used to be so bad I could barely log onto my blog or even compose my notes for a review! Nowadays, we’re dealing with less storms in early Summer and more of them are collectively accumulating towards the end rather than having them as a steady presence throughout the season. Compared to other places, we’ve been blessed but evenso, there are some storms you just know are going to have deadly lightning within their clouds.

As I shift back into reading, I’ve decided to shift back into writing posts betwixt and between the reviews and/or author showcases, if I can schedule them as I’m a bit out of the loop all round and felt it best to just start reading again and then, hopefully other kinds of posts and engagements will follow suit thereafter. I’m also trying to chase down an Indie Fantasy event I remember happening September ahead of October’s #SpooktasticReads and Novembers duo: #Norsevember and #SciFiMonth. It would focus on Indie Fantasy authors and publishers but for the life of me at the moment, I am forgetting the name of the event and who hosts it! (oyyy vie)

Alas, right as I was writing this — I was able to connect to some of my bookish friends via Twitter and learnt it’s called: Self Pub Fantasy Month hosted this year by Tyra @SelfPubFanMonth!! I am wicked happy to announce now that I am participating this year and I’ll be joining the rotation of reviewers who will be featured during #SelfPubFantasyMonth as well! Eek. I can’t wait to sort out a plan of action on Jorie Loves A Story, too! As comparatively whether SpecFic is independently or self-published – those authors and their stories tend to be my wheelhouse of choice to read! As I tend to read a more limited number of traditionally published SpecFic! I’ve been wanting to join this event for ages now – so very thankful how connective we all are and how even after a lapse of connection you can reach out to people you know in this bookish community and find an event you accidently forgot the name of!

This begins my return, and I am thankful if you’ve been hovering in the background awaiting me to resume my blog and my life in the twitterverse. I appreciate everyone who visits with me and converses either on my blog or on Twitter, too. Let me know how your Summer has fared and if it went off the rails like mine did, too! Also, curious what your drawn to be reading right now – as you’ll note, my return involves an audiobook and it’s not the only one, too.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

What Jorie is currently reading:

Search for the Holy Grail MJL Evans and GM O' ConnorbyDeath on the Boardwalk by Caleb Wygal

Search for the Holy Grail by MJL Evans & GM O’ Connor (*audiobook)

Death on the Boardwalk by Caleb Wygal

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

I decided to dip my toes back into reading this week – I had heard a sampler of an audiobook whose narrator truly caught my ears and I was thankful to find I was on the audio blog tour for this story called: Search for the Holy Grail. I’ve started listening to the story, as I didn’t get the notification I was on the tour until today, as I was knocked offline this past week due to all the fierce lightning storms – per usual for this time of year, but just as maddening all the same! I am enjoying the new format for listening to audio reads via Authors’ Direct as previously I wasn’t finding that particular app to be my favourite in regards to audiobook apps as it was harder to use when I first installed it. Now, it apparently has been updated and the format is a lot easier to navigate – at least for me. The only key issue I’m finding is that despite my love of the narrator’s voice and her wicked delight at narrating with accents for the characters is that the story itself is a bit hard to follow and/or a bit of a miss for me as a listener. Read More

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Posted Wednesday, 24 August, 2022 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Memes, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, WWW Wednesdays

#WWWednesday No. XIV | Celebrating #SpooktasticReads 2021

Posted Wednesday, 20 October, 2021 by jorielov 0 Comments

#WWWednesdays graphic created by Jorie in Canva.

I ♥ the premise of this meme {WWW Wednesdays} due to the dexterity it gives the reader! Smiles. Clearly subject to change on a weekly rotation, which may or may not lead to your ‘next’ read providing a bit of a paradoxical mystery to your readers!! Smiles. ♥ the brilliance of it’s concept!

This weekly meme was originally hosted by Should Be Reading who became A Daily Rhythm. Lovingly restored and continued by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words. Each week you participate, your keen to answer the following questions:

  • What are you currently reading!?
  • What did you recently finish reading!?
  • What do you think you’ll read next!?

After which, your meant to click over to THIS WEEK’s WWWWednesday to share your post’s link so that the rest of the bloggers who are participating can check out your lovely answers! Score! Perhaps even, find other bloggers who dig the same books as you do! I thought it would serve as a great self-check to know where I am and the progress I am hoping to have over the next week!

Join the Convo via: #WWWWednesday

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

October has dawned,

and the witchingly spooky fortnight has finally arrived;

which means your #WyrdAndWonder team is happily hosting:

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

#SpooktasticReads 2021 banner created by Jorie in Canva.

Wyrd & Wonder is a celebration of the fantastic, but it’s a long time from one May to the next to wait for an adventure and not all fantasy reads are best enjoyed with birdsong and spring sunshine. Spooktastic Reads is Wyrd and Wonder’s autumnal ghost, 13 days to share the thrills of dark fantasy, paranormal romance, ghost stories, urban legends, all things Gothic and even a side of horror for those who dare. Lisa, Jorie and I will be curling up under blankets by candlelight with hot chocolate and the spookiest things on our fantasy TBRs (and watchlists!) as we celebrate the creepier end of the fantasy genre.

-as brilliantly described by Imyril

Whereas I made a bit of an attempt to explain it myself in 2019

  • follow the official social feeds via @WyrdAndWonder
  • tag us socially via #SpooktasticReads
  • visit Imyril & lisa to see what they are doing!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

For those of you who are NEW to #SpooktasticReads, this is the secondary annual event Imyril, Lisa and I co-host every year. We knew we needed a jolt of fantastical love between #WyrdAndWonder every year and it just happens we each fell in love with the concept for #SpooktasticReads – wherein we get to explore the more spookified niches of Fantasy! This is a quite a broad stroke of genres and sub-niches of Fantasy – it is definitely open to interpretation (as all our events are!) and if you’re like me – you might find yourself hankering everything from a wicked good ghost story, to a paranormal suspense novel or a PNR (Paranormal Romance) or perhaps you’d rather dive into the Cosier side of Horror? I know I have the penchant for those kinds of stories myself every blue moon (ie. FAE, Scarecrow, Corvidae to highlight a few). There are more in that collection by World Weaver Press I need to gather for my personal library, too!

Perhaps you might like to dive into #WitchyReads like I do? Or are magical schools your cuppa tea? When it comes to darker stories of Fantasy, I occasionally find myself haunted by those stories and dare to dip my toes into those realms too. I have a trilogy and a first novel of a series leftover from Wyrd And Wonder this year I’m going to begin reading this fortnight and see how far I can progress. The thematics of both series are quite the darker shade of Fantasy but with Light permeating through the storylines – which is why I was hooked and intrigued to read them!

And, then of course, there is the merger of Historical Fiction with Historical Fantasy – sometimes this cross-sects into Cosy Horror depending on the themes explored. This year, I knew I wanted to finish one of my selections I’ve had on my shelf leftover from a @SatBookChat conversation whilst I also wanted to dive into a Historical narrative about witches and the persecution of women who were the natural healers of their communities. They were misunderstood and mistreated by those who afeared the unknowns of their trade and that is a story in of its own.

There are a small handful of audiobooks I’ve been striving towards finishing the past few years as well and I am hopeful I can snatch away enough hours during #SpooktasticReads to finally release long awaited reviews for those stories. Especially as one of them in particular I LOVED listening too but never could re-attach myself into the story in such a way to pay proper homage to the character and the story I had heard with such affectionate joy. This kind happen at times – as there is another such audiobook I am re-exploring this year during #SciFiMonth which is in the same category of this one – wherein, I heard it, I loved it and yet, my review never was able to be completed in the way I had hoped it could be shared.

I might post small snapshots of what I’m reading these next few weeks – rather than focus on longer reviews – as you might have noticed my reviews have taken a bit of a backseat lately as my work life has sort of taken over my blogging hours. I’ve missed the hours I used to be able to spend reading and blogging whilst engaging with the bookish communities I enjoy online – however, I’ve been going through a new season of my life this year – and for whichever reason, I have found 2021 a far harder year than 2020. If you pull down the sidebar menus for both years, you’ll see the keen differences and how much less I’ve been active on my blog in regards to monthly averages for posts. The fact you’ve stuck by me and continue to visit my blog means a lot this year and I am hoping as Autumn and Winter start to take hold –  perhaps, I can carve out a few more hours to read as my schedule starts to find its own rhythm and offer a bit of graceful respite to soak into stories.

Mostly — my goal is to read and listen a bit to the stories each day/night and blog my progresses whilst remaining museful of what awaits me as I progress forward! Maybe I’ll entice you into seeking out one of the stories yourself, too. Wouldn’t that be grand?!

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So, what exactly is on my #SpooktasticReads TBR?

Let’s just say I took the 13x days
AND spun it into a 13x story readathon!

I won’t be revealling ALL 13x titles at once,
but you’ll find them being featured throughout the fortnight!

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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

  • #SpooktasticReads 2021
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Posted Wednesday, 20 October, 2021 by jorielov in #SpooktasticReads, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Memes, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, Jorie Loves A Story Features, Twitterland & Twitterverse Event, WWW Wednesdays