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Wednesday, January 15, 2014

What does Book Blitz Month Mean?


So, you've heard January is Book Blitz month.  Whoopie!  Now what?  Well, as an author I can answer that question.  Join in the fun.  Read!  Finish that book you started eons ago.  Yeah, the one that has the bookmark in it with a layer of dust.  Would you like some other suggestions as to how you can honor the month?  No?  Tough, I'm giving them to you anyway.

1.      Set a goal for the number of books you plan to read during the month.  We're almost halfway through the month now, so if you think you can only squeeze in one book, try this.  Determine the number of pages the book you've selected has, and divide that number by 15.  That's how many pages you'll need to read to finish the book by the 31st.  Easy peasy, right?
2.      Check with your friends and get suggestions for books they think you'd like, given your elite preferences in reading material, of course.  Then purchase or borrow the books and read them.  Amazon has a nice borrowing program for their eBooks that you and your friends can use if you both have Kindles.  No Kindle, no problem.  Your library is a good source of reading material, too.
3.      Ask your friends, or pick on one friend, to hold you accountable for your reading goal.  Hey, that's what friends are for, right?  To nag you?  (Only joking, sort of)
4.      Don't have time to read?  I bet you have time to listen while you're doing something else.  Try Audible or another audio book service and treat yourself to a book while you skip about doing other things.  (Don't do this at work, however.  They frown on this sort of thing.  Honest.)
5.      Another great time to read is while you're taking a relaxing bath.  Remember to lock the door, though, or someone may barge in just when you're get to "the good part."  Another thing to keep in mind is that e-readers aren't waterproof.  Nope.  Drop one in the bath and it's bye-bye e-reader.  However, you can seal it into a see-through plastic baggie and protect it that way.  If it's a touch screen, you may have trouble turning the pages, but if your device uses a button to flip, you should be fine.  No guarantees though.  I still wouldn't play games like "Dunk the baggie-wrapped Kindle and see if it floats."  Not a good idea.
 
Above all, you should have fun.  Reading is meant to be an enjoyable pastime, so enjoy it!  Now, stop playing on the net and go read.