BBAW Interview Swap featuring Janicu's Book Blog

I want to give a big welcome to Janice, my BBAW interview swap partner. Janice and I struggled a bit over the questions to ask, striving for a certain level of originality/creativity, but I think what we came up with gives a great look at our blogs, plus a little bit about ourselves. So, without further ado, I present the blogger also known as Janicu:

1. Tell us about yourself and your blog. 

Hello. I'm Janice, although I go by Janicu on my blog (pronounced Janice-oo). My blog is Janicu's Book Blog, although I'm seriously considering renaming it.  I live in Westchester, NY with my husband and our naughty cat. I started my blog back in 2007.  It all started because I had a new years resolution to read 100 books, and since I have an awful memory, I wanted to keep track of the books I read.  I mostly review speculative fiction, often with a romantic slant (I love happy endings), but I also review young adult and romance too (my favorites of these are the contemporaries).

I usually work on my blog in my spare time (end of the day, weekends). Probably in a given week I can spend 10-20 hours reading and working on the blog. Even when it's a couple of reviews, that's a lot of time, but I enjoy it. It gets kind of cathartic to have my thoughts on a book worked out and posted, and I always have that mental list of books I need to write a review for. I don't really do memes, but that's more because I am not sure I could keep doing it consistently than because of anything against them. I really, really suck at book challenges and have yet to complete even one. On the other hand, I love readathons. :) The best thing of course is the other people. I am sure everyone says this, but it's true. Meeting other book bloggers (or just plain book nerds - recognizable because they are excited to see you holding a book they liked), it's like Meeting Your People.

BBAW Interview with Eva from A Striped Armchair

This being my first year blogging, I was thrilled with the idea of an interview swap. There is still so much that I feel I need to learn, so having a seasoned veteran like Eva from A Striped Armchair as my interview partner has been great. To check out the other side of the interview (my answers) click here.

Without any further ado, I present Eva:

You say you read as often as possible, how many hours per week do you think would be the average?

Let's see...my reading is cyclical. When I get really sick, I can't read at all, and I watch a ton of TV and movies. Then when I'm feeling a little better, I got on a total reading binge because I've missed it so much, reading 8-10 hours a day. Then I'll settle back to normal, which is probably 3-5 hours a day. So that's what, 21-35 hours a week? Probably closer to the 35! (This is just book-reading,not internet-reading!)

After all the places you've lived in or visited, where would you chose to stay , if given the choice (money, etc, are no object)?

I'm a Texan at heart, but my number one life goal is to live all around the world (I want to live on each continent but Antarctica at least once). So I'm not sure if I'd pick one place to stay forever,but there are three cities I'd go back to in a heartbeat to live a few years: Edinburgh, Cairo, and St. Petersburg.

Was there a specific person/blogger that helped to get you started on your own blogging adventures?

Right at the end of 2006, I somehow stumbled across Iliana's bookblog, Bookgirl's Nightstand (www.bookgirlnet). I immediately wanted a book blog for myself. :) But I didn't have a mentor.

Are you fluent in Russian and/or French?

I don't like the word 'fluent,' lol. But I'm very comfortable with Russian in all aspects, verbal and written. As far as French, I'm much better at reading and writing, since I didn't study abroad there. I took Latin in high school, which makes the French vocab a bit easier too. :)

Is there a particular book or series of books that you tend to read over and over?

Any time I'm feeling really down, I turn to a Jane Austen book. This year, I'm rereading Laurie King's Mary Russell detective series, which has been great! And if I need a lift, I prefer childhood favourites like Anne of Green Gables. I used to reread books all of the time,but since getting into book blogging I've sort of stopped doing that.:/ I want to get back into it though!

Until you have your perfect reading nook set up, where do you do most of your reading?

I have four main reading spots in my house: the couch in the living room, which is great because I can lay on it or turn the end into an easy chair (it has foot rest) and it's right near an outlet. Since I have to use a heating pad to help my muscles a lot, the couch is my fave right now. Then there's the backyard porch. I have a gorgeous backyard that turns into foothills of the Rockies, with deer often stopping by. We have great patio furniture with super-padded chairs,and during great weather I'm out there a lot. Then there's the bathtub-soaking in super hot water is a good way to help fibro, so my tub is tricked out. I have a padded bathmat in there, as well as the perfect inflatable terrycloth pillow. And an awesome pumpkin spice candle I can easily spend two hours in the bath! Finally there's my bed, which I don't use that frequently since it doesn't provide as much neck support. But I might read there right before I fall asleep. And it's where I lay when I'm too sick to read and thus listening to audiobooks.

Have you ever tried writing anything (other than what's required at school)?

Nope. Well, back when I was in elementary school I wrote a book series set in Australia with characters like Peter the Platypus and Katie the Kangaroo. But I have no real interest in writing fiction!I have started keeping a journal again recently, and I kept one when Iowas studying abroad in Russia. Nothing for publication, though,outside of academic stuff!
Are you connected with any other online book related site (like LibraryThing or Goodreads)?
I used Shelfari for maybe two weeks. lol But no-book blogs keep me busy enough as it is! If I spent any more time online, I'd never get any books read.

You are very honest on your blog about your condition. Have you ever read a fictional book where there's a character that has fibromyalgia?

I haven't, and I'm not sure that I'd want to. (I have read nonfic stuff about fibro; my favourite is A Delicate Balance: Living Successfully with Chronic Illness.) Unless the author actually had fibro, I'm sure that a fictional character would just annoy me. There are so many misconceptions and prejudices out there about fibro; when they started advertising that prescription med for it, I hated it.Now, when I tell new people I have fibro, half the time I get a response similar to "Oh, like those whiny old women in the commercials?" But I've veered off onto a whole different issue!