Wednesday 20 June 2012

My Dizzy Guest, Carol!


Today in my Chat studio I have a dizzy lady! You might raise an eyebrow, but that is what she is called these days, I kid you not! So sit back, enjoy a piece of Mrs Palmer's shortcake and find out why the lovely Carol from DizzyC's Little Book Blog is Dizzy!


Peggy: Hugging her guest. ‘Lovely that you came along to my little studio to have a natter, but Carol, my dear do enlighten me before we go too far, why on earth are you called Dizzy, you look so charming and in control?’  

Carol: Making herself comfortable in the large chair opposite, blushes. ‘Whoa, Peggy you say some of the nicest things, but I’m afraid that’s what I’m called these day. I’m sure you’ve heard the expression Dizzy Blonde, yes I know it’s an un PC reference to females who seem to be a sandwich short of a picnic, not that I am of course, but!  As you can see I am a natural brunette, I love my hair colour, but nevertheless I have many blonde moments. I’m inclined to be rather forgetful and repeat myself a lot. Quite a lot at times! One day, when I was having one of my blonde moments, my partner called me Dizzy and it stuck. Hence DizzyC.’

Peggy: Raising an eyebrow. ‘I’m sure he loves you to bits, dizzy or otherwise, but before we launch into my many questions, let us have a nice cup of tea, I’ve ordered some homemade shortcake from Mrs Palmer who lives next door to me and is a dab hand with a mixing bowl and a rolling pin.’
Carol: Reaching forward. ‘Thanks Peggy, I was told you make everyone comfortable and you certainly do.’

Peggy: Chuckling. ‘Now it’s my turn to blush, I just love having super people on my chat show and you are no exception.  Now, as we sip our tea and munch away on Mrs Palmer’s shortcake, you can tell me about yourself. You see I’ve been having a snoop around and I know that you have two lovely little blogs. I have one too you know, well of course you do you are going to be a star there. Oh dear, I’m rambling again so maybe it’s me that should be called Dizzy! As I was saying, I see from one of your blogs you’re an avid reader, what do you love really to read and feel free to be honest, there’s only you and me here?’

Carol: Brushing the crumbs from her knees. ‘Delicious shortcake as good as my grandmother used to make. Now as to what I love to read. I admit that my first love is historical fiction, mainly the romance sub-genre. I am also a big fan of chick-lit and chick-lit 40+.  I know this genre gets lot of stick for being fluffy and the title doesn't help. I have absolutely no problem with the genre.  I have a stressful and complicated family life so reading chick-lit is like having a chat with a friend and listening to their complicated life stories. It stops me from worrying about my own life when I have my head stuck in one of these books.’

Peggy: Frowning. ‘My dear, you do need to find an outlet for relaxation when you live in the fast lane and it is reassuring to know you have. I admit to reading chick-lit too, I just wish I was young enough to be like some of those girls in those novels, what exciting lives they have. Born too late, that’s my problem. So with all that you read do you ever dislike a book so much that you toss it to one side? I know I do!’

Carol: Laughing: ‘Yes Peggy, I do.  You know there are so many books to read and so little me time. I’m sure you’re up there with me on that problem. When I pick a book for the first time, I normally give it 50 pages to grab me, if it doesn’t then it will either be put back on the shelf to try again at a later date, or be banished to the Did not finish pile. It doesn’t happen often, but it does happen! Also I sometimes put a book back on the shelf as there are times when I am just not in the mood for that particular genre or I can feel something in the writing, but it is just not right to read now. I hope this makes sense?’

Peggy: Looking at her notes. ‘It makes perfect sense. I too need to be in the mood to read certain books. I’ve made a note here, because this intrigued me, it seems you like to have a peek into what authors are busy doing now, whatever for?’

Carol: Smiling and leans forward. ‘Oh, this part of my blog has become quite a hobby since I discovered twitter.  I see tweets asking strange questions and think to myself, "I wonder if that is research for a new novel? What are they writing?"  I often see authors tweet that they are holed up in their offices procrastinating instead of tapping away at that word count and wonder what they are working on. I was so curious about what these authors where up to that I set up a feature on my Book blog, I aptly called it WIP Wednesday and it is here where authors can share their Work In Progress with readers. I never realised it would be so popular with both authors and readers alike. Start writing a book Peggy and you can be there too!’

Peggy: Grinning. ‘I leave the book writing to my dear, yet bossy friend, Pauline Barclay, you’ve no doubt heard of her, but for me I’ll stick to what I am best at and that is talking on my chat show to lovely interesting people. Though I think we are alike in many ways, one of them is being nosey!  Now as I glance down at my notes I see you have three darlings, well four if you count your other half, talking of which I believe that in less than twelve weeks you will be saying I do, tell me why now?’

Carol: Sitting back in her chair. ‘I can see nothing escapes you and yes you are right. Though I have been married before for over fourteen years, after that I was a single parent for three years and then I met the love of my life, D.  We settled together. I’ll be honest with you, I was happy not to get married again.  We have been together almost seven years and the last couple have been very testing for me, my partner has been my rock.  His commitment to me has really shone through and I now want to cement our relationship in marriage.’

Peggy: ‘He sounds wonderful. It certainly seems to me your partnership is what love is all about. I just might have to read more of those chic-lit books you never know, I might spy a good man whilst I’m browsing. I noticed on your blog you’ve talked about the flowers you’ll be having on your big day, but just as important tell me about the invitations because you designed and made them yourself?’

Carol: ‘Oh thank you Peggy, I’m blushing again. As for my flowers I do hope I can get those shades in September so I can recreate those table decorations.  If not I will find other flowers that will compliment what I have in mind.  One of my problems is I worry, I even have to invent things to worry about :) When I had only two children, I used to craft a lot, knitting, cross-stitching, glass painting, dress-making, a little card-making, but now I have three children and family life is hectic. Sadly this means I no longer do all the lovely crafty things I did, but I wanted to make my own invitations. I wanted to do this for several reason, one I love doing this kind of thing. Two, I wanted to get exactly what I wanted and three, I guess it was cost effective.  There is a step by step on my Wedding blog showing the materials I used and how I created them. Take a peek when you can.’ http://dizzycslittlewed.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/wedding-invites.html

Peggy: ‘I will for certain, but let’s go back to you and book reviewing, what made you turn your love of reading into reviewing?

Carol: Gazing round the room. ‘I had never heard of blogging and then one day, I stumbled across a Book blog whilst looking for book recommendations. I was very interested in what I saw and decided to follow a few of these blogs as I started to order books that were recommended.  After a couple of months, I decided I loved the blogging community and the passion these folks were sharing with others about books, so I decided I would like to be part of that environment. From there I set up my own blog, Little Book blog. I expected it to be quite small compared to some of the blogs I was following, but in a short space of time, it grew and grew. I never dreamed when I started my Little Book Blog, that I would be showcasing authors, hosting giveaways and have hundreds of followers.  I LOVE BOOK BLOGGING COMMUNITY.’



You can see Carol’s amazing blog sites by visiting:

Wedding Blog


Meet Carol on:

Twitter @DizzyCLBB

5 comments:

  1. Peggy,
    Thank you so much for your hospitality.

    All best wishes
    carol

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  2. Loving these questions and answers. Nice to have met you Peggy, I've enjoyed visiting.

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  3. Hello Dizzy, it's been a pleasure having you here, do come back!

    Helo Petty Witter, thank you for taking time to join us and delighted you enjoyed my chat show today.

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  4. I visit DizzyC a lot and enjoyed the interview. I always enjoy learning more about the blogging buddies out there in blogland. And also it was nice finding your cute little blog today.

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  5. Waves from Australia, hello Carol and Peggy. Enjoyed the interview, it's always fun getting to know bloggy friends a little more :)

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