Well, I guess I started it locally so now I’m going to do another one of these. The previous challenge of this type was called the Creative Blogger Award Challenge, and I included some local bloggers into the next version of the challenge. One of them took it up, Mark Bialczak, and now he’s turned the tables on me to do this one.

books002The tour’s task is to answer the questions below and then tag five other bloggers. Truthfully, it touches upon something I like, which is reading and books, so I’m thinking this should be a bit of fun; who doesn’t like fun? Since I already know two people I’m going to tag, I have some time to kill by answering these questions first. Here we go!

Would you rather only read trilogies or only read standalones?

I like standalone books but with a caveat. I love series because I like learning about a character and seeing that same character, or groups of characters, popping up in lots of books. It’s probably why I love the Harry Potter books so much; each book is a standalone but refers back to things that happened in previous books. The same goes for many of my favorite fictional characters. I like standalone books also, but not having to start all over in learning something about a main character is quite nice.

Would you rather only read male or female authors?

Nope! Hmmm, I guess I should say something more so I’ll just say that in the genre’s I like to read I’ve been impressed by both male and female writers. Once you get into them, most of the time you have no real idea which gender is writing the books. Well, maybe not when it comes to Janet Evanovich but come on, Stephanie Plum is great!

Would you rather shop at Barnes and Noble or Amazon?

I’m a loyal B&N fan I must say. I love going to the bookstore and looking at all types of books. I never know what I’m going to walk out with and it might be outside of a genre I usually stick to. With Amazon, you’re usually looking for something specific. Sure, there are tons more choices online but it’s not quite the same as holding a book in your hands.

Would you rather books were made into TV shows or movies?

Wow, this is a tough one. Back in the day I’d have said TV without batting an eye. As I get older and don’t like watching TV I’d like to vehemently say movies, but I have to hold back a little bit.

The problem with TV is the stops and starts and commercials. The problem with movies is that, if you loved the book, you’re going to question why the director left this or that out, and sometimes they go in a totally different direction that leaves your head spinning.

In the end I’d have to lean towards movies I suppose…

Would you rather read only five pages per day or five books per week?

I’d rather read five pages a day if I had to do something on a consistent basis. Depending on the book, it could take 45 minutes or 5 hours to get through. I’d have the 45 but not the 5 hours every day, even if I was independently wealthy, since only reading books all day would soon feel like an unpaid job.

Would you rather be a professional author or reviewer?

Professional author in a heartbeat! Heck, I’ve written the equivalent of 3 books now and around 5,000 articles. Some of them have been reviews but I hate the analysis part and the having to be critical part. Sometimes I think critics think they have to always look for the worst in something, only to have the buyers make they look bitter.

Would you rather be a librarian or a bookseller?

Kindling beats Kindle
Creative Commons License Matt Brown via Compfight

I’d rather be a bookseller. That way, I could always pull out new books and, once sold, not have to worry about their condition again, let alone chase people down who didn’t bring them back.

Would you rather read only your favorite genre, or every other genre but your favorite?

Whew, that’s a tough one since I like a lot of different genres. However, if I had to give up my favorite genre then reading might not be fun anymore so I’d rather stick with my favorite at all costs. Man, I’d miss those Star Trek books… sigh…

Would you rather only read ebooks or physical books?

I have to admit that I love the ease and convenience of ebooks, something I never thought I could get into. Yet, when all is said and done, if I could store every book I ever bought and keep them all safe I’d rather have the physical books. I’m glad this question didn’t consider recorded books though. πŸ˜‰

And now, time to name some folks. The first two are easy; the rest… let’s see who I come up with:

Holly Jahangiri, who started the original trouble with me on the first challenge, is getting named to this one because she’s an author and loves to write and read; her blog is called It’s All A Matter Of Perspective;

Krystal Thomas, my niece who loves books and writes reviews of them on her blog Krystalized;

Josh Shear, who reads a lot of books but writes on a bunch of different things. His blog is named after him;

Brian D. Hawkins, although I’m not sure where to link him (he came & gave me a link, which is below). His primary blog is about blogging, and he’s got a blog where he reviews books but that’s considered a business blog for him. I recently found another site of his that might work but I’m not totally sure. In any case I’m going to mention him and let him know, and if he decides to participate I’m sure he’ll let me know which site to link to.

This last one is even a bigger wild card but I need 5 right? I’m naming Phil Phren, who writes Still Racing In The Street. He’s more of an activist type and writes more about local things but he’s been known to go off the grid, especially where it concerns Bruce Springsteen. So, maybe…? lol

Whew, that was work! The last part, not the early stuff. Now we get to sit back and see what happens…