Is Reading Self Care? | Interview with Ciara Blume | Bookshelf Odyssey Podcast

Is reading a form of self-care? In today’s episode, I’m joined by author Ciara Blume for a cozy and thought-provoking chat about how books can bring comfort, healing, and inspiration. We talk about reading as self-care, writing as a path to emotional wellness, and how fiction helps us better understand ourselves and others.

Along the way, Ciara shares her reading journey, favorite authors, and her latest book project. If you love book talk, Jane Austen, writing inspiration, or mental wellness through stories, this episode is for you.

📚 Topics include:
How reading and writing can support emotional and mental health
The power of stories to heal and inspire
Favorite books that bring comfort and joy

✨ Subscribe for more cozy conversations about reading, writing, and living a well-read life.

#BookTube #podcast #authortube #Reading #SelfCare #BookPodcast #AuthorInterview #CiaraBlume #MentalHealth #Fiction #WritingCommunity #BookLovers

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction and Pet Talk
05:24 Getting to Know Ciara – Reading Recs and More
06:15 Jane Austen chat!
10:00 Book Talk
11:20 Ciara's Writing Journey (and that teacher who said happy endings weren’t “cool enough”)
31:49 Fiction as Self-Care – How Reading and Writing Can Bring Healing
42:56 Her New Book
53:30 Concluding Thoughts

Books Mentioned:
Natural Magic Series

The Mudpuddle Manual of Natural Magic
The Witches Catalogue of Wanderlust Essentials
The Magpie Oracle of Sense and Serendipity

Jane Austen
Emma: A Modern Retelling by Alexander McCall Smith
Tirzah Price’s mystery novels
The Marriage of Opposites and The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert



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