I really and truly cannot believe that I started my blog a year ago....and as the saying goes
"where has the time gone".
Initially some of that time went into creating the look and design of my blog or should I say lack of design,which may I add, is always work in progress....I look with envy and admiration at some of the beautifully designed sites out there, but then I take stock of the fact that I am not a graphic designer or website creator, so my blog for now will continue to adopt that "less is more" look and will stay simple and uncomplicated, cos that is how I like it!
The bulk of my time has gone into the research,compiling,composing and finally the writing.People often make the comment that they want to "write a book some day",so my advice to them would be, try writing a daily article for a blog for twelve months and then see if you still have that same inclination! It's taxing work to write interesting articles to post daily, even for my fledgling beauty blog, so to those that write books regardless of which type, I salute you, as it takes time, willpower and the production of plenty of creative juices, all of which seem to be, for me, in short supply on most occasions.
Obviously much time has been spent trying products, which is the fun part and if you have received those products for free, then its even better and those were my thoughts initially....can I tell you, that the reviews on the "freebies" are the hardest to write! I have been sent products and asked to write about some restaurants, which truthfully were not worthy of a write up and that's what I wrote...nothing...no review! The products that are great or the ones that I love, are easy to write or rave about, but the rest that fall into the "average" category are the problematic ones for me. A saying in our home is that, as a family "we don't do average" we always try to do better than average,whether it be in schoolwork, sport or work. When it comes to reviewing a product or service I have to remind myself that every ones interpretation of average is different.
At the end of the day a blogger writes about his or her own personal encounters and experiences and the readers must "gleam" the best and worst bits and form their own opinions. One thing that you can be sure of is my honesty, as I will never write, that I have enjoyed a product when I actually hated or disliked it, just because it was sent to me as a freebie.....I have been very fortunate and thankful that many of my "freebies" have exceeded my "average".
Besides the setting up and the writing aspect of having a blog, I also had to contend with the other aspects of social media that feed your blog daily, rather like one of those virtual pets that die if they are not fed,watered and entertained... Being a "50 something" year old blogger, this was for me somewhat of a challenge.(thank goodness for an IT boffin Kiddiewink in the house).
Beauty Shout Box has its own
facebook page which I love and find the easiest to manage. You will also find me "tweeting" on Twitter which in the beginning was hectic and somewhat daunting and many a "faux pas" has been made, but I am learning!Pinterest is fun and a great source of info and inspiration. Recently I added Instagram to the Beauty Shout Box social media world.
Whether you follow me on all of the above or just occasionally read my blog, I am very appreciative that there are people out there that are reading and listening to what I have to Shout about!
All things taken into account I am quite proud of what I have achieved,
have I enjoyed it and would I do it all over again for another 12 months?
YES,YES,YES
As I have lots, still, to shout about....
And in true Inslee Haynes style
To everyone a huge
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