Inspirations in the Bookish Community

I was actually inspired by my co-blogger (Lit Up Review) Grace's post about Morality in YA to write this post. If you haven't come across and read that discussion, please do so. I think it's so important to talk about, and I think Grace did a great job of articulating her (and most of my) thoughts and of starting the conversation.

But all of that inspired me to write this because I was thinking about how I wish I could have written that post--that I could have thought to delve into that topic and could have articulated my thoughts so well. I wish I could figure out my opinions half as well as she can and then go talk about it. So I've decided to showcase some of the many people in the bookish community that inspire me in different ways. Of course, this is not a definitive list!

1. Willa @ Willa's Ramblings; Emily @ Forever Literary; Grace @ Words Like Silver
   I am so lucky to have found these ladies and to be able to call them my co-bloggers at Lit Up Review. Firstly, all of their blogs are so aesthetically pleasing to look at. But more importantly, they are amazing bloggers. I constantly strive to create the type of content that they do. In that, I don't mean that I copy them or lose my voice, but I love how eloquently they write and express their opinions. Grace's discussion posts, Emily's writing (and productivity), Willa's ability to write concise reviews. They are all so lovely and do so much outside of blogging as well, but when they blog, I am constantly blown away by what they post. I don't think I could ever express myself as well as they do, but that's okay too because I have my own voice. But they inspire me and my content constantly. I am so lucky to know them.
2. Dahlia Alder; Katherine Locke
   These ladies are amazing in so many ways and for so many reasons. Firstly, I love both of their writing and their books. They are so fabulous at what they do, and they own every part of it. They are funny, down-to-earth, and everything in between. They aren't afraid to talk about the hard stuff--about the tought topics, about the world issues few others want to talk or think about, about diversity, about struggles, about mental illness, about almost anything. They don't shy away. They openly talk about it but never in an attacking or patronizing way. They constantly inspire me to be a better, more conscious person. I'm inspired to speak out against injustices, to talk about what's wrong and needs to be changed in our society. I'm inspired by them to do and talk and respond to the things others are scared to do. 
3. Emily @ Blue Eyed Biblio
   I've recently started trying my hand at the whole bookstagram thing (though I've sucked at it recently for various reasons), but Emily is still one of my favorite bookstagram people, and I'm so excited about her success and about her branching out to blogging and booktubing. I've never really had the eye for things such as photography, and I've been struggling on bookstagram for that reason, but Emily offers so much inspiration. I know I won't ever be as great as her in that sense, but I hope that I can someday come close. Her images (and videos and blog posts) are just so lovely and have such a beautiful, calm aesthetic.
4. Regan @ Peruse Project; Whitney @ Whitty Novels
   Continuing on the trend of bloggers-bookstagramer and now booktuber, one of my favorite booktubers is Regan. I love the way she speaks because it's engaging but without being way too over the top or way to dragging and dull. She's a great speaker, and I love her aesthetic as well. She reviews and talks about a diverse range of books, which is really awesome. I've never really compared our opinions since I haven't read many of the books she has, so I don't know how much our opinions are aligned. But her channel is one of my booktube inspirations. I also love Whitney because she's hilarious and manages to be herself in her videos. She's down-to-earth but has this big presence that really comes across. Her reviews are great and informative, she has great content, and she's not too dull, not too over-the-top. She's someone I would want to be friends with and someone that inspires me in the booktube community. 
5. Hazel @ Stay Bookish; Kaitlin @ Reading Is My Treasure; Cait @ Paper Fury
   As I mentioned before, this is not a definitive list or anything, but these are some of the many bloggers that inspire me. Hazel has such a lovely aesthetic, and she's so great at everything she does and posts on her blog, whether it's the writing/post itself, the graphics, her designs, whatever. She is so kind and open, and she's so easy to talk to and work with. Then there's Kaitlin, who was one of the first bloggers I met and became friends with, and I love seeing how her blog has grown since then. I love her content and how consistent she is, but the reason I put her on this list is because I'm inspired by her productivity. She's been trying to comment on more blogs lately, and it's something I really need to be better about, so her own journey and quest in doing that has been inspiring me as well. And of course Cait. She was one of the first people to comment on my posts, and it was so cool because even then, she was a much bigger blog than I will ever be. She's able to maintain her quirky sense of self, read a whole lot, write a lot, post a lot, and have a ton of creative, unique content. I wish my content were as amazing and diverse as hers. Almost all of her posts inspire me to expand and to do what I want with my blog.
6. Kaitlin @ Next Page Please!
   I thought it fitting that my first group of people were some of my co-bloggers at Lit Up Review and that my last would be the contributor I'm mentoring for LUR. I think it's really something different to mentor someone and help them out, and Kaitlin is so, so wonderful. She keeps me on track with things, and she's always reminding ME to do stuff. She is so kind and amazing, always open to learning and expanding and growing. Reading her reviews has really helped me to look at my own in a different light because I realize I'm a lot more critical with her posts than I sometimes am with my own (hello to rarely ever proofreading), Working with her inspires me in so many ways, and she inspires me to continue doing what I'm doing. It's so nice to have her support, as well as the support of all the wonderful ladies on the LUR team.

So as I said before, this isn't the full list because otherwise we'd be here forever. These are just some of the many that stick out to me. Yes, I know most of these people and talk to them constantly, but that's the beauty of this community. Yes, I didn't include any authors (besides Dahlia and Katherine, but they're included for different reasons), but that's because they ALL inspire me. I didn't include some of the newer people I've met because I haven't seen a lot of their content yet. Yes, there are plenty more booktubers, bloggers, bookstagramers that I could have included. Yes, there are other wonderful people (I'm looking at you, Sonia) that I could have included. Yes, I could have included my best friend Jess, who has her own photography blog, because she inspires me in all the ways on a daily basis. But as I said, we'd be here forever. ;)

Who are some of your inspirations in this wonderful community?