If you read and write women’s
fiction (like me), one of the best places to find book recommendations is book
blogs. Book bloggers have a huge influence with their reviews, and because
they’re on the internet, their outreach could be global.
Julie Valerie’s Book Blog is one
of my favorites, and it caused me to wonder about the woman behind the blog. So,
I was thrilled when she agreed to do this interview.
Amanda: Julie, what inspired you
to start a women’s fiction book blog?
Julie: I've always wanted to start
a blog and knew from the beginning that I should pick a topic I was passionate
about or risk losing interest, fall behind in posting, and eventually abandon
my blog and its readers. Because I absolutely love reading and writing, I don't
think I'll tire of it any time soon. (Like, never?) Each new book I read or
write gives new material to explore on my blog. Because stories and
storytelling are the lifeblood of what it means to be human, the possibilities
for blog content are endless. There can never be too many book blogs.
Amanda: What’s the first women’s
fiction novel you remember reading?
Julie: I remember getting
permission to read a novel off my grandmother's bookshelf during a family
vacation. I believe it was a Danielle Steele novel and from what I can remember
the storyline featured a main character who falls in love with a patient who
was disfigured in an accident. She later learns this patient is her husband,
believed to have been killed in an automobile accident. It was a "clean"
romance - one that was written without the slightest shade of gray (if you know
what I mean) and I believe I was around 13. I couldn't put the book down and
fell for the story hook, line, and sinker. It never occurred to me the patient
might also be her husband until she unwrapped the bandages and their eyes met.
Oh, my gosh. I cried!
Amanda: What’s your favorite book
and why?
Julie: Favorite book: the Bible.
Second favorite? Winnie-the-Pooh because something happened to me after reading
it for the first time as an adult. I was in college, read it from cover to
cover, and was so amazed by the writing and the author's ability to make
stuffed animals come life, that while I was reading it and certainly after I
put it down, I decided to get serious about my own writing.
Amanda: What women’s fiction novel
do you want to see on the big screen and who would play the protagonist?
Julie:
Love, Rosie by Cecelia Ahern because I loved P.S.
I Love You and I know it would be mawkish. In a good way. I love mawk.
Protagonist? Hhmm ... Natalie Portman because the novel takes place over a long
period of time and she can probably look youthful and mature all in the same
film.
Amanda: You’re a writer too. What
are you working on now?
Julie: I'm finishing a final draft
on a (hopefully) funny book about the culture of overachieving moms behind the
gates at Pimm's Academy, a fictional elementary school. I'm a mother of four
and often marvel at the impossible tasks we take on as mothers in our work
life, at home, and in the school life of our children. My book uses humor to
expose truth, and flirts with satire much like the Desperate Housewives
of Wisteria Lane (ABC TV Series, 2004-2012). I believe the title is going to be
Pimm's Academy: It's Not About You. It's About Her. I imagine this to be
book one in the Downward Spiral Notebook Series I've been developing.
Amanda: Is there a women’s fiction
trend you wish would die?
Julie: No, not at all. All books
and all trends in fiction have a place on the shelf so long as there are
readers to read them. I'm so grateful for the recent rise in indie and small
press publishing because I think readers are now able to get their hands on
books that don't have to follow any "declared" publishing trends or
have to first be vetted by a select group of people in New York.
GREAT ANSWER, JULIE!!
Amanda: If you could commission
any author, who would it be and what would you ask them to write about?
Julie: Jane Austen. I'd love to
see what she'd write about and how she'd write it if she were alive today.
Amanda: What is the best thing
about being a book blogger?
Julie: Hands down, the people you
meet through blogging. Blogging is like a conversation held over a cup of tea
(or coffee or glass of wine). You can sip and write, talking to yourself, and
if all that's accomplished is your own fulfillment of having contributed in
some small way to the word count in the universe, then that's enough. That's
wonderful, really, truly. It has to be a personal journey, first and foremost.
But then, you never know, someone might pass by, be interested in what you're
sipping and saying, and decide to sit with you for awhile. And if that happens,
well then, that's mighty fine, indeed!
Amanda: Thank you so much Julie
Valerie for engaging in this fun conversation with me! I hope we can chat again
soon.
Please check out Julie Valerie, Book Blogger & Writer
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