Nadene is an avid reader who shares her passion on both her blog and her Totally Addicted to Reading website. She was kind enough to host me on a blog tour featuring Eye of the Moon. In this post she answers questions about hosting and maintaining her website while working a full-time job. Thank you, Nadene.

Your blog has grown over the years since you created it. What are you most proud about having started it?

I am proud of the relationships I built with authors and fellow bloggers since the creation of my blog. When I started my blog, I had no clue what I was doing. My intent was to read, review, help authors get as much recognition as possible, and have persons visit and interact with the blog. It took a while to accomplish the latter, but when it happened, it was one of my best blogging experiences.

Why do you think reading, when compared to other activities, is so compelling and addicting?

For me reading is the only activity that transports the participant to different places. When I read I become engrossed in the story and I become very involved in the characters’ lives. Reading allows me to travel the world, be a billionaire or just about anything I can imagine. When I am down and feeling stressed reading is the one activity I can rely on to take me away from my problems.

From what I can see, you have had your blog going since 2014. Have you noticed, since then, changes in the readers’ tastes and what readers are looking for in a book?

Long before starting my blog, I have noticed changes in reader’s taste.  Readers are demanding diversity in their reading material.  Years ago, based on my experience, novels were geared towards a specific group especially in the romance genre. Usually, you will find the heroes are arrogant billionaires and the heroines wallflowers.  In recent times, readers are looking for stories that depict situations they can relate to; even though it is fiction, they want something that bears a level of realism.

Can you tell me something about yourself that you would like readers and followers to know?

I know most of my readers/followers are not aware I am from the island of Jamaica and this is where I reside. When not reading to escape reality, I watch movies, and hang out with my friends. Not many people know this, I am a leftie and proud of it. I hate when people make comments stating I am using the wrong hand. How certain are they that they are not the ones using the wrong hand?

How do you manage to juggle working, reading and maintaining your blog?

I must confess it is not an easy task and having a full-time job makes it hard.  Blogging and reading are a hobby for me and I am determined not to allow the process to overwhelm me. To ensure this does not happen I read for half an hour most mornings before leaving for work and I make use of my lunchtime.  Then when I am home, I try to put in an hour before going to bed. Sometime it works and there are times it does not, it all depends on how tired I am.  On weekends, I set aside at least three hours for reading. Regarding my blog, I dedicate two hours per day during the week, after work when needed, and on weekends I spend at least three to four hours working on the blog.  During this time, I will prepare posts, respond to comments on my blog, visit other blogs and comment on their posts and write reviews. This way I can sustain my relationship with my fellow bloggers and keep my blog alive.

Did you ever manage to complete your Master’s Degree?

Yes, I did. It was a challenging time for me. My mom took ill during this time, which made things more difficult. Thank God, I made it through and now I am slowly seeing the rewards for my labour.