Monday, August 29, 2011

Giveaway Winners & Question

Hey, guys! I'm a little pressed for time today, so I'll make this brief. (Don't worry. I'll make it up to you later.) *Ahem!* The first order of business is a follow up to Contests v. Giveaways. I went through the (fifty) comments this weekend and I realized something:

Only three of you left an e-mail address. *grins*

So, I had a choice. I could either choose a name from the eligable entries via random.org or...



...all three of you could win!

Congratulations to Peggy, Sarah, and Linda! :)
I'll get to work on your blog buttons as soon as possible.

The other thing I wanted to talk about affects all of you. I've been reading a lot of posts on the importance of diversification, when it comes to writers' blogs. (You know, how we shouldn't limit ourselves to strictly writing-centric themes/posts.) It's something I'll have to address sooner or later, so I thought I'd take a poll.
What do you guys think I should do? 


 
Have a great week!

13 comments:

linda said...

Thanks for being so generous, Carrie! :D Great illustration. (LOL at the Oprah reference!) Can't wait to see what you come up with for the blog buttons.

As for diversification, I guess it depends on what your main purpose is for blogging, and what kind of audience you're looking for. Personally, I'm already a fan, so I'd read whatever you want to blog about. :)

JeffO said...

I'm going to be one of those obnoxious guys that leaves a comment without taking the poll. Worse yet, I'm going to answer your question with a question: What do *you* want to do? Consider what you want this (excellent) blog to accomplish, and decide what will help you do that.

Kelley said...

Great question and fantastico illustration :) I'm a sucker for little visuals, and I voted for diversifying. It keeps things interesting for the reader and you :)

Lydia Kang said...

One of the problems with blogging is trying to hit your reader audience rather than your colleague/peer audience. I vote for #2. :)

Leah said...

Call me radical, but I agree with everyone here.

As Linda said, I'm a fan of Carrie, so I'm here to stay. I also think Jeff has a point, you should do what you want. There are multitudes of pros and cons of diversifying.

Speaking as someone who made the leap, it was really, really scary. And it still kind of is. I lost a lot of followers in that first week, but now between RSS subscribers and blog followers, numbers have tripled. I find myself wondering if people think me superficial or frilly for posting about beauty topics once a week, but when it's all said and done, I love writing about it, and I know I'm better off. It's also pulled in a few people who probably wouldn't have normally followed a writer's blog, and they're still there now.

This got really long, really fast. I'm not sure if I can make heads or tails of it anymore. What I want to say is: Do what you feel passionate about, so when you're staring at that blank, white box you feel nothing but excitement.

Long-winded. Maybe I should have just emailed you. Hahahaha.

Golden Eagle said...

Great illustration!

I, personally, don't think diversifying a single blog is a bad idea. But I also agree with other commenters that you should do what you want--if you think centering topics on one blog and starting a new one or just focusing on a single blog is better for you, then go for it. I'm still going to be a fan. :)

The East Coaster said...

I've been running idea though my head the past few weeks too. I know I want to keep my blog as it is today: the process of writing, but I do wonder if I'm turning others away because of it.

Peggy Eddleman said...

Awww! I'm so happy I won! Thanks a million times!

As far as diversifying-- I say write what interests you. If it interests you, it'll shine through and interest others.

Bethany Elizabeth said...

I'd say it's whatever you want - it can get hard to run two blogs, but if you want to, you definitely should! :)

Shelley Koon said...

I'm team Diversify because it will save your sanity in the end ;) With all the social networking we writers do (cause we are chatty and loveable like that!)and the writing of our WIPs and time set aside for family and other things in our lives, we can spread ourselves thin quickly. No need to create even more work for ourselves! In addition - I think it's nice to get to know other writers from a perspective other than just writing.

Unknown said...

I'm voting diversify... and wishing I stopped procrastinating and followed my own advice :P

Laila Knight said...

You should make it easier on yourself. There's no reason why you can't mix it up here. Your choice though. :)

Carrie Butler said...

@Linda - Oh, you're very welcome! *grins* Thank you! Aww! That makes me feel better. I ♥ you guys and all of the support you show me. :)

@Jeff- You? Obnoxious? Never! ;) I'm leaning toward a little diversification. Thanks for the support!

@Kelley - Why thank you! You know, I think I just might go with that. :D

@Lydia - You are *so* right! Thanks for helping with the decision! :)

@Leah - You're radical! ...Oh, you weren't being serious. *Ahem!* Aww! You guys are so nice! I swear, we have the nicest community around here. :) Ooo, that's right. You've already made the leap, and now you're in the middle of a popularity boom. I wouldn't mind following that awesome example. ;) Thanks for the advice!

@Eagle - Aww, man. You guys are going to make me all warm and fuzzy inside! Thank you! :)

@East Coaster - It's nice to know someone else is feeling my pain. Er, not that I should be happy about pain... You know what I mean! lol Thanks for commenting, and I wish you the best of luck with your decision! :)

@Peggy - You're welcome a million times! :D Thank you! I really hope so.

@Bethany - You're back! You have a good point. I don't know if I can handle two blogs. lol Thank you! :)

@Shelley- You're right. I can't afford to lose anymore sanity! ;) I love your advice. I think that's exactly what I needed to hear. Thank you!

@Kallysten - Haha! I'll help hold you accountable to yourself. *grins* Thanks for commenting!

@Laila - I think you're right. :D Thank you!