July 2019 Roundup

Life Updates

July has been an interesting month. I’m still trying to figure out the right medications for my bipolar disorder, depression, and anxiety. I’m getting tired of changing meds, but my psychiatrist is hopeful that this newest cocktail will work well. I definitely hope so. I also became really sick during the week of the Reading Rush and had to make some last-minute book swipes. I’m still happy I was able to finish six books and graphic novels though!

The most memorable part of July for me was the release of the newest Star Trek: Picard trailer. In case you’re new to my blog, I’m obsessed with Star Trek, and have been following the updates almost religiously.

There’s not much else new going on in my life this month. My goal is still to be working full-time for myself by March 2020, by combining blogging and freelance writing. If you’re a freelance writer and have any advice on getting started, let me know in the comments!

Blog Updates

There are two main changes to the blog. I will no longer be posting Kindle Deals daily, and Foxy Links will be posted only on Fridays. I love the idea of posting those things every day because I think both are great resources to discover new books and news, but I just don’t have time to do both every morning with how stressful my full-time job is becoming. In the case of Kindle daily deals, it was taking me nearly forty minutes every day to do the post, research the best deals, and then promote it. The return on it isn’t enough to warrant spending that much time every day.

The best books I read this month were definitely Summer of Salt, Roar, Vicious, and The Unhoneymooners. Summer of Salt isn’t something that was really on my radar, but I’m so glad I read it. It’s atmospheric and beautiful.

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What about the worst books? Thankfully, I actually had a pretty decent reading month. The only book I wasn’t crazy about was Elin Peer’s post-apocalyptic romance novel The Protector, but even that had a few good scenes.

Things definitely got a bit personal on the blog this month, as I talked about being diagnosed (finally) with bipolar type 2. I also discussed my speech impediment in more detail.

My Twitter account finally reached above 600 followers and my Instagram got to 100! I’m really happy about the growth of both accounts. My blog subscribers have continued to grow at a really great rate, but it’s hard for me to measure accurately considering how differently people subscribe to get new content. I’m constantly thrilled at the fact that you guys are enjoying my content. I’m forever grateful for every like, subscription, or comment from you guys.

Books Acquired

Books Received from Publishers & Authors

This was a crazy month for me in terms of ARCs. My blog has been growing at a rate that I find almost hard to believe, and with it has come attention from publishing companies. I received the following ARCs this month, and I am grateful to all of these publishing houses and authors.

The Bear by Andrew Krivak
Professor Andersen’s Night by Dag Solstad
Wyoming by JP Gritton
Handle with Care by Helena Hunting
All the Water in the World by Karen Raney
Where the World Ends by Geraldine McCaughrean
Off the Grid by Robert B. McCaw
Healthy as F*ck by Oonagh Duncan
Our Bloody Pearl by D.N. Bryn
Pirates of Mars by Chris Gerrib
The Transformation by James S. Gordon
Quichotte by Salman Rushdie

Books I Purchased

I tried to reduce the number of books I purchased this month as money is very tight, but I still ended up buying a few. I received a gift card from my job for getting my annual physical done, so most of these came from that. Nevernight and Fascism are both books I bought for reading challenges or book clubs in August.