I am so happy to announce that White Rose Stories finally has a blog! Here you will find anything and everything book, (and sometimes) film and TV series related such as reviews and recommendations, as well as my thoughts, stories and more.
After joining the bookstagram community two years ago, I knew that I have finally found a place where I belong. Not only did strangers all over the world make me feel welcome but they quickly turned into friends who I could talk to about our mutual love for reading and collecting books.
White Rose Stories was built on a pseudonym I created for myself. Being an extremely private person and introvert, I knew I wanted to protect this safe haven I have found. All of us have busy lives and each of us has that one place we all escape to—a place where we feel safe and free to truly be who we want to be. That is bookstagram for me.
Few may know by now that I am a lover of white roses, books and stories. And so, the slogan for my blog came to mind: Smell roses, read books, tell stories. I want people to associate my blog with the expression stop and smell the roses, which means “to relax; to take time out of one’s busy schedule to enjoy or appreciate the beauty of life.”
As a lover of symbolic meanings, I knew from the very start that I wanted to take things a step further by creating a certain view/story and connecting it with my blog and bookstagram. So, the idea I want people to have in their mind when they think of my blog is: to take the time and enjoy all the simple, beautiful things in life. I want people to think of something that reminds them of a wondrous story they have been told or a magical place they visited. I want people to feel something.
I admit, I do not know what I am doing most of the time. I am the kind of person who finds inspiration in the most simplest of things and who only works around new ideas when they pop into my head. To me, good ideas cannot just be thought out. Good ideas are the ones that pop into your head when you are a few minutes away from falling asleep—that suddenly appear in your mind as you brush your teeth or while you are standing in line at the grocery store, and you quickly have to write down on a piece of paper or type out on your notes app before they leave your mind forever. They are the bits and pieces to the puzzle you have been trying to solve for what feels like all your life.
Always, I feel things to the very extent and can easily get overwhelmed because I do not know how to feel them any less. When a new idea finds its way into my head, it is all I can think about—all I want to think about. My ideas for this blog is never-ending and I just know many things are bound to change over time but for now, this is White Rose Stories.
I asked a while back on my Instagram stories if you all wanted to know anything about me. I answered twenty of these questions and have decided to share them with you.
Q U E S T I O N S & A N S W E R S
What is your name? I use the pseudonym Rose White on my social media but my real name starts with a S. That is unfortunately all I am willing to share on that topic.
How old are you? Turned 18 years old as of November last year.
What are your star signs? My sun is in Scorpio, ascendant in Pisces and my moon in Capricorn.
How many languages do you speak? I speak Afrikaans (my mother tongue) and English. I will also be attempting my hand at learning Dutch and German on my own over the next year or so.
*Your favourite book? Harry Potter. I see all the books as one and cannot choose just one. If I really, really have to, I would probably say Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince or Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
*Your favourite authors? J.K. Rowling, Sarah J. Maas, Leigh Bardugo and many others.
What got you into books? I never read much as a child. Books just did not interest me. I remember picking up a book a few years ago because I wanted to immerse myself into a different world to escape my thoughts a bit and since then, I have become an avid reader.
What got you into bookstagram? Seeing all the beautiful photos bookstagrammers take and reading about how passionately they talked about books made me want to try my hand at it. I never thought I would be part of the community so long but I do not see myself willingly give up on it. Even though my insecurities and busy schedule get the best of me at times, I want to be part of bookstagram as long as fate will let me.
Do you have any pets? Yes, I do! 12 in total at the moment, to be exact. My family and I had many more in the past but they, sadly, are not with us anymore. We currently have my puppy, four cats and 7 tortoises.
If you could be anyone/anything in the world, who/what would you be? I honestly do not know. Everything and everyone has their troubles. Nothing is all sunshine and rainbows, you know? I guess I would have liked to be a bird that can just fly away, from problems and life. To be honest, I think I would just stay myself. Sure, life is not perfect and I have hundreds of worries and hardships but I guess that is life. No matter who or what you are, no one has it all wonderful.
*Who is your favourite artist? Selena Gomez. I have been a fan since I was little and I just love her music. Although, I switch between artists depending on my mood, etc. and mostly listen to LÉON, Calum Scott, Céline Dion and Lana Del Rey.
Why do you write? I do not write an awful lot but I am planning to more this year. Writing has a way of silencing the millions of thoughts, doubts and worries that go through my head daily. I have also experienced that after writing, my head feels more clear, I feel emotionally lighter and less anxious. It has not only been good for practicing my grammar more but has also helped with my mental health.
Coffee or tea? My one true love has, and always be, coffee. However, I have been drinking mostly tea this past year due to health reasons.
Favourite colour(s)? I guess you probably know the answer by now if you have visited my page on Instagram. I love all neutral colours. Different shades of beige, brown, grey, cream and black.
Where do you see yourself in ten years? I see myself in the city, in a cosy apartment, doing what I love, exploring more of my country and the world, with many pets and feeling happy, content, relaxed and open to new opportunities.
Your favourite bookstagram accounts that inspire you? I have so, so many. Every account has something that inspires me but when it comes to my aesthetic: @orphicpages, @thomreads, @faeriewords, @rudyvitkauskas, @abookishdemon, @miasbookblog, @ofcoffeeandkindness, @sacredsappho, @metavoia (and her new account @asterophoite) + many others.
Will you ever collab with other bloggers/bookstagrammers? Of course! I would absolutely love to! I already have a blogger or two in mind.
What do you want to do one day? I originally wanted to become a psychologist but after being told by many people that I am very mature for my age and that I have a head for business, I have decided to follow a career in business. I am currently taking a gap year to try and figure out what I want to do in life but will be stuyding BCom through UNISA in 2021.
Favourite junk food? McDonald’s. All the way.
Your hobbies? Photography, writing, journaling, reading, blogging, film/tv series marathoning and baking.
*Answers of questions marked constantly change.
Thank you to everyone for sending in your questions! I had a lovely time answering them all. Some of them really had me thinking, going down memory lane and made me learn more about myself. I would love to do another Q&A in the future. To get to know a bit more about me, make sure to click here.
That is it for my first blog post. It feels so…strange but in a good way. Like I said, I do not know what I am doing most of the time but nonetheless, I am excited to finally have a blog and domain—still can’t believe it!
Please feel free to leave a comment to let me know your thoughts and if you could be as kind as to subscribe via email, as well as to follow via WordPress, it would mean the absolute world to me.
Thank you so much for reading! Sending all my love and the best of wishes.
Keep on reading and never stop telling stories.
White Rose Stories 
Yes so excited you got it up! It looks lovely and I can’t wait for more content <3
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Thank you so much, Ruby! I appreciate your kind words, help and support immensely! ✨
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