Forever Fictional's Fourth Birthday!!!

Another year has passed and Forever Fictional is now four years old- my baby blog is getting well through it's toddler years!
Like always, I wanted to look back over the year and mention my favourite moments and posts! It's also a nice time to thank everyone who follows, likes and comments on my blog. I appreciate everyone's support and love so much and I'm super grateful for the bookish friends I've met online.

Favourite Posts: (linked)

Favourite TV Females
I wrote this post at the very beginning of the year and I still love it. It details my four favourite females in TV shows and... my choices have not changed in the slightest. I'm all about feminism and female empowerment so this post was really cool and fun for me to write.

Escapril 2019
I participated in 'escapril' last year- an instagram challenge where you write and post a poem every single day based on a prompt. I created an instagram account specifically for this because I'd never had one before and I really loved doing this. Sure, some of my poems were downright crappy but it's good practice of sharing your work.

The Rise of Bookstagram

Lately, I've really struggled keeping up with my blog and there are many factors contributing to this. Firstly, I'm super busy. I've just started a full-time apprenticeship which is a lot of hours and a lot of work, meaning that I don't have as much free time to blog like I used to.

Secondly, I'm prioritising my writing. As you may or may not know, I'm an aspiring writer and I've just started a brand new project that needs a lot of time and work. I've just started the first draft and I've set myself a lot of deadlines and targets when it comes to this manuscript. This just means that, when I do have spare time to write/blog, I choose to write. All this meaning that my blog has been very unloved, lately.

And then there's been my venture into Bookstagram. I've always been a little behind on social media platforms so only just got Instagram this year but... I'm loving it. It's so much fun creating bookish images and interacting with so many more book lovers.

In terms of time, it can take me a couple of hours to write, edit and proof-read a blog post. But, with Bookstagram, it takes me a couple of hours to shoot, edit and caption images for an entire month. So, with the same amount of time, I can have content posted every day for a month, compared to a single post a month. It just means that I can still be creative and interact with other book lovers but much more frequently.

Now, this isn't to say I'll stop blogging, because I won't. I love the community and sharing my opinions of books. But.... posts may not be as frequent as they once were ( I don't even know how I was posting three times a week at one point).

One of my new years resolutions for next year is to step up on blogging again so, while I can't promise consistent content, I can promise that I'm going to try my hardest.

Thanks for reading! What are some of your 2020 resolutions?
Stay amazing!
Chloe

Comeback!! (Hopefully...)

I'm fully aware that I've been AWOL for the last couple of months- the last time I posted was early September!! It's safe to say that I've fallen spectacularly behind but I really want to get back to blogging!

There's been a few reasons why I haven't had time to blog as much:

1. I left college this year and now I've started an apprenticeship which means I have so much less free time to actually do anything!

2. A lot of my creative time has gone towards my Bookstagram account! I've actually written a full post on the pros and cons of Bookstagram and why it's taken up more of my time so stay tuned for that!

3. My other creative time has been spent outlining! Recently, I've decided to push aside the writing project I've spent the last two years (for various reasons) and start a new novel. I also have a full post explaining this development so stay tuned for that too!

Naming Pets After Fictional Characters?

I'm fully aware this isn't really a tough debate because I'm sure everyone thinks it's a-okay to name pets after their favourite fictional characters and, if I'm being brutally honest, this post is just an excuse for me to show off my family's adorable new kittens and their names are the only way I could link it to fiction.

We've named our kittens Arya and Sansa (after Game of Thrones characters) because my whole family loves Game of Thrones and they were the only names we could agree on. Honestly, I was trying to push Marvel names like Scarlet (Scarlet Witch) or Carter (Peggy Carter) but I'm still happy with what we settled on.

And the best thing is that they're character names fit very well personality wise. Arya is very much the more hyper and energetic one while Sansa is more reserved and content to just sit and be left alone. Arya is very much as daring and physical as her namesake and Sansa is just as reserved, quiet and contemplative as Sansa in Game of Thrones. They're both so adorable and, like I said, this post is just an excuse to show you guys how cute they are!
They look super alike but they're actually not related at all. They were just odd kittens from their litters than nobody else wanted and they became best friends that did everything together.

Arya

Sansa

And I have to say, having kittens is like having kids. Whenever you hear a noise in the other room, you have to check to see if they're okay. They constantly want food and attention (Arya more than most). But they're super adorable and I love them to pieces already... let's just hope they don't destroy any of my books, though.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment your thoughts. Stay amazing!
Chloe

Author Interview with Shannon Greenland!!

I've been lucky enough to interview Shannon Greenland, author of Shadow of a Girl among many amazing books and I'm very excited (I'm struggling very hard to keep all of my fangirl in right now but I'll apologise for the excessive number of exclamation marks I'll likely use).
I received an ARC of Shannon's newest release Watching You (and loved it!!) while also getting the amazing opportunity to ask her a few questions about it and writing in general. This was such a great experience because I've been a massive fan of Shannon's work ever since reading Shadow of a Girl back in 2016, so I'm super happy to be posting this!!
Without further adieu, enjoy...

Shadow of a Girl Book Talk

Watching You Book Talk

Interview with Shannon Greenland

Many authors put aspects of their own personalities into their characters. How much of yourself do you think you've put into your own books?

I think every character I write has a little something of me in them. This holds true for main characters and secondary, too.

I saw Hamilton at the West End!!!

Last weekend I was the luckiest person in the world and finally got to see Hamilton at Victoria Palace at the West End!! We got the tickets in January 2017 so I've waited over a year but I was definitely willing to wait for it. It was so worth the wait and will always be my favourite ever show.
I decided to document the whole day but I will be posting a full musical review soon where I go into depth about my opinions of the casting, choreography and the songs.
The entire day was so much fun and, even thought I was shattered by the end of it, I loved every second.
If you ever have the chance to see Hamilton at the West End, I'd immediately say go for it! Do not throw away your shot! The West End cast were amazing and it was a surreal experience getting to see it live.

They day started with a long long train journey but I was so damn energised!! I went to see Hamilton with my mum and, as she'd never heard the musical all the way through and only knew snippets of what it was about, I gave her a "quick" summary on the journey over. This got me super excited to watch it and... I think you can tell how excited I got.

Book Tattoos?

I've always wanted a tattoo when I'm older and, of course, it would be book related- a tribute, of sorts, to honour my favourite books and quotes. So, I thought it'd be interesting for me to share some designs that I really love and the reason behind me maybe someday wanting them permanently inked
on my skin.

Quotes
I'll likely get a quote but the only problem is that I have a real struggle picking which one- I love so many! At the moment, my favourite is: she reads books as one would breathe air; to fill up and live. I adore this quote but maybe think it's too long? I want a small tattoo, not a giant one.

Gender Representation in BOOKS!!

I'm a Sociology, Media and English student which means analysing stereotypes and representation is like puppies and chocolate to me. On Christmas morning.

And I recently had a thought (shocking, I know). In terms of breaking gender stereotypes, society is improving. Heroines are just as common as heroes and therefore women are seen less as damsels in distress which is great but.... what about villains? Men are also stereotyped and when you think of a big baddie in fiction... we often picture men. And this then labels men as always being the cruel and evil ones... and I think this should change just as much as men always being the hero. Because if men aren't always the villain... it will naturally show that women aren't always the damsel too. And, it will also show that men don't have to always be the cruel ones.... they can express their feelings just as much as women.

Publishing Interview with Eliza Stopps

Recently, I've been in contact with Eliza Stopps (author of the Leslie Kim Serial) and she was kind enough to answer a few of my publishing orientated questions. As an aspiring author, I'm always looking for more information about the industry and, while Eliza is self-published, she gave me some insightful facts about the publishing process.
Now, I'm nothing if not generous, so thought I'd post the interview on my blog in case there are any other budding authors intrigued about how they might publish a book one day!
I must say a huge thank you to Eliza for taking the time to answer my questions and I hope you guys enjoy!

How many literary agents would suggest sending your synopsis and manuscript to, per time?

I think this depends on the agent. Check on the literary agent's website for the answer to this, because some agents would prefer you don't submit to more than one agent at a time. If that is the case, just send it to one agent and wait for their response before moving on. Otherwise, you can do it in batches.

For me personally, I write in a variety of genres. I might be submitting a children's book, poetry, and science fiction short stories all at the same time. I usually submit to 1-3 agents per manuscript at a time, just so I am personally familiar with each agent. If you submit to like 100 agents all at the same time, you will get your name out there but that in itself can be a negative. If you submit to 3 agents and they all return with feedback saying that your book isn't right, it might be a good idea to read over your synopsis and query and see if there is any way you can improve before sending it to the next batch. If you send it out to many agents at the same time, you will have less time to improve between queries.

Ultimately, it's a personal choice for each author. My advice would be to do enough queries that you get over the anxiety of writing them but not so many that you feel overwhelmed and frustrated by the process.

What are the pros and cons of traditional publishing?

The Liebster Award 2017

What Is It?
'The Liebster Award 2017 is an award that exists only on the internet, and is given to bloggers by other bloggers. The earliest case of the award goes as far back as 2011. Liebster in German means sweetest, kindest nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, and welcome.' -The Liebster Award Blog

I was so kindly nominated by Sofia over at Book Inklings- I'll link her amazing post here for you guys to check out! Thank you so much for nominating me!

Rules 
I've taken these from the Liebster Award Blog and have summarised the rules a bit but you can go here for more information on it.

1. Thank the person who nominated you, and post a link to their blog on your blog.
2. Display the award on your blog- include it in your posts and/or displaying it using a widget or gadget (you can find the logos on the Liebster Award Blog linked above).
3. Write a 150-300 word post about your favourite blog that is not your own. Explain why you like the blog and provide links (mine is below).

Bloglovin'

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Short and sweet:
I've recently added an account on Bloglovin so I'd really appreciate any follows through that!!
Thanks! Stay amazing!
Chloe

GALLERY OPENING!!!

I've decided to make a page on this blog that's purely dedicated to having a collection of photos on it. So far, there is a collection of when me and Kaitlin went to meet Rachel Caine in March 2016 (it's doesn't feel that long ago!!) and one of our more recent trips- a cosplay adventure when Katniss Everdeen met Emma Carstairs. All of those collections are available for you to look at now so, if you click the link at the top of this blog, you can check them out!

Each collection has a brief overview and for a full page of all the photos, you can click on the 'SEE MORE' link for each collection. I'd really appreciate anyone looking at them- they took a long time and I'm really pleased with the outcome!

In the future, I hope to add to it and end up having a nice montage of memories to look back at in the future,
Future collection will include further Cosplay Adventures and I may also add a section for when I see Hamilton at the West End next year! But, with each new collection, I'll create a normal blog post to tell you guys about it (just so you don't miss anything).

Thanks for reading! feel free to comment your thoughts! Stay amazing!
Chloe

Till Death- Jennifer L. Armentrout BOOK TRAILER REVEAL

I'm so excited to be exclusively revealing this book trailer because Jennifer L. Armentrout is my all time favourite author (author of The Lux series, The Covenant series, The Titan trilogy, Don't Look Back, The Dead List etc). She's written over 46 books and I still haven't read all of them yet! JLA is a master of writing books- she publishes about 4 a year- which is brilliant.
Till Death is her new adult standalone coming out on the 28th February and it looks oh-so cool- though I would expect nothing less.
I would definitely recommend looking into JLA's books if you haven't yet- there's enough to pick from!
The cover, description, JLA social media links and pre order links are all below the trailer for you to check out!!
So, sit back, relax and enjoy the trailer...

Direct link: https://video214.com/play/nWBQQPmNYruuznYL0PEY8Q/s/dark

FOREVER FICTIONAL #REBRANDING

For a while, I simply haven't been happy with my blog title and have wanted to change it but couldn't think of what I wanted it to be. I didn't want to specifically refer to books because I like to touch upon other things- tv shows, movies, writing, etc.
I also thought, it'd take a long time- and it will. I'll have to go through all of my old links in posts, change my email, change profiles on blog depositories but I think it'll be worth it in the end.
Predominantly, this blog is for me. It gives me a chance to keep a track of my passion and if I'm not happy with the title- I should be able to change it. It's as simple as that.
I don't know why I'm so nervous to now change everything and it will take some time getting used to but I think it's the best decision.
I'd love to hear your thoughts! Please comment! Thank you and stay amazing!
Chloe

ACOWAR COVER REVEAL!!!!!!

The cover of Sarah J. Maas' A Court of Wings and Ruin (the third book in the ACOTAR trilogy) was released today and I just had to talk about it!
I'd predicted that the cover would be either black or purple. Black because the series is just so dark at times and I predict a lot of death (*sobbing*) in the future. I also thought purple would be good to signify the royalty of the series and *cough cough* our High Lady!!!!
But this green is super pretty and the cover is gorgeous! I love the tattoo on Feyre's arm- the feels!!- and I love that she's holding a weapon in this cover- it just shows how far she's come and that she's prepared to fight for her court! This book is going to epicness on toast!
The US version is darker and more detailed- as with all the editions from the US- but...I'm not bitter. Nope. Nope. Nope.
The High Lady dress is also amazing and is actually inspired (it's actually exactly the same) by a fanart by Charlie Bowater of Feyre as the High Lady (see left picture). I love that they've included an aspect from a fan's own image of the character and I've also heard that some of her other fanarts are being included in the colouring book...
I'm super excited for this finale and I'm counting down the days until May!!!
I have a Book Talk for ACOMAF which I'll link here if you haven't already seen it!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment your thoughts. Stay amazing!
Chloe

Book Related Money Saving Hacks for the New Year

Christmas has been and gone and, with it, all our money has slipped away from us. And all those new books we want to buy? A whole new year of amazing releases to buy? Where do we find the money?
Well (and I'm aware at how cliché this sounds), I'm here to help!
I'm undergoing a quick and easy money saving scheme this year in order to save money and plan a huge book spree at the end of the year.
The idea is pretty simple: Every time you finish a book this year, save one pound. For me, this means that by the end of the year I'll have saved roughly around £80 which I can then go treat myself and spend on books. Yes, I have to wait the whole year for the spree but it's an efficient way to keep saving whilst cashing out on the year's expenses.
And you can alter it to fit yourself! If you don't read many books a year and still want to save a lot, you could save £2 for every book you read. And depending on how much free change you have spare, you could save 50p every book- or £3! It can work in any way you wish and it's a simple way to collect a nice jar of money. (It could also be a nice incentive to read lots of books).
I'll be saving £1 for every book I read under 400 pages and £2 for every book over 400 pages to make a nice, sizable amount of money for the end of the year!
Good luck for 2017!

Thanks for reading- I hope you have a great 2017! Feel free to comment any of your own money saving hacks or how much you're going to save per book if you decide to go ahead with this! Stay amazing!
Chloe

ACOTAR 3 TITLE REVEAL!!!!

In case you didn't already know, Sarah J. Maas has revealed the title for the third book in her A Court of Thorns and Roses series.

Firstly, the initials were revealed ACOWAR and the internet was free to go wild with guesses! My guesses were either A Court of War and Ruin or A Court of Wrath and Ruin but obviously.... my guesses were wrong (still pretty close though). 

The next ACOTAR title is........

A Court of Wings and Ruin!!!!!!!!!!! 

I'm so freaking excited for this book! 

I'd love to hear your thoughts of the title and what you guessed it would be!! Comment below! 

Thanks for reading! Stay amazing! 

Chloe

Hunter- Skylar Heart COVER REVEAL

I'm delighted to be doing the Cover Reveal for Skylar Heart's new book Hunter. The book looks extremely interesting and I can't wait to pick it up! It reminds me of Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire so I'm sure I'll definitely love it! The blurb makes it sound a bit cliché but I get the kinda of guilty pleasure feeling (I'm a big secret- 'not so secret'- lover of romance).
The synopsis is below along with the cover (!!!!!) so click read more to see it and there will also be a link to the Goodreads page if you'd like to add it!!

Thank for reading!!
Chloe x

Hunter
Skylar Heart
Publication date: September 22nd 2016
Genres: New Adult, Romance

Allegiant Movie Failure? NEWS

There has been surprising news for the Divergent fandom! (Or predictable, depending on whether you saw it coming or not).
The fourth movie in the Divergent series has been rumoured to never hit the big screen. Due to poor viewings, profit and success, the final installment in the Divergent movie franchise, Ascendant, has been said to hit the TV for the final movie. It is uncertain that stars Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Ansel Elgort and Miles Teller will be reappearing for the final movie.
However, a new TV spin-off series is being considered for the Divergent fandom.

Empire of Storms Cover Reveal

So, here we are. Four books in, soon to be five. We've had the title and have been anxiously awaiting the cover reveal. Well, guys, we have made it! The cover has been dropped and, boy, is it a good one! The Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas has been a rising high fantasy series within YA and we're getting near the end! And, yet, we still have so far to go!
The fifth book, Empire of Storms is set to come out in September and I am counting down the days.
Book cover reveal in three...two...one...