Wow, I can’t believe it’s been 15 years! So many changes throughout the years too. From how I reviewed, how I did my posts, what the blog looked like, moving from Blogger to WordPress with someone to help me host the site. Below are some early headers/buttons I had, before I ended up with my current one, that I love so much from Michelle at Limabean Designs, who has also recreated it for several themes throughout the year that I can change out!
Changes in my job, went from being a science teacher, working part time at Barnes and Noble, to being a librarian, now at my second school as a librarian, and no longer working at the bookstore sadly since the pandemic. I moved from a townhome to a house with a yard for my dogs. One of my sisters moved to NYC, then in 2019 she moved to Scotland! I get to be an auntie now that I have a niece and a nephew. The past year has been somewhat the hardest for me, with both parents being sick in 2023, my stepdad’s cancer getting worse until we lost him this past May.
I had one dachshund named Sydney when I started, and she was the inspiration for one of my first blog banners. And I included her even after she passed away along with my two current dachshunds, Dora and Argyle.
The number of books I have on my bookshelves has increased exponentially! Especially ones I haven’t read. Before I started blogging, pretty sure I’d read almost every single book I owned. I’ve met so many authors, found so many new ones to devour their books. My reading tastes have changed a lot too! While I did read some romance/chick lit, I read mostly horror books like Stephen King and Dean Koontz. I started reading a lot more YA back when I started blogging too. Now I’m mostly romance and some YA for school or because I love the authors. I didn’t used to really listen to audiobooks, now I do that in the car all the time!
When I started this blog, I wasn’t for sure going to use it just for books. You can see that in my very first post HERE.
My first actual review was of a movie, and it wasn’t really much of a review as you can read HERE.
My first book review on here was The Hunger Games. I read it for the Truman List at that time since I was still a middle school teacher. I’ve been trying to go back and update all my reviews to the system with my current blog host so that they show on my blog review pages, but haven’t gotten them all done yet. This one I did though. I also read the Mark Twain list that year too. So 50 books just for the lists!
My first post about the Twilight books.
My first non-book list related review was a chick-lit book called Game Over. I still need to update this one to add to my review pages.
Things have changed in the book world so much over the last 15 years. Some of the big bloggers I used to follow have stopped blogging, for many reasons. And now TikTok influencers seem to be the ones who get all the goodies like the bloggers did in the early days. I have a TikTok account, but it is mostly videos of my dogs, or maybe me paging through a physical book I’m reading. Since so much of what I read these days is e-galleys, I don’t quite know how to do the TikTok posts without having to talk or put myself in a video, and that is just not something I’m comfortable with. When I first started blogging, Twitter was the big social media that I talked to so many authors on! Even one that we talked so much when I went to NYC to visit my sister after she moved there, that author met up with me and we had a drink and talked for several hours!
So, tell me, how long have you been following me? Are you a blogger too? How long have you been blogging? How much change have you gone through since you started blogging? Are you on TikTok or Instagram?
And of course it wouldn’t be a blogoversary without a giveaway! I have two prizes. First is a $15 Amazon GC for international if you can get an Amazon GC. And then a US only prize of 3 books from my ARC/giveaway pile. I’ve put the picture below, but it will change by the time I do the giveaway, more books added by then!
0
0
0
20
Happy 15 years!!! I can’t remember when I found your blog, but I’ve been following you for a long time. I enjoy reading your reviews and they help me know if I’m going to like a book or not.
Happy to still have you around and commenting!
I’m not sure how long I’ve been following your blog. I started mine in 2012 and it was some time after that. Congrats on your 15th!
Thanks! Glad you’re still around too!
Congrats! You are ancient in the blog world. I’ve been around since 2013 but only had my own blog since 2017.
LOL! I’ve been doing it for awhile. I started out a bit on My Space, and then there was some other site I can’t remember the name of too!
I have been following your blog for a few years now.
Yay! Thanks for sticking around!
Hello! I found you I think about two years ago. I’m a blogger too. Been blogging for 10-years and like you my blog has gone through changes and so has my personal life. I don’t TikTok. Never understood it, but also I don’t like to show myself or talk, so I stick with Instagram, Threads, and Facebook. I used to use Twitter more, but after X bought it I stopped checking it. I love seeing your babies (puppies). I also share my dog. ^_^ Congratulations on the Blogoversary! 15 is a big milestone. Wishing you many more!
I like scrolling through TikTok, but I’m not one to like to hear my voice in a recording or see myself on camera! Yeah, Twitter used to be the big thing, then it changed so much and I rarely get on there. Thanks for stopping by!
Happy 15th anniversary.
Thanks!
I have been following your blog for a few years. I’m not sure how many.
Thanks for sticking around!
Omg 15 years! That is huge!! I had no idea you’ve been blogging that long! Congratulations! And here is to many more! 🥳
Thank you!
I don’t recall, but I’m sure it’s at least two years!
Yay! Thanks for being here!
Congrats on your 15th Anniversary. I think I have been following you for a couple years.
Glad to have you here!
Happy Blogoversary! I celebrated my 15th blogoversary in January! It’s been a fun and wild ride that’s for sure! Seen so many changes over the course of the years. Seen many friends give it up, seen a few decide to come back. I’ve got nothing else going on so I keep doing it! Lol. I honestly can’t remember how long I’ve been following you…maybe since near the beginning? I honestly don’t even remember how I found the blogs I followed way back when! I think some of it came from all those traveling memes where I visited people from the list and if we had similar likes I just started following them! Blogging has been a wild and crazy journey that’s for sure! Hope you have many more happy years to come!
Thanks! I think we probably met through those traveling memes I’m sure! Those days were fun! Things have changed, but I just still enjoy it and so I keep going!
Happy blogoversary Lisa! Wow, 15 years is amazing. I’ve been blogging for 13 years and I thought that was a long time, lol. Blogging is so different from what it used to be. I hate every time a blogger I follow stops blogging, but I know it’s such a big time commitment. I love seeing photos of your dogs😁
I think I started 15 years ago, but maybe didn’t really get into following and commenting for a couple more years. It is sad when ones we follow stop blogging. But as long as I enjoy it, I will keep going!
Congrats, it’s such a great achievement! I’ve been following you for a couple of years now, not sure exactly how long.
Thanks for being a follower!
Happy 15 years! Such an awesome achievement. I started blogging June 2007. Unfortunately, I impulsively deleted everything in December 2015. I wish I hadn’t done that.
Thanks! Yeah, I started blogging on another site that I can’t remember the name of now, and so I can’t go get those posts sadly to add to this one.
I’m really not sure how long I’ve been following you. I know at least 5 years but probably more.
Glad you’re still here!
Congratulations on 15 years of blogging! I’ve been blogging for 12 years now and yes, a lot has changed. I hate doing reels or videos so I doubt I’ll branch onto TikTok but who knows. I like Instagram better, but blogs the best. Our tastes in books change, but never our love of books!
Thanks! Yeah, I don’t know enough about the video type of posts, so I like Instagram for photos more.
Happy blogiversary! Things really have changed since I started blogging. Publishers used to love bloggers. Then they switched to loving YouTubers and Instagrammers. Now they’ve switched to loving TikTokers. Maybe one day they’ll circle back to bloggers?
So true! I was at an author event and a young person, maybe college age, maybe high school, was talking about going to Apollycon and I told her I hadn’t been able to get tickets in years, and she said she was an influencer, so that’s how she got to go. I was like, yeah, that used to be the things bloggers got, lol. Maybe we’ll be the thing again one day, we’ll see. For now I just keep doing it because I enjoy talking about books.
CONGRATULATIONS!! 15 years is an impressive amount of time to be doing anything! I think I started following you a couple years ago? Not sure, but I found you fairly recently. So glad I did!
I started blogging in January 2010, so I guess I’m almost to 15 years, too! And I remember so long ago when I thought I would keep up with my TBR. Oh we were so naive! I started my blog because at the time “everyone was doing it.” But I didn’t write reviews. Until I did!
Congrats!!
Thanks! I think I remember visiting your blog back in the day, but didn’t officially start following by email until a few years ago maybe. And I only recently got good about actually going to those emails and clicking to check out posts. Yeah, I remember when I used to reread series before the new one would come out, these days, who has time to reread?
Congrats on another blogoversary, Lisa! Keep up the book reviews and dog pictures 🙂
Thanks! Will do, always love sharing the dog pics too.
I can’t believe you’ve been doing this for 15 years! I’ve been at it for almost 12, but I agree that things have changed A LOT since then!!
I figure as long as I continue to enjoy it, I’ll keep doing it!
A few years.
Thanks!