Thank you, Lizzy, for letting me take part in your Blogiversary! Two years to be dedicated to blogging is a big deal and well worth celebrating. Others who blog understand the amount of time and attention it takes, so we can all appreciate the commitment you’ve made.

I started my own blog just over a year ago because I had the urge to start telling people my secret. It was a secret I hadn’t told my husband until after a month of indulgence. It was a secret so embarrassing that telling my kids was like walking around the grocery store in nothing but my skivvies. This secret, though, had a way of making me feel alive and like I was doing what I was made to do. I had to talk about it.

What’s your deep, dark, horrifying secret, you ask? It was simply this: I was writing a novel. *gasp* I know! What a terribly embarrassing thing to do.

I was writing a fictional tale of a princess who loses the most precious part of her soul. I was baring my own soul in it, too. What does one do when one decides to bare her soul? She tells everyone. What’s the best way to tell the whole world? A blog. Of course.

Starting a blog was the perfect thing to have done! At first it was just to talk about my journey, to grow in confidence, but it has become so much more. Anyone who plans to be a writer should blog for all the reasons that are circulating about, such as building a brand for your name, a place for people to find your books, etc. But my favorite reason for a blog is meeting new people and forming friendships.

The word on the street for writers who want to sell their books is “utilize your blog to create ‘super fans.’” And while I get it, I never want to use a tool to use people, so my advice is always be authentic, be yourself. People can sense your sincerity, and you never want to be so obsessed with selling your books that you forget to share your secret: the passionate soul living in that body of yours.

I want people to read my books because they want to, not because they are my friends. I’m glad I’ve finally shared my secret because now I’ve made some wonderful friends who, come to find out, are just as zealous about the same things! I love it!

Lizzy has done a tremendous job with her blog, but what you can appreciate most about her is her honesty and authenticity. She genuinely cares for and appreciates the people who she interacts with on a daily basis. She’s fair and kind. I’m so happy to celebrate her two year anniversary of blogging.   I’m reminded of the beauty I wrote about in my book. It’s in the hearts of real people across the globe.

“I’m a success today because I had a friend who believed in me and I didn’t have the heart to let him down.”
― Abraham Lincoln

Happy Anniversary, Lizzy!

~Rachael Ritchey

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