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5 Years in Book Blogging

5yr. blogiversary

Since staring this blog five years ago, its been a fun ride with crazy blogging events, book talk, giveaways, and more.  I thought in honor of five years, I’d talk about my favorite parts of this blog.

1.  Virtual Poetry Circle:  Even though I don’t get many responses week to week, I still get a kick out of sharing new poems that I find to post and share with others.  These poems can be from poets.org or from collections I’ve read the previous week or even long ago.  I try to vary the content from classic to contemporary, narrative to rhyming, and more.  This is always the fun part for me, “which poem will it be this week?” My index finger drumming my chin.  If there’s ever a poet you want to see featured, don’t hesitate to send a poem along or just recommend the poem by name.

2.  Interviews:  As a little girl, I longed to interview some of my favorite authors, and now I get to do that for real.  Most recently, I had the chance to interview a long-admired poet, Molly Peacock, who gave me the idea for the virtual poetry circle, and some local advocates for books and literacy like the Chair of the Gaithersburg Book Festival Jud Ashman.  It’s great to see what connects those who write books and those who promote them — love of the written world.

3.  National Poetry Month Blog Tour: This project takes a lot of planning and a lot of work to line up poets and authors, publishers, and bloggers.  Most people worry that they don’t have the “qualifications” to read and review poetry, but the only qualification you need in my book is the “joy of reading.”  If you love to read and you love to see how authors of novels create a scene or character, poetry should be a breeze.  Think of the poem as an unfolding blossom, opening up to the light with each word and each line opening to the sun.  Once you’ve reached the end, there is a full picture to behold.

4.  Community:  I started blogging around the same time as Anna, but soon fell into a wider group, led at that time by Dewey.  Even though she’s no longer with us, I know that her spirit lives on in the community — a community she loved and loved to see grow . . . and grow it has, exponentially.  I’ve got some old friends from that time, and I’ve made some new ones.  I love meeting these people in person at book festivals and conventions; it has been such a joy to share the love of books with people online and off, especially since my husband is not a big reader.

For this year’s blogiversary giveaway, You must tell me how you learned about Savvy Verse & Wit AND whether you have a favorite feature/post or read a book I recommended.

Prize pack will include:

a.  free access to 2012’s Best of List

b.  1 book of poetry from those I reviewed this year (your choice)

c.  1 book up to $25 from my local bookstore, Novel Places.

Deadline to enter will be June 30, 2012Open Internationally.

Comments

  1. Happy Blogoversary! 5 years is amazing! I don’t know how I found you originally but you were among the first blogs I followed when I started 3 years ago. I also noticed a link for your giveaway at Diary of an Eccentric. I don’t read as much poetry as I used to so I always enjoy seeing what you’ve found!

    You do a wonderful job here! I look forward to more. 🙂

  2. Congratulations! 5 years is fantastic!

    You have a wonderful blog and I totally enjoy your interviews with authors. You ask wonderful, creative questions. I really enjoy yourposts about poetry. I’m going to try to respond to your posts more often, too, particularly the poetry posts.

    I think I was introduced to your blog through Anna’s blog.

    Best wishes for 5 more amazing years!

  3. First of all, congrats on five years! As for how I found you, I actually started following you almost three years ago when I started my blog. I think I first saw you on Twitter, but it may have been through another blogger. We also became more acquainted during Armchair BEA 2011 when you interviewed me.

    My favorite feature of yours is the Virtual Poetry Circle. I have always enjoyed poetry, but I definitely do not take enough time to read it. Since I started paying closer attention to your blog and those posts (although I have been lax on visiting as much due to an overly clogged Google Reader & extremely busy life…now following via email & hoping to visit more), I have started picking up more poetry. I just have to get to the point where I actually write a post about it. You are so eloquent in your posts about poetry. I can only hope to be as good when I do (but probably won’t). 😉

    Congrats again on 5 years and thank you for the giveaway!

    • I hear you on the busy life and the over-clogged Google Reader. I’ve been trying my best to visit blogs, but time runs out sooner than I expect. I thank you for the compliment about my poetry reviews. I hope you review one yourself. I’m sure it will convey what you want it too.

  4. Yikes! Sorry I missed this. Happy Blogiversary! Wow, 5 years – we’ve been around a long time already. I remember when I first found your blog. You had stopped by mine and said you did because of my blog name. I visited yours and never looked back and I’m so glad I did because you’ve become a great friend! Hope there is many more years of blogging and friendship Serena!

    No need to enter me.

  5. Congratulations and best wishes on many more years of wonderful blogging. I found your blog through another blogsite. I enjoy your great book reviews, features and wonderful insights.

  6. Congratulations! 5 years is quite an accomplishment!

  7. Congrats on 5 years! You have accomplished so much!

  8. Congrats on five years! I don’t remember exactly how I found your blog, but it was through another blog that I frequented. Maybe BermudaOnion or Diary of an Eccentric? I love your celebration of National Poetry Month – I’ve participated two years now and think it is great how much you promote poetry. 🙂

  9. Congratulations!! Love your blog.

  10. I learned about Savvy Verse & Wit when I noticed my poetry chapbook on 2011 indie lit poetry suggestions.
    I thought you were very brave to do the It read-along. That book terrified me when I read it in middle school. I also really enjoyed your review of The Conference of Birds.

    • I’ve read IT more than once now…that was the challenge for my friend Anna, who said she wanted a book to scare her and since I know she hates clowns, it was a great fit. I loved The Conference of Birds.

  11. ‘happy blogiversary’…i confess, i don’t recall how i discovered your fabulous blog…but i visit it often…and enjoy it all 😉

  12. Five years is awesome! Congrats! And I have slept since then, so I am not sure how I found you originally. I’m thinking maybe through Anna? And who knows how I found Anna. I stumbled on a lot of things there at the beginning of my blogging adventure.

  13. I can’t remember how I found your blog. I love the interviews where you show where authors write. Some have some very drool-worthy offices!

    Congrats and here’s to many more fun years of blogging.

  14. Bookworm says

    Happy blogversary Serena! I’ve just recently hit the five year mark too.
    I can’t remember how I found your wonderful blog, but it’s on my favorites list. Your reviews are great as are the features like Poetry Circle and Poetry month blog tour. Keep up the awesome work.

  15. I can’t remember how I found your blog but I know that without your influence I probably wouldn’t read any poetry, much less review a book of it, and tried to participate in a monthly poetry challenge. I know my reading — and thus my life — is richer for reading your blog.

    Happy blogiversary, Serena. May you enrich our lives for many more years!

  16. How did we meet? I wanna say it was through Anna but then we got to know each other better through the Indie Lit Awards so it was a combination of both with the latter sealing the deal. LOL.

    I love how passionate you are about poetry. It rubs off 🙂

    • Thanks, Ti. I think its been great getting to know you better. I really love that you challenge me to read things I normally wouldn’t. Murakami will be on the reading list one of these days.

  17. Congrats, congrats — that’s amazing!! Five years — kudos to you as your blog is one of my all-time favs — you have such unique, interesting, original content, and I love that you highlight genres and authors I rarely see anywhere else. Yours is a blog I aspire to — thank you for always being so kind, welcoming, friendly, and passionate about books. I’m so v sorry I punked out in participating in nat’l poetry month this year — I hope I may have an opportunity again in the future! I just love your poetry circle and the interviews you do — as one who gets giddy talking with authors, I so appreciate the questions you ask and the tidbits you share. Don’t enter me in the giveaway — I’m wildly behind on my reading — but I wanted to share my joy at celebrating your blogiversary! (Also, I can’t remember how I found you — via Anna, perhaps? — or BBAW? — however I did, I’m thrilled!)

    • I really am glad that I started following you, which I blame on Anna…but I don’t think my husband is too thrilled as you recommend so many great books and our tastes in reading are similar.

  18. Happy 5th! You know I was with you when Savvy was born, and you know I enjoy the poetry circle and the National Poetry Month tour. If it wasn’t for you, I probably wouldn’t read any poetry. Sad I know, but it should make you happy that you’ve had an impact on my reading. 🙂

  19. Happy fifth birthday, Savvy Verse & Wit!

  20. It’s funny but I remember FINDING your blog, but I don’t remember HOW. I remember it in particular because I saw you were from the D.C. area so that always sticks in my head. An that picture of you in a beret, as I remember? That sort of stuck in my head too! LOL My favorite feature would have to be the Poetry Month Tour. Happy Blogiversary!!!

  21. Happy blogiversary! Today marks 4 years for me. I think I learned about your blog from the first BBAW.

  22. Happy 5th! I can’t remember how I found your blog originally. The virtual poetry circle is my favorite, although its appearance on Saturday has made it harder for me to comment. Saturday is the day I try to stay off the internets, and Sunday and Monday get so crowded that often I don’t get caught up. How do you feel about comments a week after the original post? I love them, but am never sure if other bloggers think they’re a little odd.

  23. Beth Hoffman says

    Happy Blogiversary, Serena! May there be many, many more.

  24. Alessandra@Out of the Blue says

    Congratulations on your fifth blogiversary! That’s huge!
    I can’t really remember how I came across your blog. I think it was through Dewey’s blog. I loved the WWII reading challenge you organized a couple of years ago.

  25. Congratulations on your 5 year milestone Serena

  26. From Kathy of Bermudaonion. Congratulations on the blogiversary.