Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Six Years! of Blogging

The light breaks through
Z and I were sitting there yesterday morning (let's say morning because otherwise our summer laziness will be exposed), eating our cereal, when I suddenly realized that it was July and I needed to look up what date our blogiversary was so that I didn't miss it. For some reason, I can never remember it. Well, it turns out that it's TODAY, July 8th.
I never knew what the blog would blossom into.
Six years ago, I had a four-year-old preschooler who was needing less of my attention and I was finally able to start reading again during the previous months. I wasn't super familiar with anything but personal blogs (which I wasn't very interested in writing) but thought that I could probably write something about the books I was reading. I scoped out the existing book blogger community, pondered using an alias (no for me, yes for Z), came up with a catchy name (assonance, ftw), and decided to try it out for a year or so. At the time, I had a TBR stack of probably about 15-20 books.
An RIP-worthy photo!
Six years later, this is my 1204th post (in 2192 days). I've received 6231 comments. I've posted more of my photographs than I care to count. I've given away 24 books (on my own, with a couple of publisher-supported giveaways on top of that), 5 gift cards, and a necklace. I've participated in 8 read-a-thons, a couple of book/letter swaps, and lots of challenges (including 5 years so far of my favorite R.I.P. Challenge). I've also hosted three years of Diana Wynne Jones March and written about chapter books for almost two years on The Estella Society. And I now have a TBR of almost 200 books.
I'm not kidding about being lucky.
I've been so lucky to meet some real friends through blogging and to have been exposed to so many books I never would have found on my own. I really do want to thank my readers and friends for being there with me throughout this journey. I really don't want to miss anyone but I don't want to miss this chance either so, in no particular order (and with profuse apologies if I've missed you) ...

Thank you to

TifAndiHeatherTrishChrisJanetIrisNatJennersSelenaCeceliaCarlJennyTeresaJenny
(deep breath)
DanielleNatashaAnaAmandaKerryBahnreeAdamTashaKellyLeslieJenniferPatEvaAl
(gasp)
AartiKarenDianeSimonSimonRobRobinLenoreKimJillianKaiMemoryGoldeenTinaAmy
(another deep breath)
ElizabethCarolinaLaurenJeanAnastasiaChrisSusanSabrinaGraceHannahKateBelle
(and another)
MarieFrancesMichelleDebDeniseNicoleDanielleMareeGilionDanaWendyJenJackie
(one last breath)
BellezzaEmmaColleenAmandaSamanthaTrishaCherylEliseJeannePriyaKatharina
(okay, I lied)
TraceyCatherineAlexAnmiryamTze-WenVickiClaireBeccaBrianStevenJoeClaudia
... and I think I might be short a Chris and a Jenny

Thank you all for your love of books, for sharing your favorites with me and for letting me share mine with you.
Yep, I pulled out the Neil picture again.
Finally, I want to remember how lucky I've been to meet some of my favorite authors -- Neil Gaiman, Carlos Ruiz Zafón, Catherynne M. Valente, Ransom Riggs. Did I mention meeting Neil? I'm not sure if I did.

What am I hoping for the year ahead? I would love to get a chance to meet more bloggers, especially if I do actually make it to the UK as planned. I would love to meet more authors (fingers crossed for a Jasper Fforde Seattle visit because I've always been too nervous to go meet him). And, well, I would like to read more books and share them with all of you. How does that sound?

Stepping out toward seven,
K

29 comments:

  1. congratulations, that's a big one!

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    1. Thank you! I honestly never thought I would do this for so long.

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  2. Happy happy bloggiversary Kristen! So glad to have "met" you through blogging. I love seeing how blogging went from just a simple little hobby for you to something so much bigger. It's times like these when I have such an adoration for blogging. LOL! To many more!

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    1. Me too! I think we started talking during a read-a-thon so YAY READ-A-THON! :)

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  3. Congratulations on six years! I'm so glad that blogging 'introduced' us to each other. And that we're both still reading. What a great obsession, eh?!

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    1. I'm so glad we met too! And books are the best. :)

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  4. Happy bloggiversary! Six years - wow! And I loved reading about all that you've done since you first started.

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    1. Thank you! It was fun looking all of that stuff up.

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  5. Happy birthday! Or blog-day, whatever it's called. I certainly hope you do make it to the UK and if you do, you must post plenty of pictures! I will be living vicariously through you. :D

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    1. I'm hoping to go next spring for my ::ahem 40th:: birthday. It would be the best present ever!

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  6. Kristen, CONGRATS on SIX YEARS! Wow! And since I'm new following your blog, I hadn't seen the pic of you with Neil Gaiman!!!! I sincerely wish I could read EVERYthing he's ever written, but as it is, I own two of his books and have yet to get to them *sigh* No time! Too many books! Speaking of which:

    As an aside, I'm trying to make a conscious decision on cutting back for a while on how much time I spend on reading/commenting on blogs I love and follow, 'cause if I don't, my own blogs will never be launched *sigh* I'm not disappearing...just fading for a bit with occasional apparitional appearances. I figure if I actually TELL everyone I'm doing this (that is, if you notice lol)---I actually WILL!

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    1. There are totally authors who I WANT to read but haven't found the time for yet. It happens. :)
      Good luck on spending your time writing!

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  7. Woo hoo!! Congratulations!!! Andi and I have been so lucky to have you at The Estella Society. Here's hoping for many, many more years!

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    1. Thank you so much! I've had the best time reading all of those stellar chapter books and monopolizing The Society. ;)

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  8. Congratulations on six years! It hardly feels like that long--my own six years have flown by, yet it's hard to imagine life without blogging.

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    1. Thank you! It has definitely flown by. I had to double-check the year because I couldn't quite believe it.

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  9. Congratulations!~ 6 years takes dedication.

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    1. It does and sometimes I'm more dedicated than at other times. ;)

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  10. Happy blogiversary! Isn't it amazing how we start out blogging with such a small tbr pile and then it explodes?! You are so awesome and I hope you blog for many years to come. :-)

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    1. Thank you so much! I still look over at my TBR bookshelf (and stacks) sometimes and am blown away by how many books there are that I really want to read. I feel kind of lucky. :)

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  11. Six years! Wow! Congratulations! (I turned six in December of last year, I've just realized this moment.) Many happy returns of the day -- so glad you decided to become a book blogger, wonderful Kristen. <3

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  12. Thank YOU, Kristen! Happy 6th and here's to many more <3

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    1. Thanks so much! We'll see how many more are ahead. ;)

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  13. Happy happy hapy 6th blog birthday!! I've loved following your book journey for the last few years, and I look forward to following you for many MORE years. <3

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    1. Thank you! I'm so happy to find that our journeys intersect so often. :)

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  14. Six years and 1204 posts. That's amazing! I've been blogging for almost eleven months, and I'm surprised at how much I enjoy it. Congratulations.

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  15. Congratulations on six years of blogging and here's to many more!!! I love this post. :)

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