I’m Janet, though I prefer to be called Jan and I hail from the North East of England where the weather’s often colder and windier than I’d like as I’m a real sun worshipper. However, I live just half an hour away from stunning Wensleydale in North Yorkshire,
...Home of cheese...
beautiful Durham city and the rugged North East coast and the proximity to beautiful places I can spend time almost makes up for the inclement weather.
How long have you been blogging and what is the name of your blog?
I’ve had my book blog BeadyJansBooks for 6 years now.
And how do you fit all this reading into your life? (marriage/kids/job)
I have a very understanding partner, he indulges my book habit despite not being a very keen reader himself. We have no children, so I probably have a bit more time than many women and I only work part time. We have a lovely quiet static caravan in the Dales where we spend a lot of our weekends and it’s the perfect place to curl up and read. I still find there are always more books I want to read than I’m able to though and I’m not a terribly fast reader. I wish I could learn to read in my sleep – 8 extra hours a day that I could spend reading!!
Now there's an idea...
What keeps you blogging?
It’s become such a huge part of my life I couldn’t imagine ever not blogging, now. I began because I have nobody in my life who I can discuss books with and I love to share my thoughts about books I’ve loved and help others to discover books they’ll love. My late Mum passed on her love of books to me and we often used to read the same book and discuss it, we even read a few books aloud to each other taking it in turns to read. She’d have been so proud to read my blog.
I bet she would.
What is your favourite genre?
I much prefer books by women authors and I’m following the trend for what is (sadly) becoming known as “grip-lit” - fast paced, roller coaster psychological chillers with unexpected twists which make you hold your breath and Domestic Noir, gritty family dramas where ordinary women face extraordinary and unthinkable situations to make you shudder.
Oh, not heard of grip-lit. Would they be called thrillers if men had written them? Don't get me started!
Are you an e-reader or a paperback girl?
Both! Nothing beats receiving and holding (stroking, sniffing) a physical book. But I really love my e-reader which means I can always have a book with me wherever I go. I even read a lot on my smart phone kindle app, as I can read a quick few pages wherever I can grab 5 minutes. E-books are convenient in other ways too I can adjust the text size and font to make it easier to read which is sometimes a problem with print books which occasionally have really small print that gives me a headache!
Who would you cast as the male lead for a romantic movie of your life? (artistic license expected!)
Hmm it would have to be Aidan Turner of Poldark fame (for purely aesthetic appeal) as long as I could play me of course ;)
It might please you to know that this picture is filed with yours in my blog/writing file on my computer, Jan. In the same vain, I keep a picture of myself at 15 in my HotMen file. I thought she would appreciate it! LOL
Do you have a favourite classic?
I don’t read many classics these days, there are SO many great new authors emerging all the time. I do hold a particular fondness for Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, which is one of the titles I studied for GCE English and was also one of the books I read aloud with my Mum so it has great memories.
What are you reading at the moment?
Right this moment I’m reading The Girl Who Lied by Linda Huber it’s a romantic mystery with a few twists and turns about lies from your past catching up with you.
Oh, she's good. Well thanks for taking the time to come on and talk to me, Jan. And if you want to hear more from Jan, click on the link above. :-)