"It all started three years ago, in the third year of college," Elizabeth told BuzzFeed. "I found myself in a bad place. A few years prior, I stopped reading my kind of books and started reading serious ones — books fit for a future law student."
"I was trying to be a person I wasn’t. So, slowly, I let myself read fiction again. After years of not keeping up with what was in the market, I needed a platform to keep an eye on the publishing world. That's when I discovered Instagram/Bookstagram!"
Elizabeth has thousands of books in her personal collection, but she has help creating these photographs with her best friend. James Trevino is another bookstagrammer who has a similar aesthetic, and the two collaborate when styling their photos.
"Every pic can take from 30 minutes (the fortunate case) to a few hours (the unfortunate case). I take my pics in batches. Every month I go to James’ place and for a whole week, we take pictures. A batch usually translates to 16-20 photos will last for a whole month."
"Every day we wake up as early as possible to take advantage of the natural light. We take as many photos as we can. A good day means around 6-7 pics, and then comes the editing, which can take from 15 minutes to over an hour."
"I've had mostly positive reactions. But like with everything in life, when you start putting yourself out there, people will judge you. The negative reactions come from the people who are say that you can’t be a real reader it you 'trash' the books by sitting on them. I believe that, when it comes to it, the story is what matters – the message, the ideas."
