Tastemaker Salon: An interview with Marisha @MarishaReadsALot
The power of a book selfie, how to tap into publisher influencer programs, and an absolutely stellar rule for DNFing books
What's your bookstagram handle?
When did you start your bookstagram?
Crazily enough, my 5 year Bookstagram anniversary is next week! I started my account on December 17, 2019. [Editor’s note: Congrats, Marisha! And sorry this is coming out a few weeks past the actual date!]
How did you get started/what made you get started?
Like many of my fellow Bookstagrammers, I wanted to post about books but didn't want to clog up the feed of my personal Instagram with it. I had no idea the Bookstagram community existed until I created my account.
How many books a year do you read?
In the past couple years it can vary anywhere from 150-250. [Editor’s note: Holy guacamole!!]
What are your favorite genres? How would you describe your taste/social media aesthetic?
Without a doubt thrillers are my favorites. My niche thing used to be matching my eye makeup to book covers, but after having my daughter I just don't have the time or energy for it anymore. Now I try to take a selfie and feature my favorite reads. I've found photos of books on shelves, with props, etc. don't get as much engagement.
What do you know about Bookstagram now that you didn't when you first started?
How much time and effort go into keeping my account up-to-date.
Who are some of your favorite authors? What about their work really captures you?
Ashley Winstead, Karin Slaughter, Steve Cavanagh (the Eddie Flynn series has me in a CHOKEHOLD right now) and David Ellis, to name a few. I love that all of their thrillers hook me immediately and never let up. Also their characters are so well-written they practically jump off the page.
What makes a book stand out to you?
If I am in the middle of a book and don't want to put it down to do anything else, that's huge for me.
What do you wish people knew about bookstagram/booktok/the book blogging community?
We put a lot of work into our accounts. One of my personal goals is to stay on various publisher influencer teams I'm on, and I feel like I need to keep my follower count up and my postings current in order to do so.
The process for getting into publishing influencer program tends to go like this:
Publisher makes a post stating their influencer applications for the upcoming year are now open. (These are typically a Google Form or something similar asking for Bookstagram handle, number of followers, links to posts about books from this publisher, etc.)
After the application deadline, the publisher's team reviews applications and eventually notifies those who have been accepted.
Publishers like Berkley are notoriously selective about who they admit into their program BUT I have to give them kudos, they indicate number of followers will not determine eligibility for their program and that does seem to ring true.
How do you decide which books to read, and then which books to feature?
When it comes to ARCs, I read them in order of publication date, otherwise I'd be forever paralyzed by indecision. In between ARCs I'll pick up something from my shelf that speaks to me (and good grief is it a process...) I try to only feature books I rate 4 stars or higher.
What's the best way for authors to reach out to you? Are there things authors do when they reach out that you hate?
I've had several authors DM my Booksta account, and that definitely works best since I'm active on there. Maybe I'm petty for saying so, but it bugs me if an author reaches out asking me to feature their book but doesn't follow me.
Also I have "Thriller Thot" in my bio... if you're reaching out to ask me to read your Christian fiction book, I am not your target audience! [Editor’s note: NOTED!]
What's a thing you see publishers or authors do on social media that drives you CRAZY and not in a good way? (you don't have to name names!)
Pandering to BookTok. And that's all I'll say on that matter before I get myself in trouble.
What's the book you recommend the most often and why?
Look Closer by David Ellis. It is my favorite thriller of all-time, and that is all I ever tell anyone about it. It's best to go in blind.
What's a book you love that you don't see getting enough love on social media?
This might sound crazy since it's currently a show on television but I do not see enough people posting or raving about Karin Slaughter's Will Trent series. Book 12 was just published in August of this year and the whole series is insanely good.
Do you ever DNF books? And if so, at what point/what causes you to DNF?
I DNF books all the time. Life is too short to read something you're not into! My general rule is I will give a book 100 pages minus my current age (i.e. I am 32 right now so I will give a book 68 pages before DNF'ing). The number one reason I will DNF a book is if I'm not connected to the storyline or the characters.
Thank you so much, Marisha! Such great insights—I love your rule for DNFing, and it’s a lesson I’m going to bring into 2025 with me!
Backlist beauties
Recommending: Remake by Connie Willis
Year published: 1994
Recently, I find myself craving punchy prose, books that do more with less, writing that forces you to engage with it because the word choice is SO precise, SO tight, SO lean. (Unlike that sentence I just wrote…) I mean, James M. Cain packs a wallop into 120 pages that most writers can’t manage in 300, myself included.
Remake by Connie Willis was just such a book for me. Clocking in at a lean 140 pages, it makes the most of it’s space with tight, noir-driven language in this speculative gem. Part of the pleasure of reading this book is discovering the rules of the futurescape Willis has built1 so I won’t reveal too much of the plot, except to say it takes place in a not-too-distant future Hollywood. The noirish inflection is both a nod to noir filmmaking and, to me, a natural byproduct of a world in which AI has replaced art. Read it if you like Cain, Bladerunner, or a book you can gulp down in an afternoon, but don’t read the summary on Goodreads; it’s insane and has no actual bearing on this novel.
Like another recent favorite of mine, Piranesi by Susanna Clarke.