Posted on by susannevalenti · 23 Comments

The Reading Habits Tag 📚

  
Thanks to giovanna for tagging me! Check out her blog, it’s great! 😊

1. Do you have a certain place at home for reading?

I’m a bit of a Sheldon  😳 I have a spot on the couch and I don’t even like other people to sit there if I’m not there… I also take books up to bed too.

  
2. Bookmark or random piece of paper?

 I used to do random bits of paper but when one of my besties found out I was writing a book she got me a lovely bookmark which I now treasure. It means a lot to me because she believed in me and it always makes me smile when I open a book and find it! 

  
3. Can you just stop reading or do you have to stop at the end of a chapter / after a certain amount of pages?

I tend to binge read so I’ll be cramming a book into every available moment when I’m into it. That may mean I end up stopping randomly half way through a page and doing the shifty sideways bookmark malarkey! But I prefer to finish a chapter, although if it’s a cliffhanger I’ll read another page or two, or three…

4. Do you eat or drink while reading?

 Much to the detriment of my clothes the answer is yes lol. I tend to hold my book away safely but then I’m not paying enough attention to the fork – mouth ratio and sadly it doesn’t always end well. I know I shouldn’t do it but I can’t always bear to put a book down for something as boring as dinner 🍕

5. Multitasking: music or TV whilst reading?

I always have the TV on. Always. I find one thing alone doesn’t keep me occupied unless it’s really good (walking dead and game of thrones are pretty much the only shows I’ll give my full attention) and if a book sucks me in far enough then I’ll just block the TV out. But generally I can do both simultainiously and know exactly what’s going on in both. Maybe I’m odd but I’m okay with that 😊

IMG_0309
6. One book at a time or several on the go?

One book to rule them all! (Shameless lotr reference) if I’m in then I’m in and I don’t really do dnf. I’ll force my way through regardless and reserve my opinion until the very end. But generally I just get obsessed and zoom through books one after another so quickly that I don’t really consider picking up anything else.

7. Read at home or everywhere?

Everywhere! Home, work, car and if I’ll toss it in my handbag wherever I’m going just in case some free time appears. I actually enjoy waiting rooms lol. 

  
8. Read aloud or silently in your head?

In my head. Reading aloud is just words but in my head there’s a whole world of people and voices and places going on! 

9. Do you read ahead or skip pages?

Never!!! Sometimes I put my hand over the bottom of the page during something tense so I can’t even skip a few lines. 

  
10. Breaking the spine or keeping it new?

I don’t particularly do either. I don’t bend my books back on themselves but I do open them – I’m not going to squint into the middle just to avoid a crease on the spine. 

11. Do you write in books?

Why would I?

  
Tag, you’re it!

Notanotherfireyredhead

Claudette

Aura

Booksatdawn

Samer

Do it, don’t do it, I don’t mind! If anyone else fancies it then please go ahead and let me know that you did so I can read your answers too! Xoxo

Posted on by susannevalenti · 5 Comments

The freestyle writing challenge 🎉

Thanks to Caroline for nominating me for this cool challenge, I hope I do you proud! Check out her blog if you haven’t already – it’s really great.

So the challenge is as follows:

  1. Open a blank document. 
  2. Set a timer to 5 minutes. I’ve posted a topic at the bottom of this post for you to use as your inspiration but don’t scroll down until the second you’re ready to write! Once you start writing, don’t stop until the alarm sounds. 
  3. Don’t cheat by going back and spell checking or correcting grammar. (The challenge is only meant for you to reflect on your own control of sensible though-flow and for you to reflect on your ability to write with correct spelling and grammar.)
  4. You may or may not pay attention to punctuation or capitals. 
  5. At the end of your post, put down the amount of words you managed to write. 
  6. Copy and paste the entire passage on your blog post with a new topic for your nominees and post these rules too. I’m nominating three bloggers but feel free to choose as many as you’d like. Also no pressure for the people I’ve nominated if you don’t fancy it and feel free to have a go if I didn’t nominate you because I’d love to see what you write from my idea ☺️

This is the freestyle writing challenge I was given by Caroline:

You drop in unexpectedly on a friend to surprise them after returning from a long trip. You find their front door open and decide to go inside. After calling out and receiving no response you move further into the house. On inspecting the lounge you spot a bookcase across the room which has been dragged forward to reveal a door. You cross the room and hear angry voices approaching from behind. What do you do?

And this is my freestyle response, I managed 224 words 😁

The rain pounds down on my umbrella as I race down the street. I suppress a grin as I reach Jenna’s apartment block and let myself in with the code. She’s going to be so psyched to see me. 

I take the steps two at a time, almost tripping on the final one before reaching her floor. 

The smile slips from my face as I see the broken door. 

“Jenna?” I call uncertainly as I take a step towards it. 

A chill runs down my spine. I move closer and peer inside. 

“Jenna?” Her apartment is a mess, furniture flung everywhere and he belongings scattered. Her bookcase is broken on the ground and where it always stood there is a door. 

I’ve spent so much time in this apartment that I can’t count it but I’ve never seen that door. 

“Check inside!” Someone shouts from the stairwell. “Make sure no ones left alive. 

I duck into the apartment, my feet slip on an upturned book but I make it to the door. The handle is warm. I ignore the urge to run and twist it instead. 

Inside the air burns hot as a furnace and I recoil. 

“I’m gunna kill that little cow when I catch up with her,” the voice shouts, closer still. 

I step inside and slam the door, my heart racing. 

My nominations are:

Matt

Wordweheart

S.W.Lothian 

Your challenge is:

You wake up to the sound of a news broadcast. There has been an outbreak of some kind of disease that is sending people crazy. People are panicking. The streets are filled with looters and everyone wants to get out of the city. What are you going to do?