As part of Book Blogger Appreciation Week, I swapped interviews with another blogger. I was lucky to meet Jackie of Farmlane Books. Jackie's blog is a great read, so be sure to check it out. And not only does she blog, she runs an online bookstore-how cool is that?
Me: I love the heading for your blog. Did you pick the books to put on it or is a random snapshot of your bookshelf?
Jackie: Thanks! That is a photograph of my bookshelf, but I admit to moving a few books around so that all my favourite authors appeared.
Me: What is your favorite genre to read?
Jackie: I don’t really have a favourite genre - I like reading anything that has a great plot and strong characters. I suppose that I mainly read adult fiction or literary fiction, but my favourite book of 2009 so far is The Hunger Games (a YA book) and I also recently enjoyed The Strain (a horror thriller)
Me: I Iove The Hunger Games-I hope you get to read Catching Fire soon!
Why did you start blogging?
Jackie: I started blogging as a way of recording thoughts on the books I’d read and to try to find people with a similar taste in books. Few of my real life friends read, so it is wonderful to discover a whole community of people who share my passion for books.
Me: I agree-I love that there are other bookworms out there like me!
What is your favorite thing about blogging?
Jackie: Before I started blogging my TBR pile contained about 5 books. I often struggled to find books that I enjoyed reading, randomly picking up books that appealed from the library shelves, frequently with disappointing results. The amazing recommendations of other bloggers has grown my TBR pile to over 500 books. The quality of the books I read has increased dramatically and I have a renewed passion for reading.
Me: Do you have a favorite blogging moment?
Jackie: I love so many things about blogging. I never dreamt that it would lead to conversations with authors and publishers, but my top moment was probably being cited as one of the top book blogs in the UK.
Me: Wow-top book blogs in the UK-congrats!!I saw that you gave up your job to start selling books online? What is that like?
Jackie: I love selling books! I love being surrounded by books and the freedom of being able to work from home, choosing my own hours. I can spend as long as I like researching books on the Internet and it is all work! I now have about 7000 books in my house, so it is like living in my own book shop - a dream come true!
Me: I've always wanted to live in a bookstore-so jealous! :)
Since you're in England, do you notice a difference between books published there and books published in the US? Is there a book that you would love to see make it's way over to the US?
Jackie: I do notice a difference between the UK and US book market, but I often exploit it for my book business. I’m lucky in that I can normally import any book I want to read then sell it in my online store. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford is one book which I’d love to see picked up by a UK publisher. I have heard that it is amazing.
Thanks Jackie! And be sure to check out her blog: Farmlane Books
Jackie is very fortunate to be able to make books her profession as well as her favorite pasttime. Discussion of the differences in the market would be a great bunch of posts for her blog!
ReplyDeleteI always wanted to ask Jackie about the header too but always forgot :)
ReplyDeleteAnd I envy Jackie for living in an "almost" library...
Super interview -- Jackie is on my daily rounds so I loved hearing more about her. I would love to see her "bookstore" stash!
ReplyDeleteI would kill to live in a house with 7,000 books! Luckily, I do have a small library but nowhere near that size.
ReplyDeleteGreat interview, Sarah!
7,000 books... wow.. I felt a pang of jealousy when I read that line. Great interview!
ReplyDeleteWow, her job sounds so cool! I would love to make a living selling books, and doing it out of my house would be even nicer. I don't think anyone else in my family would be that accepting of 7000 books in the house though. :) Great interview!
ReplyDeleteSarah, Thank you so much for being my interview partner - it was great!
ReplyDeleteAlyce, My family are surprisingly tolerant of my books. It is my three-year-old who objects the most. "mummy has too many books!"
Great interview! It's nice getting to know you and Jackie more through these interviews! :)
ReplyDeleteI'm happy to learn more about Jackie, and to discover your blog!
ReplyDeleteGreat interview. Jackie has a lovely writing voice, and I'm so jealous of her houseful of books! That sounds an awful lot like heaven. Awesome post!
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