Francesca's Thoughts

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

YA novel

16/01/2025

Small Business Shenanigans: Reopening My Stationery Shop (Part Two)

Happy new year! Here is part one of this series, which I was not planning to make a series but lo, relaunching a business is harder than launching one, because you’re more aware of everything you need to do the second time around! We left off just as I was preparing for my first craft… Continue reading

(All Hail) Creation

bookish merchandise, Books-on-Sea bookshop, Folksy shop, indie business, relaunching a business, Rotting Trees by Francesca Astraea, signed paperback, signed paperback novel, small business diaries, stationery business, YA novel, young adult novel
31/03/2022

Read, If You Like: Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

A little edit in August 2023, because this post is getting quite a bit of traffic – presumably because of the movie, which I have yet to see because I am battling a Good Omens hangover. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. Anyway, welcome to new readers, feel free to stay a while for… Continue reading

Books, Read If You Like

American politics, Casey McQuiston, editing published books, LGBT young adult novel, Read If You Like, Red White and Royal Blue, social media and publishing, UK politics, YA book recommendations, YA book review, YA book review blog, YA novel, YA romcom
13/03/2019

Meet THE PRINCESS AND THE DRAGON AND OTHER STORIES ABOUT UNLIKELY HEROES.

It’s time to introduce you to dragonnovel. After 3 years of writing and plotting and editing and re-plotting, 3 months of unsuccessful pitches to agents (followed by a much-needed edit) and approximately 14 uses of Google to double check different shades of the colour blue, dragonnovel’s done. In the can. Would it be even better… Continue reading

(All Hail) Creation, dragonnovel, writing

dark fairy tales, diverse fairy tales, diverse reads, diverse YA, dragonnovel, female, female lead YA stories, feminist fairy tales, feminist middle grade books, Francesca Burke on Patreon, LGBT fairy tale, lgbt fairy tales, LGBT YA novel, middle grade fairy tale, modern fairy tales, self published YA, Tatchiana Michaela, The Princess and the Dragon and Other Stories About Unlikely Heroes by Francesca Burke, writers on Patreon, YA fairy tale, YA folklore, YA novel
24/03/2016

Review: ‘About a Boy’, Nick Hornby

To view this content, you must be a member of Francesca’s Patreon Unlock with PatreonAlready a qualifying Patreon member? Refresh to access this content. Continue reading

Books, Films, March 2016, Patreon Reviews, Paywall

‘About a Boy’, 1990s novels, book review, Bookstagram, coming of age novel, Hugh Grant films, Indifferent Ignorance, Nick Hornby, Nirvana, Patreon, supporting independent writers, YA novel

Let’s close the door on the rest of the internet.

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.

Here’s how we can stay in touch:

Stories to escape into

Algorithm-free newsletter

let’s keep chatting at the No. 1 Readers’ Club

Keep this independent, conversational, anti-AI part of the internet going with a tip.

Or enter a custom amount

YA novel

Small Business Shenanigans: Reopening My Stationery Shop (Part Two)

Read, If You Like: Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Meet THE PRINCESS AND THE DRAGON AND OTHER STORIES ABOUT UNLIKELY HEROES.

Review: ‘About a Boy’, Nick Hornby