Category: JLAS Update Post

#StoriesOfJorie | Not your traditional #ThanksgivingWeekend: my Dad had a stroke.

Posted Sunday, 27 November, 2016 by jorielov , , 10 Comments

Jorie Loves A Story Blog Banner created by Jorie in Canva using Unsplash.com photography by Ben White. (Creative Commons Zero)

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Hallo, Hallo dear hearts

— it’s been a long 24hrs for me and my family.

Photo Credit: Unsplash Photographer Neil Austin. (Creative Commons Zero)
Photo Credit: Unsplash Photographer Neil Austin. (Creative Commons Zero)

Sometimes life throws you more than a curveball – sometimes you wake up to find challenges as *big!* as boulders placed on your path. Yet there is always the hope of tomorrow lingering in the background – you just have to find the strength to live through the rocky bits first & then find your rhythm lateron.

Blessedly, we are not oft given foreshadows about our future paths – in this particular case, I am grateful I entered *November* thinking about all the lovelies (stories) I would be focusing on whilst blogging my heart out about Science Fiction & the Futuristic Fiction I love consuming on a yearly basis. I was so thankful to have a full month to hone in on the stories themselves whilst sorting out how to arrange the month-long Sci-Fi Fest here on Jorie Loves A Story. As you can see by the schedule I posted the very first days of November (view this post) everything was set to be a smashingly lovely month!

Until I faltered a bit the first week of November, losing my footing for a short bit in my readings as I found that particular week emotionally draining. I recaptured my readerly heart by reading two stories pertinent to Current Events I felt were beckoning me to read at that particular time before I could proceed forward into the Sci-Fi worlds I had earmarked to alight inside – those two stories were spilt between fiction (see this Review) and non-fiction (see this review). Everything I wanted to say are on those two posts, including the recapture of what I shared on Twitter, as I let others who posted tweets express what was weighing on my mind at the time, whilst tweeting out a simple note of my own, too.

It wasn’t until the 15th of November, I truly felt I was gaining traction again – which is why I started to release my posts starting with a beautiful guest post by Julie E. Czerneda (read about her Web Shifters series) and sharing my reviews of: Remnant in the Stars (see Review) and The Loudest Actions (see Review) as well as a guest feature (this interview) before I took ill. My migraines returnt for a short while as well, leaving me wrecked to proceed. I’ve been dealing with my migraines off/on since Spring, as they had left me for 10 months from May 2015 til March 2016 before resuming at the end of Summer; until this month, of course. I had been finding my headaches were reducing by off-setting my readings of print books with audiobooks – my own version of ‘art therapy’ as I colour (adult colouring books) whilst I listen to audiobooks (as disclosed on my first Audiobook Review); by the time the story concluded I did not even remember all the colours I selected and am quite amazed at the end results! It’s the third time between my late twenties and late thirties I’ve recaptured a bit of Zen for myself! The first was through Mixed Media Art Collages (small scale – think ATC (Artist Trading Cards), rubberstamp art, handmade cards & painting bisque pottery and the second was through learning how to knit a hybrid variant between the American and Continental (British) styles. Read More

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Posted Sunday, 27 November, 2016 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Birthdays & Blogoversaries, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, Jorie Loves A Story Features, Sci-Fi November, Stories of Jorie

2015 End of the Year Reading Survey : The stories behind #JLASblog’s 2nd Year!

Posted Thursday, 31 March, 2016 by jorielov , 2 Comments

2015 End of the Year Survey badge created by Jorie in Canva.

The Questions for the 2016 End of the Year Survey are posted by Jaime @ the Perpetual Page Turner, who created this survey as a personal reflection of her year of bookish wanderings and readings, and never thought it would turn into a book blogosphere yearly event! I am thankful she encourages us all to participate as I would have last year but felt I hadn’t yet sprouted my bookish wings as I have this year!

2015 Reading & Posting Stats:

Number of Re-Reads: 0 | definitely something I should work on resolving!

Number of Classical Fiction: 0 | #epicfail | lest I say more?

Number of Novellas and/or Short Story Collections: 3

2015 was a definitive year where I fell head over heels in love with *shorts!* So much so, one of the collections wasn’t able to be read/reviewed by year’s end (‘Scarecrow’) and it’s closely followed by two more from World Weaver Presses *awesome!* releases: ‘Frozen Fairy Tales’ and ‘Far Orbit’!! I was unexpectedly delayed from posting the rest of my reviews for this beautiful publisher. They resume this Spring, starting in April 2016.

Number of Books Read of a Publisher (Top 5):

{ full listing of publishers I review as I read }

(1)  Small Trade | Indie Pub/Press | Self-Pub or Hybrid = 54 Books (mix of fiction & non-fiction)

I elected to combine every which way to Sunday an author can be an ‘Indie Author’

(2) Cedar Fort Publishing & Media = 35 Books (mix of fiction, non-fiction & cookery)

I reviewed quite a few non-fiction and cookbooks in 2015 ontop of the fiction releases

(3) HarperCollins Publishers = 16 Books

William Morrow and the P.S. Editions still remain my most read choices

(4) ChocLitUK = 6 Books (of multiple sub-genres within Romance)

My reading queue was lower this year due to health & those lightning storms!

(5)  Penguin Random House = 6 (should have been 7 with The Little Paris Bookshop)

I find the break-downs per year the most interesting; especially as my inclinations to read Indie Authors increases each year. Mind you, I love Major Trade and I think if I could reach the point where I read 50% of both Indie and Major Trade markets per year, I’ll be quite happy indeed! I’m a hardcore Indie girl / reader, but I cannot dismiss the fact I still *love!* Major Trade!

The publishers where I read less than five were as follows:

Simon and Schuster | Hachette | Kensington | MacMillian | Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Number of Blog Tours Hosted: 83
(individual blog tours – some had multiple posts spilt between reviews & author guest features)

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Novels: 88

Short Stories: 20

Inside “Corvidae” (review)

  • Whistles and Thrills by Kat Otis
  • The Rookery of Sainte-Mère-Église by Tim Deal
  • Raven No More by Adria Laycraft
  • The Tell-Tale Heart of Existence by Michael M. Rader
  • Sanctuary by Laura VanArendonk Baugh
  • Flight by Angela Slatter
  • The Valravn by Angela Slatter
  • Visiting Hours by Michael S. Pack
  • A Murder of Crows (a poem) by Jane Yolen

Inside “Rift in the Sky” | blogged on 1st Trade Pact (review)

Stonerim III

Inside “A Thousand Words for Stranger” (review)

Brothers Bound

Inside “FAE” (review)

  • Rosie Red Jacket by Christine Morgan
  • Antlers by Amanda Block
  • Only Make Believe by Lauren Liebowitz
  • The Cartography of Shattered Trees by Beth Cato

Inside “Darkness with a Chance of Whimsy” (review)

  • The Assurance Salesman
  • Fade
  • Do Better
  • Inner Strength
  • Starter Kit

Non-Fiction: 13

Cookery: 9

Pages read: 34,073

(+1) Alaina Claiborne | I only was able to read the opening chapters

(+1) Devil in the White City | listened to the audiobook and read the hardback (a quarter of the book)

(+1) The Barter  | read the opening chapters (in-progress late December)

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Let’s break this down a bit further, shall we?

You can use this as a ‘preview guide’ of how to use my Story Vault.

2015 Year End Quote badge created by Jorie in Canva.

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Posted Thursday, 31 March, 2016 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, End of the Year Survey, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story

A story about a girl who loves to read + blog her reading life, yet acknowledges in two years she’s lost two beloved companions with fur.

Posted Sunday, 17 January, 2016 by jorielov 6 Comments

Stories of Jorie | A Feature of Jorie Loves A Story. Jorie Loves A Story Badge created by Ravven with edits by Jorie in PicMonkey.

I walked into [2016] with a happy heart knowing a fresh new chapter was emerging, both in my personal life and in my blogging life. I believe most book bloggers carry with them a certain shoulder of guilt for the stories they have not yet had the pleasure of finishing to read or books they very much intended to get their hands on over the past twelvemonth but time, tide and life interfered with their plans. I was even starting to blog about this myself whilst composing the thoughts I’ll be sharing with you towards the end of January now (as let’s be frank, my heart isn’t willing to finish such a happy post at the moment) when I finally reveal my End of the Year Survey, 2016. Close to publishing this incredible journal of the past year’s reads of whom have touched me and challenged me the most, will be the missing journals for End of the Year Surveys 2014 + 2013. Including the wicked sweet disclosure of creating a special acknowledgement on behalf of the stories who gave me the most bookish love!

I’m stepping ahead of myself, as although most of my dear hearted readers (and the lovely friends I have in the twitterverse) are already aware of – I had some health afflictions towards the close of the year [2015]. As a whole, [2015] was a difficult year but I tried not to let those difficulties leave me too downtrodden to read or to blog. I did fall behind quite a heap, especially when the lightning storms all but destroyed my ability to blog as I lost equipment, my connectivity, etc. whilst picking up the pieces afterwards and resuming where I left off. Fast forward to November, where I was snuggled inside The Clan Chronicles by Julie E. Cznerneda where body, mind, heart and soul were entwined inside those pages of the prequel trilogy to such an extent, for the first time I’ve been a book blogger I had forsaken sleep [all 37 hours!] to consume them! I was so entrenched into the heart of Cersi and the Clan, I felt as if a part of me had become a part of that world. It was a beautiful experience because it’s been quite awhile since I’ve felt so deeply etched inside an author’s vision for their world and felt such a passionate response for a serial fiction spilt into individual trilogies.

I felt I could recoup the lost hours of sleep and continuing with my plans for Sci Fi November, only to conclude that I had wrecked my sleep patterns a bit and needed to take it a bit slower. I had no idea I’d succumb to a horrid and intense virus in the opening weekend of December; a virus which left me shattered in energy and fully depleted of any zeal for reading or blogging as a whole. I read what I could and blogged in-between fits of coughing and sneezing bouts; but as the month progressed, I simply wanted to feel ‘well’ again. Being so ill over the Christmas holidays was brutal, but I knew in time, I would rebound and gain traction towards overcoming the virus that took everything I had to give.

By New Year’s Day, I felt more like myself than I had in over a month, and I slowly started to settle back inside the books I had to abandon and the blog posts I left half-written. Everything was moving closer to my ‘normal’ as we all have a balance of what we love to do and what we give to our bookish blogs and social media outlets. For me, re-finding the joy I happily share after such a long battle with a virus felt good to my soul and helped enliven my spirit a bit. I still felt a bit down about how I ended the year, as I had wanted so dearly to spend it with the stories — including a few new-to-me-authors of whom I’ve only recently met through working with new publishers.

Ms Örnbratt’s ‘The Particular Appeal of Gillian Pugsley” and Ms. Kincheloe’s ‘The Secret Life of Anna Blanc’ are amongst the titles I was going to read in December. I even wanted to finish reading ‘Naked’ by Ms Redgold as I had had the pleasure of hosting her for a guest feature on her blog tour. Two beautiful historicals by Indie Authors I dearly wanted to dig inside were ‘Return to Me’ by Carolyn Menke and ‘The Fragrant Concubine’ by Melissa Addey. Lest I mention, how much I am itching to return inside The Clan Chronicles where I left part of my heart.

Before I disappeared again for the past week or so, I was finishing my thoughts on behalf of ‘Remarkable Minds + Magnificent Minds’ by the Indie Publisher Tumblehome Learning, of whom have given an incredible breadth of biographical non-fiction for young readers who are keenly interested and invested in the Sciences. I was about to proceed into ‘Kepler and the Universe’ shortly thereafter, as this was a non-fiction work which intrigued me from Prometheus Books. I had other selections upcoming from World Weaver Press, Cedar Fort, Indie Authors and a smorgasbord of others. If your a regular reader or follower of mind, you know I read diversely dancing through genres and literary destinations.

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I tweeted out a hinting that something was afoot when I revealled this only last week:

I honestly did not know how to break the news on my blog (having the tendency of being a private person who doesn’t overly share her personal life) nor through the feeds of mine on Twitter; I decided I should mention something if anything untoward might happen. This is back when I felt my petite little cat who had so much light and love inside her was in need of a dental extraction and nothing more major than emergency surgery but it was a wait/see situation as initially as she was eating and talking up a storm, the Vet felt it could self-correct or if she discontinued eating, we’d book her in for an exam. Either way, we were monitoring her condition and her prognosis looked good for an 11 year old cat. I was concerned because in recent years (i.e. read ‘two years’) I have gone through quite a horrific loss with another companion with fur. You brace yourself for such things, even when something appears routine. Health issues in felines such as in our own lives are never quite as they appear but we still thrive on the Hope that all is not quite as bad as it could be.

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Two years, Two cats badge created by Jorie in Canva.

Read my post about the first loss of a companion with fur from [2013].

IF I had a precognitive notion I’d be a 2nd Year Book Blogger on the brink of becoming a 3rd Year Book Blogger composing her ‘second notice of loss’ of a dearly beloved companion with fur, I am uncertain how I would have handled that advance insight. Your simply never prepared for saying ‘good-bye’ to someone you love and my animals have *always!* been members of my family. I know some might not agree with this, but for myself and my family, yes, it’s always been true. Read More

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Posted Sunday, 17 January, 2016 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Cats and Kittens, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, Jorie Loves A Story Features, Stories of Jorie

Stories of Jorie | Wicked exciting news, Jorie writes an essay about #Nanowrimo 2008! Otherwise known as the year Jorie reclaimed being a writer!

Posted Friday, 4 December, 2015 by jorielov , 0 Comments

Parajunkee Designs

It isn’t often someone takes you by surprise and gives you an opportunity to talk about something that is as intrinsically personal and revealling of your character, than to write a heart-felt essay about your experience as a writer during Nanowrimo! This was an essay that was pitched to me by Priya (the lovely bookish blogger I happily interviewed during Bloggerthon) who was hosting a *special inclusive* feature series about being a Wrimo from the point of view of participants and a writer (Ms Bogart) whose November novel not only published but curated the heart of what gives us who take-on the challenge of November such an uplift of creative synergy and inspiration!

Despite being an extroverted book blogger and a joyful tweeter, when it comes to turning the conversation round on my own writerly pursuits and endeavours, I tend to lean towards the mysteriously vague responses that only give small glimmers of what I am working on, as truthfully, my writerly path is still developing. It’s true, I’ve been a reader as long as I’ve been a writer, as the two paths intersected so very long ago, as a duality of passion and interest. Being a Creative Dyslexic Writer adds a bit of a unique splash to the story, but at the root of who I am, I’m the girl who loves stories and the craft of story-telling.

Therefore, without further adieu, I want to direct your attention to the following:

Nanowrimo 2008 Essay badge created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Public Domain Photographer Morgan Sessions.

Read my essay directly on Priya’s Lit Blog!

*UPDATE: February 2016* My essay is being re-posted on Priya’s blog during November 2016 due to technical issues that arose after it originally posted. I apologise for the inconvenience and hope you will return in November to see what I shared this past Autumn!

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Read my book blogger & writer’s biography via My Bookish Life

Visit my Guest Features, Interviews & Podcast Archive for more inspiring links!

I recently published a page about my approach to betareading as well!

Kindly leave your comments for me on Priya’s blog, tweet me on Twitter or return back to this post relating to me your thoughts and impressions on behalf of the essay & it’s message.

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May we all have a bookishly delightful life devouring the stories which enchant our hearts and minds with incredible depth of heart and soul story-lines.

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Comment Box Banner made by Jorie in Canva.

{Sources: Nanowrimo 2008 Essay badge created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Public Domain Photographer Morgan Sessions. Comment Box Banner made by Jorie in Canva. Blog News badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Tweets embedded due to codes provided by Twitter.}

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Posted Friday, 4 December, 2015 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Contributor Feature or Post, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story, Nanowrimo 2008, Stories of Jorie

Jorie celebrates her 2nd #blogovesary whilst embracing a new wicked sweet #histfic chat #HistoricalFix!

Posted Tuesday, 31 March, 2015 by jorielov 19 Comments

2nd Blogoversary Badge created by Jorie in Canva.

A full two years has eclipsed past me since I initially found the inspiration to create Jorie Loves A Story! If I were to be honest, I am not even sure how ‘two years’ have come past, but they have, and I’m proud of the work I’ve put into my blog inasmuch as the beautiful moments which have renewed my joy along the way. The ability to connect to my readers through the ruminative thoughts I leave behind on behalf of the stories I read, is a blessing I am full of thanksgiving to share with everyone who finds my bookish blog. Yet, it is the unexpected grace and bliss, to be able to connect directly to writers who pen the stories which alight inside my heart and imagination which has enriched my life with an infinite measure of gratitude. Today I am celebrating where I started, where I have transitioned forward, and everything still yet to come.

The hardest blog posts to compose are the ones where you want to celebrate all the lovely memories of the past year, and to do so without leaving anyone out of your notice. The trouble is I have a bad habit of forgetting to take notes along the way, and although my heart is full of gratitude and a multitude of memories are washing over me as I compose this note, I realise it is quite difficult to summerise a year as a book blogger because most of the time I am finding the ‘best moments’ are quite spontaneous and take me unawares during the hours in which I am both reading and blogging the stories you’ve come to appreciate reading about on Jorie Loves A Story. Read More

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Posted Tuesday, 31 March, 2015 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Birthdays & Blogoversaries, JLAS Update Post, Jorie Loves A Story