Blog Anniversary Contest…

Hi there everyone!  Saturday marks ONE YEAR since I started this blog.  WOW…a whole year!   And WHAT a year it has been!!!  Here’s the abbreviated list of the things I learned about blogging:

• Blogging is fun, but really tiring.  I work a lot of hours for my day job, so finding the time to blog is a bit of a challenge.  Still, I like it.  A LOT
• The best part about blogging is discovering other great writers out there.  I have found SO MANY amazing blogs.  I really can’t keep track of them all.  And even though I don’t comment nearly as much as I probably should, I read at least five different blogs every single day.
• Finding things to blog about = hard.  I mean, the minute I decided to blog more than once or twice a week I knew I was in trouble…what on earth was I going to write about.  Hopefully most of my blogs have some value to someone.
• Starting a second blog was…INSANE!  I love my other blog.  I get to write about different kinds of things.  But man oh man…It is so hard to manage both.  I fear I neglect my other blog way too often.
• All in all….this has been an amazing ride.  I CAN’T WAIT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS NEXT YEAR!!!!
• And now – the stats:  Over 17,500 visitors this year, and more than 1400 comments.  Not as good as some; better than others; fascinating to me.  I mean, if you had asked me a couple of years ago if I would have a blog, make online friends, participate in social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook and I would have said NO WAY…clearly I was WRONG.

In honor of  the blog’s upcoming anniversary, I am having a comment contest.  The prize  – a mystery pack of YA books and other cool writerly things you are gonna love!

Here are the deets on the contest:

• Leave me a comment and I will enter you into the contest
• Talk about it on your blog, and I’ll give another entry – just leave me the link.
• Subscribe, follow me on twitter, friend me on facebook and you get more entries (Just be sure to tell me in the comments)
• Follow my other blog, Growing Up Gifted, and you get another entry.

Easy, right.  The contest runs from Today (12/14) through Sat (12/19 – the official anniversary day).  I’ll announce the winner on Monday (12/21).

Thanks everyone, for making this an amazing year.  I am 100000% certain I woud not have my agent, the book deal, the friends, or my sanity without each and every one of you!!! 

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!