Dora Reads is the book blog of a Bookish Rebel, supporting the Diversity Movement, bringing you Queer views and mental health advocacy, slipping in a lot of non-bookish content, and spreading reading to the goddamn world! :) (All posts may contain Amazon links, which are affiliate, unless marked otherwise. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. USA ONLY - please do not make UK purchases with my links)
Sunday 5 April 2020
Nerd Church - A General Message of Positivity For Anyone Struggling With Their Mental Health ATM
(Warning: this post discusses Covid 19/Coronavirus, and mental health problems/general mental health)
I think we could all do with some positivity right now.
We all need to take care of our mental health. You don't need to have a mental health problem in order to be struggling with your mental health.
We all need to take care of ourselves.
So here's one of my famous (notorious? infamous? who knows,) pep talks, with the hopes that it'll do some good, somewhere.
Sunday 22 March 2020
Nerd Church - The Anxious Girl's Guide To Pandem-onium
(Warning: this post discusses Coronavirus/Covid-19 (but hopefully in a non-stressy way!) and Anxiety/mental health problems)
Wherever you are in the world, your life is probably being affected by the Covid-19 pandemic right now - if you're in Europe, then it definitely is.
I'm Anxious af right now - and I know other people are too.
So, I think we could all do with some practical self-care advice.
(Even if you don't have mental health problems, you still need to take care of your mental health!)
Friday 20 March 2020
Friday Fics Fix - In Times of Trouble, Turn To Stucky
***All Amazon.com links in this post are commission links. This means I earn commission from purchases made in the US***
Please do not use my links to make UK purchases.
'“You mean after spending half the day thinking my ex-boyfriend was dead and then finding out that he’s alive but also a wanted criminal? I’m not doing great honestly!”'
I mean... in times of trouble, we should always turn to Stucky.
The world is somehow a little better when Captain America has a boyfriend. Obviously.
...And the most likely boyfriend (hell, the most likely romantic partner full stop #FightMe) for our dear Steve Rogers is Bucky Barnes.
Sorry, alternative shippers. Your ships have value, but I can't be convinced. 😉
Sunday 15 March 2020
Nerd Church - The Benefits Of (Sometimes) Switching Off
(Warning: this post discusses Coronavirus/Covid-19, although it's v. brief, I promise!)
Turn off the apps and tabs you aren't using, log out of social media, and let the noise just... stop for a while.
Hooman beans aren't meant for screens - not 24 hours a day, anyways.
I'm not saying 'turn off the evils of technology and become one with the universe' or whatever the latest anti-tech line is.
(Side note: these lines always seem to be spouted online. #JustSaying.)
Technology is a tool. An exceptionally useful one for so many people.
But you don't hammer nails all day, every day, do you? (Wait... do you?)
Even the most fervent lumberjack has to put down the axe every now and then. (Axe... chainsaw... I don't know wtf they're using - ask them!)
Sunday 16 February 2020
Nerd Church - 7 Amazing Queer Songs To Bring You Joy and Brighten Your Weekend
***All Amazon.com links in this post are commission links. This means I earn commission from purchases made in the US***
Please do not use my links to make UK purchases.
I think we could all do with a little oomph and some good tunes, right?
These tracks are both awesomely awesome, and Queer af.
The world wears down on Queer folks - and sometimes it's good to just surround ourselves with the creations of our LGBTQ+ siblings.
But then, the world's weary atm whether you're Queer or not, so I hope all of you enjoy this little pick me up! 😀
Here we go then:
Friday 7 February 2020
Friday Fics Fix - A Dose of the Warm Fuzzies
'...“Because life is one big joke,” Klaus replies with a grin.
Diego shakes his head, feeling a headache start to form, and drops the interrogation.'
Sunday 29 September 2019
Nerd Church - The Writer Diaries: Writing Vs Self-Care
While my aim is to write every day (y'know, like all the advice seems to say you should if you wanna be successful as an author,) some days I just can't.
That's not strictly true - I usually end up writing something in a day: blogging, tweeting, e-mails, work stuff, etc.
But I don't always manage to work on my work-in-progress (WIP) every day.
Sunday 25 August 2019
Nerd Church - Escapism, Reality, the Power of Stories, and Brigsby Bear
Films, books, media, stories.
They’re how we talk, communicate, connect with each other, with the world around us, and how we understand ourselves.
At least, that’s true for me, maybe it’s not for you.
Or maybe you just think it’s not the way it is for you 😉
...when I was making the graphic I somehow wrote 'realism' instead of reality but *shrugs* same diff I suppose! 😅 |
I love it.
It’s one of those films which rips your heart out, hands it to you, and then is like ‘look! This is what your heart looks like! Look at all the blood and gunk and stuff!’ (Metaphorically, of course.)
It’s hard to talk about Brigsby Bear without either a) getting spoiler-y, or b) descending into fangirling to such an extent that all I’m doing is making a series of inarticulate noises.
Sunday 28 July 2019
Nerd Church - My New Self-Care Strategy
(Warning: this post discusses low self-esteem and Depression)
I have a plan!
My plan is this: to treat myself BETTER than I think I deserve.
'Hang on Cee!' I hear you cry (well, I don't but it's a structural narrative device,) 'What the hell are you talking about?!'
Let's rewind.
Sunday 10 March 2019
Friday 11 January 2019
Friday Fics Fix - Digging For Victory
Hello 2019! We got fanfiction, we got Bucky Bear, let's get down to it!
'Theoretically, she knew he must go other places sometimes, but it didn't seem to happen often, and from his overall air of nervousness, he seemed to be uncomfortable with it too.'
Friday 2 November 2018
Friday Fics Fix - Am I More Than You Bargained For, Yeah?
'She comes back with a hiker’s backpack, out of which she pulls a pair of jersey shorts, black leggings, a red bandana and a bunch of colorful string bracelets.
"Jesus," Sam says, looking it over. "Is there some naked hippie grad student knocked out somewhere in the hotel right now?"
"None of these items will be traced back to us," Natasha says soothingly, which doesn't answer his question.'
Oh man, this fic! This fic is EVERYTHING.
Sunday 21 October 2018
Nerd Church - That Feeling When... Why Labelling Emotions Is Healthy (Ft. #Science)
(Warning: this post discusses mental health stigma, and grief.)
In the UK, there's a TV programme live on Sunday mornings sometimes called Sunday Morning Live.
(I know, right? How did they come up with that name?!)
It's a sort-of chat show with a moral/social/ethical/semi-religious basis.
It can be decent. It can be awful.
Largely I only watch it because before 1pm on a Sunday I don't exist beyond zombie coffee-drinker; my anger at the more extreme guests tends to help me wake up while the rest of the programme is still happily sleepy.
Anywho, last week, they were asking whether there's a mental health crisis in the UK.
Now, you can argue statistics and definitions on that one until you're blue in the face and unable to look at another decimal point or percentage sign for a good long time...
...but we can all agree that good mental health is... well... good.
Sunday 30 September 2018
Nerd Church - Appreciate Yourself
I'm goddamn tired.
You ever feel like you work your a** off, and there's just... no pay-off?
I kind of feel like that. And I kind of don't.
I'm the world's harshest critic when it comes to myself.
I have to work very hard to stop myself from working too hard.
(I know, my life is a walking contradiction.)
Because my default, when things are stressful, is to work even harder.
Which... is not a good plan.
Sunday 2 September 2018
Nerd Church - Work/Life/Blog/Whatever-Balance Is Hard! (Especially When You Have Cats)
Do you ever feel like there's just too much sh** going on?
Like, you got your work or school stuff, then you got your life/personal stuff, then you might have some other stuff to do with hobbies or passion projects or... welp, blogging!
Sunday 22 July 2018
Nerd Church - Self-Care Is Vitally Important In Hot Weather
...of course, Self-Care is vitally important generally, but you get what I mean.
If you're in the middle of a heatwave like we are in the UK, then your Self-Care game needs to be sharp.
Sunday 20 May 2018
Nerd Church - The Basics of Self-Care
(Warning: this post includes frank discussions of a variety of mental health problems, including references to suicidal thoughts, and self-harm.)
May is Mental Health Month in the US, and 14th-20th May is Mental Health Awareness Week in the UK.
You've probably heard, at some point in the course of your internetage, the phrase 'self-care.'
Hopefully, what you've heard has been positive. Unfortunately, you may have heard others mocking people who practice self-care, or calling it selfish.
Self-care is not selfish. Self-care is vital for everyone.
Just as everyone has both mental and physical health, though not necessarily mental or physical health *problems,* likewise everyone can (and should) practice self-care as a way of keeping yourself as happy and healthy as possible.
Disclaimer time: I am not a medical or mental health professional. I'm a blogger with personal experiences of mental health problems - OK? OK