Bloggy Buddies: Meet Nicole

Introducing Bloggy Buddy where we feature the bloggy friends we love so much!

Nicole from Feed Your Fiction Addiction has been in my blogger friends circle for quite a while. She has also been a favorite blog of mine for a while. Ash and I actually met her at BEA in 2016. She was great to hang out with. She is so super nice and just fun. I love her blog. She does a lot of challenges and fun stuff. So check it out and Meet Nicole!

How long have you been blogging?

I have been blogging at Feed Your Fiction Addiction for five years. 

Technically, I had another blog years ago that I used to keep people updated on our adoption process, but I don't really count that one. (In fact, I hadn't thought about it for years, and I don't even know why it popped into my head right now!)

What inspired you to start blogging?

It was really pretty random. I found Goodreads first and started writing reviews there. I liked it. I noticed that some other people had these "blogs" that they mentioned in their reviews, and I thought, Hey, I should do that! I had no idea what I was getting myself into. :-)

What was your first blog post?

My very first post was just a really short welcome message. And then I posted a review for Shadow Kiss, which is the third book in the Vampire Academy Series by Richelle Mead. Because, obviously, starting my review history in the middle of a series makes total sense. (In my defense, I had NO idea what I was doing, and I just wanted to get some posts up before I started trying to really interact with the book blogging community---which made sense).

What are some unique features you do on your blog?

I host the Book Blog Discussion Challenge and the Monthly Wrap-Up Round-Up Link-Up. I also feature book blogger birthdays and blogoversaries in my Sunday Posts (along with sharing giveaways, discussions and pre-order deals). Oh, and I often feature authors' Top Ten Addictions, to go along with my blog title. Other than that, my unique posts are sort of random.

What was your inspiration for your blog design and name?

When it comes to the name, it was really just a matter of brainstorming. I wanted something catchy and fun, and Feed Your Fiction Addiction just came to me. I was in love!

As far as design goes, for the first couple of years of blogging I was using an obscure free template I'd found. It was super colorful and cute and people knew me by it, but it never completely felt like a reflection of me or the blog. (If you want to see it, you can find it in my third blogoversary post.) It was a tough decision to get rid of it because so many people recognized the blog just based on the bird from the header. BUT I really wanted something bookish. 

I had this image in my head of a girl eating books, and I had an artist/blogger friend (Tabitha Pabkins) who drew adorable little girls in animal costumes. I practically begged her to design my header for me. We incorporated elements of the original header (including the birdie in the tree) and kept it bright and vibrant. She did the picture in watercolor for me, and I ended up taking a photo of it and modifying it to work as my header. (She actually did two versions of the header---I loved both and use the girl from the other one for my Bite-Sized Reviews)

What genres do you like to read and feature?

I read mostly YA, and lately, I've been branching into more MG. I occasionally throw in an adult book as well, but those reviews have become more sparse lately. As far as genres go, I'll read almost anything YA, but I always think of fantasy as my first love.

What were some of your favorite reads from last year?

Some from 2017: The Names They Gave Us, One Dark Throne, A List of Cages, Royal Bastards

A couple of favorites from 2018 so far: Obsidio, Aru Shah and the End of Time

Three blogs you really love?

Oh, man, I hate these because it's impossible to narrow it down and I always feel really guilty after I do. Okay, here goes. The first three I think of off the top of my head: 

It Starts at Midnight, for Shannon's fun, unique take on YA

Read All the Things for AJ's humor

 

Metaphors and Moonlight for Kristen's insightful discussions

And, yep ... I'm already thinking of ten other blogs I wish I could add to this list...

And lastly, tell us a bit about yourself and your blog.

Somehow this seems like the hardest question of all! I'm a mom of three, and I teach acting and writing at our local homeschool co-op (though this is my final year of teaching). I'm also an aspiring author who hopes to someday get published!

Feed Your Fiction Addiction features reviews, bookish discussions, giveaways and more. I try to make my blog an inclusive place where I celebrate other bloggers as often as possible. Come check it out!