Saturday Spotlight - Miss Danaidae

Today, I will introduce you to an awesome person who frequently is commenting on my blog and leaving me lovely messages that light up my day. Her blog is equally as awesome. :)

Name: Jazz
Nickname and/or blog name: Miss Danaidae
Blog URL: http://missdanaidae.blogspot.com


Tell me a bit about yourself.
I'm an aspiring writer who loves to read as much as I love to write. I'm a junior in college studying English Fiction Writing with a specialization in Children's Literature. When I'm not reading or blogging, I'm running around Pittsburgh finding adventure.

I call myself Miss Danaidae because I am obsessed with butterflies, and the Danaidae family includes my favorite butterfly, the gold monarch.


When and why did you start your blog?
I created my blog in June during the YA Book Carnival. I decided to start blogging because I wanted a place to talk about things that are fun and important to me in the world of literature. I also want to make friends in this amazing book blogging community and see what other bloggers and authors have to say about the books we are all reading.

What is your blog all about? Any cool features you want to share?
I read YA fantasy/sci-fi mostly so you'll see a lot of reviews from that genre, but I also read books for adults and the occasional nonfiction book as well. I've just started to post author spotlights where I talk about authors I like that I feel aren't getting good representation in the blogging world, at least from what I've seen.

As I said, I'm an aspiring writer so I will be posting some of my own fiction. This summer I'm working on the first novel, The 7 Steps to Becoming a Vampire, and will be looking for beta readers soon.

Making people laugh is very important to me so I hope I can succeed in entertaining my readers.

Do you have a review system? If you do, would you like to explain it for us?
I just finalized it. The rating changed from "bowls" of strawberries" to "wingspreads" to fit the name Danaidae.
1 wingspread = Terrible plot, terrible characters, terrible writing. Don't waste your time.
2 wingspreads = The author put some effort into this, but I don't know how anyone thought of it as publishable.
3 wingspreads = A good piece. Lots of room for improvement, though.
4 wingspreads = Wonderful piece! It gave me almost everything I want out of a narrative.
5 wingspreads = Perfect. Rich in writing style and themes.

I also give .5s to works that fall between two ratings.

Any tips or advice for those starting or thinking about starting a blog?

If you want to start a blog, make sure you have something to say other than "I like this" or "I didn't like this." We want to know why your opinions are the way they are so we can consider them in relation to our own. Then we have lots to talk about!

Don't be afraid to give a bad review, and don't say you like something when you don't. Authors and readers alike appreciate honesty.

Have fun with your blog! Taking yourself too seriously will lead to stress and stress leads to a bunch of nouns that lead to the dark side. Don't worry about updating constantly. It is good to update often, but content is more important than frequency.

What are some of your favorite genres and/or books currently?
Fantasy is my all time favorite genre! Fantasy/sci-fi stories tell us about impossible situations with themes that parallel our world's social problems.

I love vampires (scary ones, not the sparkly kind) and werewolves. But if I had my choice I would certainly become a Dracula over a werewolf.

I'm also into history, philosophy, fairy tales (traditional, retellings, and modern originals), and anything that has something to say about humanity.


Can you see why I love her blog? Well go and look closer if you're not convinced by the interview.. and leave a comment while you're there! :)

Are you a new blogger too? Or just getting back into the swing of blogging? Do you want to be featured on my blog? Shoot me an email at bittahsweetharmony@yahoo.com.