Read or Rot - our blog about their blog

Blog name: Read or Rot

Blog link:  https://readorrot.com/blog/

Social media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ReadorRot/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3887202-susan-van-der-walt

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ReadRot

Pinterest:  https://za.pinterest.com/susanvanderwalt9/_created/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toreadorrot/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susanvanderwaltfreelancer/




A little introduction:

I've started reading at the age of 4, and I was hooked. I grew up in a family of readers, and the highlight of our week was the trip to the library every Friday. 

Many interests came and went in my life, but reading is the one that always stays!

I am horrified to think that reading may become a dying art. It is why I want to help parents with my blog to raise a reader. 


What made you start your blog?

I was retrenched in 2018 and first tried to make a living as a Virtual Assistant. That never took off, and I realized that my lifelong passion is reading. So I've started my book blog to help authors get exposure and recommend great books to readers. 

As an affiliate, I also recommend resources like book subscriptions and bibliotherapy (consultations and book prescriptions). I am hoping to be accepted with Amazon or Barnes & Noble soon. 

Which part of having the blog do you love most?

Reading - of course! Although I sure wish I could learn to read faster to read more books. However, I love writing reviews as well. As I look back to my previous reviews, I can see how much more I find in the books than when I've started.

I've always loved research as well, so I enjoy writing articles related to my blog - about things related to reading, writing, bibliotherapy, and I've done a series about language development. 

I also love doing reviews for book tours - I have been chosen as a favourite reviewer for Blackthorn Book Tours (for Asylum and Kolkata Noir) and Blackberry Book Tours (Ronin cleans his room like a ninja). 

I remember always having this reverence for authors (in the good old days of printed books), and meeting any author was very unlikely.) I love connecting with authors (mainly on Twitter) and the author interviews I post on my blog. It made me realize they are also human like me, but I still have that reverence for them - anyone that can pen so many words to take you to a different world should all have our respect!


Where did the name for your blog come from? 

Reading for me is like breathing. If I cannot read, my soul will quietly rot away…


What do you love most about books? 

For me, books have always been a way of escape. As a child, it was the way I've dealt with being different and the social isolation that came with my hearing loss. And even as an adult, you have to deal with so many hard things - like losing your parents, retrenchment, etc. 

But besides escaping by reading fiction, reading is also a way for me to learn with non-fiction books about any topics that interest me.


What genres do you blog about?

My favourite genres to read and blog about are thrillers, crime, suspense, archaeological adventure (think Clive Cussler, Kevin Tomlinson). I also love true stories and try to also review books out of my comfort zone. 

But since my mission with my blog is #raiseareader - to help parents raise children who love to read - I am now focusing more on children and YA books. 

What are your favourite books?

I love any books by Max Lucado, and my favourite genre is archaeological adventure. I've started reading this genre with books by Clive Cussler and fell in love with Dirk Pitt. I've discovered many great authors in this genre since.

I love the Genevieve Lenard series. It was the first time ever I've just kept on buying the next book immediately until I've reached the end, which at that stage was book 11. It is about an autistic heroine. Although I see, I'll have to catch up on books 12 - 15!

I also love medical thrillers and true stories - like:

Fractured not Broken - Kelly Schaefer

Spilled Milk - K.L. Randis

Brain on Fire - Cabalan Susannah  


What are your 3 top reads from the last year?

  • Brain on Fire - A true story
  • Room 119 & Funicular by TF Lince (I am waiting for his 3rd book). He dreams his stories and comes up with never-ending plot twists. I've reviewed Funicular and also have an interview with him on my blog.
  • Solomon by Gail Gillmore is the true story of a stray dog who they couldn't catch and who has found his forever home on his own terms.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Book review - An Enemy Like Me by Teri M. Brown

Image
Book - An Enemy Like Me Author - Teri M. Brown Rating -  Review: Set in World War 2, this book sees a first generation American who has grown up in Germany faced with the ultimate decision of whether he should fight for his country or remain and be with his wife and child.  Jacob has grown up with a respect for his German heritage but a deep love for America, he has changed his surname to be more American and so when America is plunged into the war due to the attack on Pearl Harbour Jacob decides it is time to join the war effort and face the Japanese but what happens when he is forced to face an enemy who he has a closer understanding to and sees more of himself in than he could ever have imagined? This is a superbly written book and sees chapters going over parts of the story from different peoples perspectives which enables the reader to get a full emotional picture of just how tough a number of life decisions are before and then during the war (from the American perspective).  The
Read more

Feed My Reads Awards 2022 and your winners are

Image
Welcome to your Feed My Reads Awards 2022 blog post to confirm our winners, we hugely appreciate just how massive this awards has been and the number of smiles you have created by nominating, voting and spreading the word. For those of you wishing to view the full ceremony you can do so here -  youtu.be/KQb3mBbVBoM Without further delay we are pleased to announce your winners are -  Author Interview of the year - our joint winners are  Maximilian Sam , John St. Clair , Ellie Lieberman Biggest Indie Supporter of the year - Lee Hall Book Blogger of the year - our joint winners are  Bookaholic Bex , Sharing is Caring Book Blog with Dawn , Bobs and Books Book Cover - Maximilian Sam for It's a Stray Dog's Life Book Reviewer - Jane at Tweetables.com Book Seller - Bert's Books Childrens Book of the year -  Maximilian Sam  for It's a Stray Dog's Life Comedy Book of the year -  Maximilian Sam  for It's a Stray Dog's Life Community Member of the year - our joint winn
Read more

Francessca Bella interview

Image
AUTHOR INTERVIEW     A little introduction: My name is Francessca Bella, author of Mazarine Dreamer, and I'm creative, writerly, artistic, studious, organized, striving, productive, insightful, an INTJ, and I thrive with verbomania.  My favorite words are  rarissima , fanasticality, peachy-keen,  vivace , and automagical.  When did your love of books begin? Books and art filled my mind, time, and imagination since childhood when I read voraciously and drew daily. My imagination always was activated and kept active  through the creative mediums. When did you start to have the wish to become an author? I lived as uniquely as fiction, residing in a new state, a new world, every other month and loving it; despite going to 36 different schools I graduated with a 4.0 GPA and went to college where my desire to become an author began with my mother as my inspiring encouragement-giver and co-writer. Looking back now, 29 manuscripts later, it seems like a walk through the park to get that f
Read more