I've Moved

I've decided to make the jump from Blogger to WordPress. Having a .com site will help me grow my network as both an author and book marketer/publicist.

I'll still be blogging about books, but the website will have a strong focus on marketing tips and techniques for new authors. If you want to read my new material, please visit me at:

ErikaSargent.com

What's Your Favorite Book? (Careful with Your Answer)

Can we talk about one of my biggest bookworm pet peeves? It has to do with the simple question "What's your favorite book?"

I often ask this question when I'm looking for a new book recommendation. I want something that I can check out from the library, read in three weeks, enjoy, and return. There are literally hundreds of thousands of options to choose from, but somehow when I ask, "What's your favorite book?" so many people name a series instead of a single title. 

Harry Potter is not a book title.

The Lord of the Rings is not a book title. 

The Lunar Chronicles is not a book title. 

The Hunger Games...technically is a title, but you know they're not just talking about the first book. 

I am by no means bashing on trilogies, sagas, chronicles, sets or series. In fact, a good chunk of the books on my shelf are boxed sets. All of the series listed above I've read and loved and own. (I own part of the Lunar Chronicles, but only because I'm poor and need to buy food instead of books.)

It's frustrating to look up a title recommendation only to find there are five other books I'll need to read in order to have the full plot resolved. That's not a three week read, that's an investment!

So please, the next time someone asks you, "What's your favorite book?" answer the question correctly. Not books. Not book series. Just book. 

The Lord of the Rings

The Hunger Games

Harry Potter...I'm missing book two!

5 Baby Names Inspired by Pride and Prejudice

There are few books that have inspired generations of baby names like Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. It's a love story that still leaves girls swooning after Mr. Darcy, and it's chalk full of great names.

Before I wrote this post, I looked up other Pride and Prejudice baby name lists. Most of them focused on famous FIRST names in the book: Eliza, Lydia, and even Fitzwilliam. While Regency Era names like Jane and Charlotte are both beautiful and timeless, these aren't the names that I fell in love with when I first read Pride and Prejudice.

My top 5 baby names from Pride and Prejudice are actually all LAST names from the book!

5. COLLINS (Rev. William Collins)

While Mr. Collins has a bad wrap in the book for being a bit of an overbearing creeper, he has the good fortune of having a great name. One of the things I like most about the name Collins is that it's gender neutral, and thanks to The Blind Side I wouldn't mind having a daughter named Collins.

4. LUCAS (Miss Charlotte Lucas)

I have to admit that I fell in love with the name Lucas while I was serving a church mission in Brazil. Lucas is Portuguese for Luke (go figure, right?) and is such a solid yet uncommon name. It's gaining popularity right now, so this might have to be my firstborn's name!

3. DENNY (Mr. Denny)

Mr. Denny is a minor character in Pride and Prejudice. His role in the militia may have been overshadowed by Mr. Wickham, but his name definitely was not. This is a nice change from the more common Daniel or Danny. I really like how changing one letter (the "a" for the "e") creates a fresh new name. Denny is a great name a boy could grow up with as it suits toddlers, teens, and adults.

2. BENNETT (Miss Elizabeth Bennet)

You probably noticed the spelling change from the Pride and Prejudice's famous Bennet family. It's just a personal preference adding an extra "t" on at the end. I've always loved the nickname Ben but was never in love with Benjamin. Bennett adds a foreign feel to the full name while still letting me keep my more traditional Ben.

1. DARCIE (Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy) 

This name is hands down my favorite, and the proof is in the fact that I couldn't wait for a daughter and ended up naming my dog Darcie. I opted to change out the "y" for a more feminine "ie." This name is both strong and delicate, which makes it the perfect girl name! Now...will my daughter be named after my dog or Pride and Prejudice?

Things Not Meant for You

Last year I had a reading resolution of over 30 books. This year, my resolution is a whopping 15 books. I love reading (hello, I started a book blog), so why did I cut my goal in half?

Well, it turns out that I'm a really picky reader...and by really picky, I mean it's more likely you'll find me in a library than a bookstore because it's easier to return the books I don't want to finish. It's more likely for a book to get an Erika rating of 2 stars than 4. It's more likely I'll prefer the movie than the book. (That last one probably made a lot of you cringe.)

I used to think there was something wrong with me. After all, how could I not love the book that was recommended by Oprah, 5-starred on Goodreads, and listed as a New York Times bestseller?

Buddha had the answer for me:
"In the end only three things matter: how much you love, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you."

I've applied this to multiple aspects of my life, including my reading habits.

According to Forbes, there are between "600,000 and 1,000,000 books published every year in the US alone." That's a lot of books.

With so many options on the bookshelf, why would I want to force my way through a book I don't enjoy? Not every book was meant for me. Apparently a lot of books weren't meant for me, and that's okay. Every person has different experiences in life. Books touch those experiences on various levels so what might ring as life changing text for one person might be a throw away read for another. And that's okay.

Rather than trying to force myself to read 2-3 books a month, I'm going to give myself the time to let go of the books not meant for me. By lowering my reading goal, I don't have to finish every book I start. I can take the time to start books that intrigue me and finish books that continued to intrigue me, hopefully turning 2017 into my best read yet.