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2015: Getting You Up to Speed

Happy 2015, everyone!

I just wanted to come to you guys today and write a short post to let you guys know about what is going on with The Pen & the Needle and some of the plans and visions I have for it in 2015.

For starters, I just want to thank you guys for supporting me. Every comment, view, social media share, ect. is special to me and shows me that you guys notice what I am doing, and for that I thank you for all of the love and support you have shown me. Thank you.

Because of your amazing support I have been able to set a foundation for myself where I have been able to branch out into new areas and try different things with my writings, and I wouldn’t have been able to do that because of you guys. I really appreciate that.

But now, I want to share with you guys some plans and possibilities for The Pen & the Needle in 2015:

  • “Weekly Blessings” series – Due to recent opportunities and need for more time, I am currently debating whether or not to keep “Weekly Blessings” weekly. I have really enjoyed the series and have gotten a great response from you guys, so I’m definitely not going to abandon it; however, I don’t want to be so swamped with other things that I wind up giving lackluster posts. That is why I am considering doing it either bi-weekly or once a month. I will still be asking for guest posts and whatnot, but I may have to cut down frequency. I am still debating on this though.
  • Giveaways – This year I would most definitely love to do at least one good giveaway; you guys deserve it! I already have a giveaway in mind, so hopefully I’ll get that going soon.
  • Post Variety – I feel like I’ve been giving some of the same posts lately, so I want to start giving more random posts like I used to. I would really love some feedback from you guys in this area; what type of posts do you like to read?
  • Design and Hosting – I have really been wanting to redesign the blog, but I am not good with that type of stuff, so I’ll just have to make do for now. But I’m also trying to decide whether or not now is the time for me to make a move to a new host site or stick this one to see how far I can go. Still doing research on that one. Fellow bloggers, I’d love some input on this one.
  • Guest Posts – I want to do more guest posts! The ones I have done in the past were just for “Weekly Blessings,” but I’d love to have more guest posts on various other topics as well. I’ll probably start asking for those soon, so if you’re interested don’t be afraid to get in touch with me or just stay posted for when I start announcing that I’m looking for guest posts.
  • Feedback – This is one very important to me. I started this blog to keep me writing and focused, but I also created this blog for you guys! I wanted to give you guys a different look at life’s small details and inspire you guys to see the world in all it’s capacity. I want you guys to reach out to me, tell what you like and don’t like, give me post ideas, network, anything. Just talk to me! Not sure what to say, well let me help you: I created a short survey to get your opinions on some of the things I did in 2014. Click here to access it, or look on the right side of this post to complete the survey. Let’s take The Pen & the Needle to a new level together!

Well now you see some of the things I want to do this year. Will I complete everything? I have no idea, but I sure hope so! Will I try to complete everything? Yes indeed I will!

Let’s make 2015 a great year for us and The Pen & the Needle!

16 thoughts on “2015: Getting You Up to Speed

  1. Good for you, setting great goals for yourself, Jessica! In case you're interested, one of my blogging besties and I are doing a whole long blogging series for 2015 called New Year, New Blog. If you want to go VIP with it, too, I feel like it'd be well worth your while and right up your alley, especially given your own blogging aspirations for the year!
    http://cominguprosestheblog.com/introducing-new-year-new-blog-200-west-elm/
    Hope you join us…we'd love to have you as part of the community. (:

    cominguprosestheblog.com

  2. Happy New Year Jessica! I hope you're able to succeed in most if not all of these great goals. I'm also a blogger and started my site on wordpress self-hosted which I love, however I'm also techy and the technical work doesn't bother me. For someone who is uncomfortable with the idea of managing a site and all the tweaks and stuff that are needed, they might want to stay with a hosted site as long as they're not looking to run advertising or sponsorships. Best of luck!

  3. Good goals Jessica. I was on blogger and I moved to self-hosted. I liked blogger, but I am happy that I have full control of my website now. If you are not ready to move but would like some new design, you can find cheap blogger templates at Etsy, Luvly Marketplace and some are very cheap. Also, on my blogging page under resources I wrote my blogging journey and what I am using now. I hope I helped:)

  4. You are a breath of fresh air! I love your enthusiasm! I love your openness! Let me know if you'd like for me to guest blog for you. You seem open to just about anything, and I write about… just about anything!

    I also updated my website recently — I know a guy! If you want to take a look at my website and like what you see, let me know if you would like his contact info. I didn't have a big budget, but I really like what he did.

    BEST TO YOU!
    Daisy Rain

  5. These all sound like very good ideas. I am new here, so I haven't seen the Blessings series, but that sounds good. Many people pay people to do a personal design and install that into WordPress. Maybe you can do a search of people who offer those services and see what is available. God bless! 🙂

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