Francesca's Thoughts

Let's go old-school internet and hold a conversation.

Halloween

20/10/2026

Read, If You Like ‘A Night in the Lonesome October’ by Roger Zelazny

I originally wrote this post last year, but for whatever reason I couldn’t or didn’t want to post it. It’s a very autumnal read, so I’ve pulled it out of the drafts folder and may reread the book itself… Read A Night in the Lonesome October (Roger Zelazny, 1993) if you like… I saw the… Continue reading

Books

A Night in the Lonesome October, book blog, book blogger, book bloggers, book recommendations, Francesca’s Thoughts, Halloween, Halloween book recommendation, Read If You Like, Roger Zelazny, spooky season book recommendation
23/10/2022

Thoughts on other people’s cold remedies. Also it has been raining

Good morning, if it is still the morning when I post this. The odds of it being this morning when you read it are slim, but maybe you are catching up on your internet based light entertainment on your Monday commute. If you drive to work, please stop reading. How are we? Autumn in Uni… Continue reading

Health, weather

autumn, Francesca's Thoughts, Halloween, Lemsip
31/10/2021

Reflections on this blog and where it’s going (with a little bit of tarot, it is Halloween)

A few moments ago I pulled a tarot card for this blog. It’s Halloween, it’s the site’s spiritual birthday, it’s a good way to start a post. I thought about the last twelve years as I shuffled, and I was expecting to feel a little melancholy as I did so. It’s Halloween, after all, which… Continue reading

brain chat, Internet

being a full time creative, blogging, cancel culture, cancelling authors, Halloween, Indifferent Ignorance, My Chemical Romance renunion, tarot card, The Raven’s Prophecy tarot deck by Maggie Stiefvater, Three of Wands, YA book community
31/10/2019

In Which I Have Been Blogging Ten (10!) Actual Years

Today I have been blogging on here ten years. My first ever post wasn’t today, it was sometime in November, but Halloween always felt like a good day for a birthday. I’ve thought about writing something long and heartfelt, or doing a big old retrospective where I comb through old posts ripping the shit out… Continue reading

DISCUSS., Indifferent Ignorance

blogging for a decade, Frank Iero gif, ghost sketch, Halloween, Indifferent Ignorance, My Chemical Romance, ten years of blogging

Old school internet (but with better loading times).

Francesca Astraea here.

When I began this blog in 2009, I was a teenager. That’s why you’ll find some posts have been hidden behind a paywall. I was an incredibly different, less eloquent person when I was a teen, so if you want to read the thoughts of that teenager, you can join the No. 1 Readers’ Club for access.

What will you find here now?

This blog continues to evolve with me. My favourite topics are books and reading, travel adventures, the extensive works of up and coming rock band My Chemical Romance and the occasional update about my life and work as an author and scriptwriter. I’m also interested in digital minimalism, how we can solve environmental issues and why it’s probably a better idea to make a cup of tea than it is to shout at people you disagree with.

Speaking of tea… Make a cup and settle in.

Leave a comment on posts to continue the conversation and tell me your favourite MCR song! Oh, and while you’re here: this is a no-gen-AI household. You may not put any of my posts through an LLM. If you’re going to email me or write a comment, do it yourself.

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Halloween

Read, If You Like ‘A Night in the Lonesome October’ by Roger Zelazny

Thoughts on other people’s cold remedies. Also it has been raining

Reflections on this blog and where it’s going (with a little bit of tarot, it is Halloween)

In Which I Have Been Blogging Ten (10!) Actual Years