MEET BOOK BLOGGER BECKY DEMPSEY of Blossoms and Blessings! #Interview

Deb here, welcoming our next Book Blogger guest. Becky Dempsey is one of the first reviewers I contacted many years ago before my first release! While many of us know her as a reviewer, she has news on another front, too!

So tell me Becky, how long have you been reviewing and how did you decide on the theme for your blog? 

Becky: I had seen someone post at the end of a review something about getting the book through a reviewer program and I thought “you can do that?”. I looked into it and joined the reviewer group for 2 different publishing houses. I then sort of forgot about the books with life with 4 small children. I finally posted my first book review in January 2013.
When I started my blog in 2007, I was 3 months pregnant with my 3rd child. I thought about what I’d be blogging about and at the time it was most likely to be about my garden and my kids, so “Blossoms and Blessings” came into being. Lately, I’ve mostly just been posting book reviews and not so much what is going on with our lives.

Deb: What’s the best part of being a reviewer? 

Becky: The best part of being a reviewer is getting to read so many great books and telling people about them.

Deb: What’s the most difficult part of the ‘the job’? 

Becky: There are some times when I overbook myself (lol, that is sort of a fitting pun!) and I get a little stressed about not being able to post my reviews on time. Also, sometimes I see books I’d like to read, but I’ve got books I need to review and so I don’t have the time to read the other books.
Deb: What was the last book you read that you couldn’t put down? 

 

Becky: I have read quite a few books that were hard to put down recently, but I read “Darcy By Any Other Name” by Laura Hile in a day and a half and it has 648 pages. I thought for sure it would take me most of a week to read.

Deb: I'm definitely intrigued by its 'body swap' premise! What keeps you busy or entertained (beyond reading and reviewing!)? 

Becky: I pretty much stay busy. My oldest daughter had marching band practice every Monday evening, but they just had their last football game, so I won’t have to do that anymore until next fall. My first and third children are in band and my second and fourth children are in orchestra, so we have concerts for each of them two or three times a year. My youngest son’s running club at his elementary has started up and is every Tuesday after school. Wednesday, my oldest has writing club after school and then there is church in the evening. I also go to a “knitting” group Wednesday mornings. Which brings up the knitting, crocheting, tatting, sewing, and etc that I do that keeps me busy. I like to design my own patterns and have a Facebook page for my creations called Blossoms and Blessings Designs. (a play off my blog name) I also do proofreading for a couple of small publishers and a few indie authors. I’m also writing a novel of my own. Somewhere in there, I also need to clean and wash and cook.

Deb: Wow! Phew...That's a lot to keep track of, which is good practice for being an author too. Because there's rarely a time when you have both the time and the motivation. It's a matter of MAKING time!
What is your fiction favorite…setting? Place and time? Genre’? 

Becky: I am pretty eclectic in what I read as long as it is Christian (and some clean). I read Amish, historical romance (of all time frames), contemporary romance, cozy mystery, suspense, plus young adult. I’ve even read some fantasy.

Deb: If you had a rainy afternoon alone to watch a movie, what would it be? And what meal would you have delivered if that afternoon included a quiet evening as well? I’m paying with my virtual bank account! 

Becky: There are several movies I’ve watched multiple times. It might be a toss up between While You Were Sleeping, Leap Year, Enchanted, or Sleepless in Seattle. I’d like to order a Pizza Hut meat lovers pizza with stuffed crust.

Deb: Those are perfect movies to watch repeatedly. I just watched Leap Year a couple of weeks ago--it's like comfort food for the brain! And the stuffed crust pizza... sigh

If you could wiggle your nose and be in your dream career, what would it be? Or are you already living it? 

Becky: Growing up, I always wanted to be a “Kindergarten teacher (during the day) and a mom (full time)”. I taught Kindergarten when I graduated from college and after spending 3 months in Brazil teaching English to Preschool through Kindergarten aged kids, but then was “downsized” right before I found out I was pregnant with my first child. So I’ve done, or am doing, what I always wanted to do. Now, I’ve added being a writer.
 
Deb: That's wonderful! Yay! Best wishes for your future success!

If you could text with anyone (alive or dead), who would it be? 

Becky: I think my grandfathers, or my father-in-law (who died before we got married). I’d love to hear some of their stories of being in WWII.

Deb: We don't often ask those questions when we are young, and miss out on the option later, don't we?
What piece of advice would you offer authors who are just starting out? 

Becky: Connect with other writers, either online or in person. Go to conferences and learn all you can. Keep writing.

Deb: Same for new reviewers-- 

Becky: Be honest, but kind. Tell something you liked, not just what you didn’t like. Don’t give spoilers.

Deb: Thanks so much for being my guest, Becky! It was fun to learn more about you!

For more ways to hang out with Becky, visit:
Her blog: https://blossomsandblessings.blogspot.com/

The blog's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/BlossomsAndBlessings/

Blossoms and Blessings Designs Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/BlossomsAndBlessingsDesigns/

Author page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorBeckyDempsey/