Should I Move to Wordpress?

Sometimes I wonder if Blogger is the best place for me and my blog. I started using Blogger three years ago when I made a blog for one of my classes to give chapter summaries. I thought it was an easy system to use, and had some fun templates to work with, so I decided to start my own blog.

Also, I'm not fully feeling my blog name anymore...because I don't fully have a theme on my blog and my blog name, Fiction Food and French, almost seems like a theme...but I have never blogged about food yet...which like...should I blog about food soon? Maybe if I ever go to a famous restaurant or try something cultural? I just don't know.

But I also know that fiction, food, and things French are a big part of my life and personality. I like writing and reading fiction, I like food, and I'm a French major with such a passion for the language and culture.

But it's also not just French that I like the language and culture for. I have a long list of other languages that I wish to learn soon and I love learning all I can about different cultures and the people who celebrate them.

I just feel that a large majority of people use Wordpress, and when I do tags and fun little bookish posts, I can't do the Pin-Back feature that Wordpress allows you to do to notify people that you tagged them. And I feel like that is a really cool and interesting feature that should be used.

I've looked at Wordpress before, and I'd be able to import all of the posts that I have made here onto a Wordpress account/blog if I made one, and I've also always wanted to have my own website and that's another thing Wordpress can have connected to the blog (I have no idea if Blogger can do that, and also Google getting rid of Google+ probably changes a lot of things about Blogger).

Mainly what I'm asking is those who use Wordpress: what are the best parts about it? How easy is it to create your own website/blog and what are your favorite parts of having a Wordpress blog? Does it matter which package I get, and like...are they really that expensive in the long run? I'm about to get out of school and make more money than small part-time jobs so it would probably be easier for me to pay for it.

And for those who use Blogger...what are features that I'm missing? Do you not care about not having the Pin-Back feature to tag other bloggers? It is maybe my inability to code that makes me just...not want to think about customizing my blog at the moment or thinking that it's too hard? Should I just not care about what platform I use and continue to use Blogger? Because I like having my blog...but maybe this platform just isn't right for me? Thoughts?

I know I need to learn how to code if I want to use Wordpress too...so either way I have to learn it.

For those with blogs that don't use either Wordpress or Blogger...what's your platform and what do you like about it?

Lately I've been really thinking about where I want to take this blog, the types of posts I want to do, and I want to revamp the whole look of my whole blog. I'm going to keep the posts I just want to change like the theme and look of the blog and maybe pick a new name that fits that just a bit better, and I don't know how to get myself to that point on my own.

à bientôt!

Photo/GIF creds: Elmo thinking, shrugging man,

Goodreads Book Tag

I am stealing this tag from Amber at The Literary Phoenix because I really liked it and I thought it would be fun to look more towards my Goodreads besides the system I put books into.

Now, some of these answers may be different from when you read this to when I have written this, but that's because I go one a lot and update everything at least once a week.

What was the last book you marked as read?

Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh

What are you currently reading?

I have four books in my currently reading at the moment haha, but three of them are school related. I am reading:

1. Maria Chapdelaine by Louis Hémon
2. A Distinct Alien Race by David Vermette
3. The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell
4. Word Power Made Easy by Norman Lewis.

What was the last book you marked as TBR?

Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan

What book do you plan to read next?

Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa. I plan what books I read next with the whiteboard in my room back home and write down like ten books I plan to read and in what order I plan to read them.

Do you use the star rating system?

Yes I do! And like many of us, I wish there was the option to use half stars, or even more stars than five, but I work with what I have!

Are you doing a 2019 reading challenge?

Yes I am. I normally don't set too high a goal for myself because I'm not that fast of a reader like I used to be. My goal this year is 15 books, I have only read 1 so far, and Goodreads is telling me I am 2 books behind schedule. But I currently two of my school books have to be done soon so that will change within the month.

Do you have a Wishlist?

I loved Amber's idea of having a 'To Buy' shelf on her Goodreads (and then added said shelf to my account after). I do have a wishlist on Amazon of the books that I want, but it's also a list mixed with movies and TV show seasons that I would like to own as well.

What book do you plan to buy next?

Song of the Dead by Sarah Glenn Marsh. Other than that I never know what books I plan to buy next. There are always so many choices and I'm bad at making those choices haha. I usually pick what book is next while standing in the bookstore or staring at my wishlist.

Favorite quotes?

This is one of the functions that I don't use that often on Goodreads, but I do have a few here, and you can see that there are a lot of Edgar Allan Poe ones.

Favorite authors?

My favorite authors are Edgar Allan Poe, J.R.R. Tolkien, Julie Kagawa (who is the only one featured on my profile), and I think the last time I checked, my most read author was Cassandra Clare (because I do each novella individually) so I guess I should include her here as well. Also, I can't find where that list is again to double check who is second but oh well!

Have you joined any groups?

I am currently in one group, which I joined like...actual years ago. I think I was a sophomore in high school so about seven years ago, and the group hasn't been active in five. It's a Witch and Wizard group called "Witches and Wizards" and it was a roleplaying group. I might look for different groups in the future, any suggestions?

Do you use Goodreads? Have any tips or anything that you think I'd like for it? Just want to be friends? I love friends!

À bientôt!

Photo/GIF creds: my photo of Shadow of the Fox, covers from Goodreads, writing,

10 Characters I’d Switch Places With (Just For A Day)

I saw Amber from The Literary Pheonix do this post, and I thought it would be fun to try myself! (Also check out Amber's posts she posts so many fun things and great reviews)

As a reader, I find myself connecting to characters all the time. But would I ever want to trade places with them for a day? Well, some of them I would, and I'll tell you why!

Odessa

Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh

One of the first characters I really fell in love with as a person, because she was so close to me. I just want to live in her world and experience the other side once.

Meredy

Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh

I love the magic of being able to control an animal and work with them, I want the BEAR! I can't wait to see more of them both in Song of the Dead!

Meghan Chase

Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa

I think the fact that she has a mix of Iron and Summer glamour is really cool and interesting, but I wouldn't want to get mixed up in all the danger, just a day in the life of the child of Oberon, please.

Gandalf

The Hobbit/Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

He doesn't come into contact with the spiders in the books...also I want to do magic.

Wanda/Melanie

The Host by Stephenie Meyer

The concept and the underground world always intrigued me. I think it'd be fun to talk to a voice in my head that wasn't just my thoughts too.

Esme Cullen

Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer

Her motherly instinct and family are amazing, also the chance to be a vampire...YES PLEASE!

Clary Fray

Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare

I want her ability to make runes that aren't in the book, and I've also always wanted to be a red-head as well.

Effie Trinket

Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins

Just think of the OUTFITS that I could wear. Also, I definitely like the movie version of Effie slightly more than the book one (because she didn't just vanish) so I want to be both.

Wisteria "Wisty" Allgood

Witch and Wizard series by James Patterson (and others)

As the series that got me into reading, of course, I would pick someone as amazing as Wisty. She can burst into FLAMES and uses a drumstick as a wand. Sooooo, I like her.

Ember Hill

Talon series by Julie Kagawa

One, she is a twin (I forget if she is the younger one or not). Two, I want to shapeshift into a dragon and travel all over the world with Riley.

There are other characters that I'd want to switch places with, but these are the current top ten in my mind. What are yours?

À bientôt!

Photo/GIF creds: all book covers from Goodreads (my canva edit to connect them),

Wonder Woman Book Tag

If you know me, you know that I love superheroes, especially the women ones (because who doesn't????). And I love Wonder Woman. The Wonder Woman movie by Patty Jenkins was AMAZING and I even wrote a paper on it with a research partner on how the movie changed the film industry view on women, and we won an award...so I'm passionate about all of this.

So when I saw Kathryn at Nose Stuck in a Book doing this tag, I had to do it too! Also I fell in LOVE with the photo she had at the top of her blog so I'm going to put it on mine so more people can see her work. Here's her post on it. Now let's get into this!

Wonder Woman: Your favorite badass female book character =

For me, it's always been Katniss Everdeen. To me, she's such a dynamic character who went through some terrible events in her life, and her reactions to it all and what was going on around her was so real and I felt that I could connect with her in her struggles. I'll always love her.

Fantasy Island: A book setting you want to escape to =

Am I allowed to choose the secret island full of strong women? Comics count as books right?

A book setting that I have always loved is the Nevernever from the Iron Fey books. While I'd probably DIE within a week of getting there because I am not aware of my surroundings, I've always found it really pretty there.

Panem is next of course, because I want to live in the world after the games and explore all the old arenas and stuff like that. Imagine the finds you'd get...and the ghosts!

London: A hyped book that let you down =

I tend not to read many hyped books that I didn't like. I do research on the books and look at other reviews from people I trust to figure out if the book is something I would want to read. For me, the hype that let's me down comes from movies and TV shows.

Steve Trevor: A book that has a beautiful cover and a great story (i.e. good personality) =

Reign of the Fallen. The cover was so pretty and the story behind it was full of mystery and just all around a great story with a deep plot and realistic characters. While the cover wasn't all of the place with decoration and designs, the lone diamond-esque skull with the crown was beautiful and didn't take away from the book.

Lasso of Truth: A book you hated =

For Whom the Bell Tolls will always hold this spot for me. I've never read a book as terrible as this one. I get that Hemingway is supposed to be one of the greats in the 'forgotten children' generation or whatnot...but I hate his writing and how he wrote on the female characters and constantly comparing them to rabbits...no...never again.

Wonder Woman's Shield: A book so sad that you need a shield =

Honestly, the strength in this scene still gets me.

For me there are two books that work with this.

First: The Host, when I got to that last chapter where they were taking out Wanda I almost sobbed, I was ready to be so upset, but then everything was okay.

Second: Witch and Wizard: The Lost, it was the end of the series for one (last I knew) and what happened to one of the characters was so shocking and rocked me to my core because those books got me back into reading so it was like losing a friend.

Ares: A villain that is scary, but you can't seem to hate them =

My Iron Fey friends know that I love Rowan even though he's a terrible person...but it's also not the canon Rowan I love as much as the Rowan we have within our fandom. I also agree with Kathryn that Sebastian Morgenstern is a character that I love to hate.

The Amazons: A book that you wish had more/better LGBT+ representation =

Speaking as a member of the LGBT+ community...a lot of them. If you don't even have at least two LGBT+ characters in your book...it's a little unrealistic to me. I mean, it's hard to live in the real world and not know at least three people who are LGBT+, why make your book not reflect that?

Justice League: What superhero friends do you tag =

I don't really have many friends I interact with on here at the moment (I am going to change that by being more active here once I graduate and have more time for this stuff), so I tag anyone who reads this post and wants to also do the tag! Whether just in the comments or on your own blog, I love seeing other people's answers.

What are your answers to these questions? Do you love Wonder Woman as much as I do? Let me know in the comments below!

Photo/GIF creds: Kathryn's art board of WW, glowing bracelets, Themyscira, Steve Trevor, lasso toss, shield, ares (its a YouTube thumbnail), amazons, justice league promo, WW logo