Saturday Spotlight - Lisa the Nerd

Today I have a fun and nerdy girl with me who isn't afraid to spread her nerdy love of books!

Name: Lisa
Nickname and/or blog name: Lisa the Nerd
Blog URL: lisaisbusynerding.blogspot.com

Tell me a bit about yourself.
If it's nerdy, odds are I'll love it. I love board games, reading, video games and Batman. I like to think I'm not too socially awkward for life, but that may be generous...thankfully, I have a fabulous husband who is just as in love with (if not more, dare I say) nerdy things as I am. Together, we're two twenty-somethings living a very content life in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area where he grudgingly attends grad school and I excitedly work with teens.

When and why did you start your blog?
I actually started my blog as a part of a class for college about two years ago. I took a Young Adult Literature course that involved reading and evaluating YA Lit, and then having a Mock-Printz award at the end of the semester. We had to read and review books from different genres, and then decide (based on the same requirements of the Printz award) if they were worthy of nomination or not. It helped me to hone in on and express what makes a YA read "good" and worth sharing with others from an academic perspective. After the class was over, however, I found that I loved writing about YA lit as much as I loved reading it, so I kept on blogging! The blog name has changed and become a bit less sterile, and the format has been tweaked a bit...but otherwise I've stuck to my review system and am pretty darn happy with it.


What is your blog all about? Any cool features you want to share?
My blog is chiefly reviews. I don't do a whole lot of personal sharing or contests or anything like that - which is totally fun, just not for me. At least, not yet. Some cool features I have that are unique to my blog are that I sum up the book in a sentence or so (saving you, dear reader, from reading on if you're not interested) and then share my favorite quote from the book. I also make sure to note things I didn't like about the book. In the actual reviews, however, I try my best to keep unbiased and spoiler free.


What are some of your favorite genres and/or books currently?
I am a huge fantasy geek. It's true. I can't even be ashamed of it since my blog is all about me being nerdy. But I'm also excited about any book that features a main character that is quirky, snarky, faces challenges and is supported by characters I can relate to. A little romance doesn't hurt either. A book that I can't stop talking about and sharing with others is "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness. It opened my eyes to a whole new world of YA lit out there that was dark, gritty, emotional, and masculine...but is still something I could totally relate to.


How do you find out about the books you read?
Other bloggers are a huge help. I like to see what others are interested in and see if it speaks to me. I do like to take risks every once in awhile though, and have found some really great books that way. Sometimes choosing a book on display at the library or taking a chance on something that sounded cool based on the back is totally worth it. That's actually how I found out about "A Curse Dark as Gold" - it was just sitting on display at the library. I had heard absolutely nothing about it up until then, and took a chance. Needless to say, I'm glad I did.


Any tips or advice for those starting or thinking about starting a blog?
It's surprisingly fun. I would blog even if no one reads my posts. I feel a little sense of accomplishment in formulating my thoughts on a book and publishing them. I feel like it sharpens my critical eye and enhances my enjoyment of reading YA lit. So I'd advise to not think too much about what you're doing, but why you're doing the blog thing.

Thank you Lisa for stopping by today and telling us more about your blog! Check her blog out guys and share the nerdiness! :)


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 dragonzgoil (at) gmail (dot) com.