Will My Dog Hate Me announced that they will be co-hosting the 2nd Annual Pet Blogger Challenge on January 10th. All pet bloggers are to answer questions about their blogs and publish the answers on January 10th. Everyone who participates is encouraged to join the blog hop Linky list when it becomes available at midnight on January 9th. I have never participated in this blogger challenge before, so I thought I would join in on the fun.
1. When did you begin your blog?
Answer: I began my blog on the Blogger platform in June, 2008, but have since moved to Squarespace.
2. What was your original purpose for starting a blog?
Answer: My husband’s job requires us to move frequently, so I have friends and family all over the place. When we accepted the adventure of dog ownership in 2008, I wanted to be able to share photos and stories with my remote friends and family, and felt blogging was the most versatile and flexible way to do so.
3. Is your current purpose the same?
Answer: Yes, it is.
If so, how do you feel you’ve met your goals?
Answer: Overall, the blog has enabled me to communicate all the joy and silliness that comes with two wonderful pets to friends, family, and well beyond.
4. Do you blog on a schedule or as the spirit moves you?
Question: I do most of my posting on Monday mornings, Wednesdays, and Saturday mornings, however when the spirit does not move me or I am bored with what I am doing, I skip the blog.
If the former, how often — and what techniques do you use to stick to it?
Answer: I don’t have the best techniques quite mastered yet. I know that if I post early (like 4 or 5am) on a Monday then I will receive a lot of comments. Wordless Wednesdays are always a good post for me during a busy week, and I always link up with Life With Dogs for the Saturday post as that always generates a lot of traffic.
If the latter, do you worry about… well, whatever you might worry about (e.g. losing traffic, losing momentum)?
Answer: When I lose momentum, it’s usually a signal to me that something has to change. What exactly - I don’t quite know.
5. Are you generating income from your blog?
Answer: I have been close to generating income from my blog, but nothing has happened quite yet.
If not currently, do you hope to in the future — and how?
Answer: Yes, I hope one day that I will be able to have interesting content that will eventually generate income.
6. What do you like most about blogging in general and your blog in particular (bragging is good!)?
Answer: I would say that I LOVE to blog because in my three years of blogging I have discovered a number of new interests…photography, HTML and website design, a desire to improve my written expression, spelling, and grammar, and the connection and friendships I have made though my blog.
7. What do you like least?
Answer: Having ‘blogger’s block,’ or sometimes feeling like my blog is the smallest blog in the world and nobody cares to look at it…
8. How do you see your blog changing/growing in 2012?
Answer: Sometime during 2012 I will be doing a complete redesign and overhaul of Dog Blogging with Luna. I have come to the realization that I no longer want it to be just about my dogs but more about life in general. This means a domain name change, which is always a scary thing to do. I’ve done this before, and I’m always concerned that I may lose followers – either because they don’t follow the trail of breadcrumbs to the new site, or because they were more interested in the life of our dogs, and the new direction of the blog will move a bit beyond the bounds of that content. However, I also feel that with a new name I will be able to open myself up to different topics and will also be able to reach out to different audiences. 2012 will also be a relocation year and the first year in over fifteen that I will not be working. I will have time (ha and no time) to dedicate to my blog. Plus, 2012 will be the first year that I will be able to attend to Blog Paws. So let’s just say everything will be up in the air for 2012!