Nice to Meet You, Where You Been? (2015 Book Blogger Love-a-Thon)

Although Valentine's Day was last week, it's never too late to continue sharing the love! During these next two days, Alexa from Alexa Loves Books is hosting the 2015 Book Blogger Love-a-Thon, an event dedicated to spreading the love to blogs and bloggers. I've decided to join in on all the fun, so you'll be seeing a LOT of activity here and on Twitter!

As a way to meet me and/or get to know me better, here is a little questionnaire :)

1. What's your name?

My name is Amaris (it rhymes with glamorous!) and it means promised by God.

2. Where in the world are you blogging from?
I currently live in Northern California and have been here my whole life.

3. How did you get into blogging in the first place?
I was obsessed with Xanga in 2003 (I wish I was lying when I say I've had at least 30 usernames on that site) and have always loved the idea of sharing content and connecting with other users. In the past couple of years, I started two blogs mainly about beauty/lifestyle things but I never stuck around because I wasn't passionate about it. I didn't take blogging seriously until I realized that I wanted to talk about books in March of last year, so I'm glad I've finally found a place that I love!

4. How did you come up with your blog name?
I started amarisafloria during my "I-don't-know-what-to-blog-about-but-I-want-to-blog" phase, so I wanted something simple. The "amaris" part is my name, of course, and I just made up "afloria" because I thought it sounded pretty. I'm thinking about changing it to "Amaris in Wonderland," but I probably shouldn't because it might confuse a lot of people :x

5. What genre do you read and review the most on your blog?
I read and review mostly contemporary on my blog, but I've been trying to expand my horizons and branch out. (If you have any non-contemporary recommendations that you think I'd enjoy, PLEASE let me know!)

6. What other types of posts do you do on your blog, apart from reviews?
Up & Coming, a feature created to share upcoming books that deserve more attention, is one of my favorite things to share at the beginning of each month. I don't write as many discussion posts as I'd like to, so hopefully I can push myself to write more. (I did, however, write about explaining YA to non-bookish people last month!)

7. Best blogging experience so far?
Being able to talk to and meet other bloggers/readers has been so much fun. I don't normally talk to other people about the books I read, so knowing that there are others who want to fangirl/share in the excitement of reading a certain book makes me excited :)

8. Favorite thing about the blogging community?
I love that everyone is so responsive and respectful.

9. Name the five books you're most excited for this 2015!
I know this question is most likely referring to books that haven't been released yet, but I wanted to share the books that I'm most excited to read this year and have already been published: Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman, Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas, Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi, Scarlet by Marissa Meyer, and The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson.

10. What's an underrated book or series that you think everyone should read?
This is a bit tough for me to answer because I recently got into reading and have only touched the popular books, but I'm surprised that there aren't more people talking about Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott. It's often compared to The Hunger Games, but the two have a ton of differences worth reading about!

11. Which book boy or girl would be your book BFF?
The first person I thought of was Kenji from Tahereh Mafi's Shatter Me trilogy. He is just so SASSY and hilarious, but also protective. He would be the perfect BFF :)

12. Apart from reading, what are your other hobbies or interests?
I love scrapbooking! Since I'm not that great at graphic designing on the computer, I unleash my creative side by literally cutting and pasting photos and different types of paper :p I have yet to start a book for this year, but I have all my pictures ready for printing. I also love to snowboard and explore new places, but I don't often get a chance to.

13. Apart from book shopping, what else do you like shopping for?
To be honest, I don't really like shopping. I have this long list of things I need to shop for on my phone (an umbrella, a cap, etc.) but I never look at it because I'm picky and it'd take me ages to find the perfect fit. I do, however, love browsing stationery/craft stores (like Paper Source and Michaels) and Target. I LOVE TARGET.

14. At a party, the DJ suddenly changes the song — and it's your song. What song would be playing?
I kind of have a weird relationship with songs — I automatically like it if I can sing along, but I'm not attached to any one song in particular. If I had to choose one, it would be Luck by American Authors.

15. Pick out either a book you want turned into a film/TV show, or a film/TV show you want turned into a book.
I would love to see Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill turned into a film. London, silly boys, and a quirky storyline? YES PLEASE!

If you are participating in this year's Love-a-Thon, link me to your questionnaire so I can read it and respond! If not, you can still share your answers with me :) I'm excited to see how the rest of today goes. I'll be back in a little bit with quotes about love and friendship!