Meet Chucklesthescot!

Hi everyone! I did this years ago to introduce myself to those visiting my blog. I've decided to put together an update on questions I'm asked and a few fun facts about me, for your entertainment.

1) Why are you called chucklesthescot?
I had to make up a username for a book site so I picked Scot because I'm Scottish and chuckles because I'm actually quite a grumpy person. I figured I was being ironic!

2) Why did you have Count Von Count all over your profiles?
I loved the Count from the first time I saw Sesame Street as a kid and I just think he is really cool. I took those pictures down due to worrying about copywrite issues but I'm still a fan!

3) Are you male or female?
Female

4) Why did you start blogging?
I started my first blog a few years ago because I thought it would be fun to chat about stuff I was doing-until I realised my life is pretty dull! Then I got interested in reviewing Indie writers on Goodreads through the groups I joined and thought I could do a book blog to tell people what I'm reading, promote Indie authors and books, write reviews, and have some book chat.

5) Do you prefer physical books or ereaders?
Nothing beats holding a real book in your hand! The shiny new cover, that new book smell, the swish of the turning pages...love it! If I read an ebook I got free online or from an author to review and I love it, I try to buy a paperback copy for my collection. I get the real book and the author gets a sale!

6) Do you have an ereader?
Yes, I got my first Kobo in August 2013, then a Kindle Paperwhite from Santa for Christmas. I do like ereaders because I can read faster and don't have to take lots of books on holiday now but they have their faults. Every time Kobo desktop issues an update, I have to factory reset the blighter to get it working again! My Kobo is called Myrnin after the mentally unstable vampire in The Morganville Vampires and my Kindle is called Maurice, after the Closet Monster in the Monster Haven series.

7) What genres do you read?
I LOVE gory horror with disturbing scenes and mega violence, zombies, apocalypse and prepper fiction, action packed urban fantasy with kickass characters and funny sidekicks, dystopian, mountain disaster non fiction, tudor fiction, anything with Sasquatches sharks and dinosaurs, some SF and fantasy, thrillers that aren't police procedure based, political non fiction. I don't read everything in these genres, I go purely on how the story sounds. I read biographies of people that interest me.

8) What books do you not enjoy?
I don't read girlie romance/chicklit, epic fantasy, paranormal romance with all sex no plot and violent bullies or rapists for heroes, westerns, war, gothic epics, crime, historical sagas, erotic, love triangles, religious works, cozy mysteries, classics and YA with tropes and relationship angst. 

9) Why would I want to read an Indie book? Aren't they just crap that publishers don't want?
NOOOO! A lot of writers choose to self publish to keep full control over their book ie choosing their own covers, not having their unhappy ending changed by an editor etc. Yes there is some crap out there in the indie world but the same is true of some mainstream stuff I've read. I've also read some pretty amazing self published books as well.

10) Where do I find Indie books?
You can try a lot of Indie books free or cheap online through your Kindle, Nook, Kobo etc. I get most of my Indie books through Amazon. You can also get a lot of good freebies on Smashwords http://www.smashwords.com/ Check out my blog for lots of Indie book reviews and promotions!

11) Can I send you my book to review?
Due to time constraints I'm not doing a lot of reviews for books sent to me by authors. Deadlines are a bit of an issue at the moment and I'm trying to clear my own book backlog! So I'm mostly doing a few for authors I know where I've read other books in the series. Requests can be sent to me through PM at Goodreads, but no promises. Books MUST fall into the genres I read but I'm pretty choosy about what I review.

12) Favourite TV?
Game of Thrones, Deadliest Catch, The West Wing, The Tudors, American Ninja Warrior, Sasuke, Alias, Miami Vice, Lost, Blake's Seven, Stargate Atlantis, Doctor Who, Hannibal, The Titan Games, Spartan Ultimate Team Challenge, Scandal, Elementary, Supernatural,  Torchwood, 24, Coronation Street, V(original series), Whitechapel, Stargate SG1, Father Ted, Only Fools and Horses, NCIS, Bottom, Dallas, House of Cards(UK), Columbo, Prisoner Cell Block H, Buffy, Angel, The Shield, Takeshi's Castle, Gold Rush, Wicked Tuna, Yukon Gold, Bering Sea Gold, Jungle Gold, Ax Men, Big Rig Bounty Hunters, Doomsday Preppers, Ultimate Beastmaster, Tenko, Prison Break, Great British Bakeoff, Great British Menu, Masterchef, Top Chef, Steve Austin Broken Skull Challenge...and lots more! I like tough job reality TV, extreme gameshows, cookery competition and top drama!

13) Series you want to watch? 
I haven't had time to see any of these yet! Grimm, Homeland, Arrow, Revolution, The Blacklist, The Following, Teen Wolf, The Vampire Diaries, Sanctuary, Haven, Continuum, Knightfall, Britannia, The 100, Cold Water Cowboys, Lost Girl, Alphas, Agents of SHIELD, Bitten, Harper's Island, Warehouse 13, Vikings, Sleeper Cell, Strike Back, The Newsroom, House of Cards(US), Dexter, Wolf Creek, Medici, Bodyguard, Nikita, The Crown, Victoria, Bridgerton, Downton Abbey, Versailles, Spooks, Catherine The Great, The White Queen, The White Princess, Wolf Hall, Sleepy Hollow, The Last Ship, The Last Resort, Madam Secretary, The Strain, Primeval, Sherlock, Sliders, Scream, and a shedload more!

14) Favourite books and series?
Harry Potter, A Song of Ice & Fire, Bears In The Night, Women of the Otherworld, Morganville Vampires, Sookie Stackhouse, Monster Haven, Artemis Fowl, Night Huntress, Extinction Trials, Paddington Bear, Murderbot, Hunger Games, The Testing, Future Shock, Adventureland, IT, Iron Druid, Carnival Of Fear, The Valley, Fear The Light, Jurassic Park, Arisen, Salechii, Extinction Cycle, The Morningstar trilogy, Bug Out, Swamp Monster Massacre, Sabina Kane, Deacon Chalk, Dinosaur 65 million, Grant Coleman, too many others to mention!

15) Favourite Authors?

Sonya Bateman, Darrell Maloney, Michael Stephen Fuchs, Robert Boren, Hunter Shea, Rick Chesler, Nicholas Sansbury Smith, Richard Laymon, Jeff Menapace, Jaye Wells, Franklin Horton, Patricia Briggs, Greig Beck, Matthew Reilly, Daren Little, Jack Kilborn, Alison Weir, Philippa Gregory, Stephen King (early stuff), Emily Purdy, James R Tuck, PK Hawkins, Chris Jameson, Tim Waggoner, Viktor Zarkoff, ZA Recht, Catt Dahman, Jenny Lawson, Allie Brosh, Ant Middleton, PA Glaspy, Kenneth Cary and more!

 

16) Favourite Films?

Action blockbusters, horror, slashers, zombies, monsters, period drama, musicals, apocalypse, SF and fantasy, Jaws 1-4, Alien, Aliens, Barnyard, Jurassic Park 1-3, Jurassic World, Mamma Mia, The Greatest Showman, Grease, AVP, The Meg, Deep Blue Sea, Predator, The Running Man, Fright Night, The Godfather, Total Recall, Toy Story 2, Star Wars IV-VI, Da Vinci Code, Halloween, The Fog, Saw, Jeepers Creepers 1 & 2, Final Destination series, Sleepaway Camp 2 & 3, Resident Evil, The Mummy, Harry Potter, Sneakers, Armageddon, Independence Day, Apollo 13, The Firm, The Lost Boys, LOTR, The Hunger Games, Friday The 13th, The Burning, Seven Samurai, A Bug's Life, Doom, Prom Night, Bloody Birthday, Chicago, Scream, Indiana Jones Temple Of Doom, Rambo 2, Rocky 2, Rocky 3, Speed, and a ton I can't even think of! 

 

17) Favourite Music? 

60's-80's, disco, glam rock, new romantics, rock, country, soul, motown, Abba, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Kinks, Four Tops, Queen, REM, Bee Gees, Springsteen, Madonna (early stuff), Billy Joel, Elton John, David Bowie, Status Quo, film soundtracks, Duran Duran, Shaky, Adam Ant, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Beach Boys, OMD, CCR, Doors, T Rex, KC, Eagles, Wings, John Lennon, U2, Phil Collins, Jimi Hendrix, Bon Jovi, Tina Turner, Smiths, Wonder Stuff, Inspiral Carpets, James, Stone Roses, War of the Worlds, ELO, INXS, Pet Shop Boys, Erasure, Depeche Mode, Spandau Ballet, Prince, Wham, Culture Club, Elvis, Dirty Dancing and more...

 

18) Favourite Foods?

Cheese, tuna, tikka masala, pasta, white bread, pepsi, 7up free (normal and cherry), milk, paella, pizza, a big fry up, boiled egg and soldiers, rhubarb, strawberries, mango, cheese doritos, nacho cheese dip, Texas BBQ Pringles, Lindt chocolate, peanuts, noodles, rice, mild curries, tomato soup, Malibu, Peach Schnapps, beer, cheeseburgers, rosti, fritters, onions, fresh orange, butter chicken, chinese prawn curry, chicken pakora, grapefruit, naan bread, onion bhajis etc

19) Favourite things?
Reading, music, films, TV, making news scrapbooks, football, darts, cricket, baseball, American football, rain, chocolate, dinosaurs, Yoda, crafts, sharks, supporting St.Mirren, holidays, Amazon packages, Blackpool, Cape Town, trams, Count Von Count, Flat Eric, 3D puzzles, history, Harry Potter, hoarding, Game of Thrones, autographed photos of celebrities I like, political and royal documentaries, royal weddings, photography, castles, Tudor history, reading about wars, prepping, browsing charity shops. 

20) Least Favourite Things?

Spiders, Covid, woke, Tony Blair, SNP, creepy crawlies, peppers, sweetcorn, extreme lefties,  Nicola Sturgeon, people putting their crap in my bins, talking to strangers, using the telephone, doctor and dentist appointments, getting blood taken, queues, public transport, walking, exercise, dogs that won't stop barking, sewing, trying on clothes in shops, getting Amazon idiotbots to understand you, social media hate, anarchy groups, rewriting history, pandemics, clearing snow and ice, my alarm going off on a freezing cold day, housework, kids that run riot.

*Waves at readers*