And we’re back with another amazing bookstagrammer for you! Today’s feature is Ova/@excusemyreading. She’s a web developing book lover with an account filled with colors and plants to make you smile.

Why did you start your Bookstagram?

I started a book blog in 2018, and although I always loved taking photos,  I confess at first I was hesitant to use microblogging. I’m a Web Developer by profession so I favoured websites/blogs over mobile apps without even realising! It was some sort of occupational prejudice really. I opened the Instagram account because every blogger had one but I didn’t really post anything until late 2018, but once I did I really loved the way Instagram worked, and since then I’ve really enjoyed creating content and I find it very efficient compared to web blogs now.

Where are you from?

Born and bred in Turkey but have been living in Britain for quite a long time now, so I guess I am Turkish/British, somewhere between the two!

image via @excusemyreading

What do you want your Instagram to bring to the world? 

I don’t really think I can offer anything on a macro level, but I love when individuals message me to tell I made them laugh at something or enjoy a photo, book, or a piece of writing, so I guess I’d love to think that my account brings a drop of positivity to people!  

Fun fact about you: 

My mum is a published author in Turkey. (and yes, that’s the source of my book love!)

Favorite Bookstagrammers:

Ah there are too many, and I’ll pass this question because I don’t want anyone to read and feel upset I didn’t say their name. There’s a LOT of lovely people on Bookstagram! But I love to view content from people that come forward as “real”.

Favorite Books and Authors: 

Too many to name favourite books but Master and Margarita and Slaughterhouse 5 are two very special books I had the chance to read as they changed the world I see things.

Some writers I love and will read even if they write a shopping list are:

Margaret Atwood, Mikhael Bulgakov, Kurt Vonnegut, Jess Kidd, Michael Ondaatje, Alice Munro, Peter Swanson, Louise Penny, Ali Smith, and of course the Bronte Sisters!

image via @excusemyreading

Fictional Crush:

Ashamed to say, but, Heathcliff. Talk about heartbreak!

TBR List:

I just… can’t. Not sure where to start but from August 2020 are some books I’m truly excited to read, Glass Hotel by Emily St John Mandel, Summer by Ali Smith.

What’s your special approach to content?

I’m a spontaneous person, always go with the flow in my real life.  I never plan things for instagram. My approach is: post whenever I like, whatever I want.  

Aesthetic / Instagram page theme:

I don’t think I have a theme, but I am all about books and plants, and everything colourful.

image via @excusemyreading

How often do you post:

I used to post once a day but since lockdown happened I post more than once. I am bored!

What does your Bookstagram mean to you?

It’s something I enjoy, a hobby, and a way to share the things I love.

Favorite Bookstore:

Oh there’s more than one, again!  Blackwells in Oxford, Heffers in Cambridge, Yerdeniz Kitapcisi in Izmir, TuuuLibrería in Barcelona and the lovely Woodbridge Emporium in Woodbridge.

image via @excusemyreading

Who would you have supply you with a lifetime of books?

Myself, I think?

Author to take a selfie with:

Oh I have a selfie with Margaret Atwood and that’s probably the best selfie a girl can ever have!

Favorite book cover:

Too many to name one but a recent one would be the UK cover of “Here is the Beehive”. The yellow cover with the grey flowers on, it’s a cracker.

image via @excusemyreading

Book you have claimed to have read that you didn’t:

I once had to pretend I read a book club read though I dnf’d it halfway. It was a Turkish book though, named “Tepelitaklak”

When did you know you had made it as a Bookstagrammer?

I don’t know if I made it, there are a lot of awesome content creators on Instagram and I’m just a drop in a sea, but if you ask in terms of getting collaboration proposals, etc. I think after I passed 30K the amount of messages and emails I got massively increased. I used to reply to every DM I receive but these days I really can’t.

Favorite fandoms:  

Oh my, I don’t think I have a fave book fandom, but I do enjoy watching Turkish Soaps on Netflix and Youtube, and their fandoms on Instagram always give me giggles with the edits they make.

image via @excusemyreading

Advice for aspiring Bookstagrammers: 

Take inspiration, but don’t copy

Be experimental, but share things you enjoy 

Don’t spam. 

Always be kind <3

Additional bookishness: 

I’ve been writing poetry since I was 9-10 but I never shared it really. I also have a massive signed books collection and most of the books I buy are “signed by the author” hardbacks.

feature image via @excusemyreading