I try to keep my focus at Romance Writers on the Journey on YOU, my awesome guests and visitors.
However, my blog reached two milestones this week. In honor of its first birthday and passing the 20,000 page views mark, I’m throwing a cyber celebration.
A Party!
You’re invited. So, grab a party blower and join in the fun.
Prizes!
As usual, there are prizes for those who stop by and leave a comment. I have some special ones just for this post. One item I’m giving away is a beautiful “Believe” necklace from Premier Designs. Check it out in the Drawing section at the end of the post.
A Big Week!
On May 26, 2008 my blog went live with my first post, Joy on the Journey. The site debuted with a different URL using my name as opposed to the blog’s name. On August 16, 2008, this location became its home. Yesterday, between the two sites, Romance Writers on the Journey welcomed its 20,000th visitor. A big week indeed.
Here’s a quick recap of some blog stats:
This is the 95th post.
You wonderful guests and visitors have left 2,700 comments.
I’ve interviewed 37 debut authors.
I’ve interviewed 26 writers on the path to publication.
Three of my writer guests subsequently sold (each just three weeks after her interview here at RWotJ), and I spotlighted their BIG news in my Saturday Special: She Sold! stories.
I’ve run 26 articles.
Of those articles, 10 were written by knowledgeable guest bloggers.
The most viewed post is Shelley Adina’s article, Writing a Pitch-Perfect Query Letter. It’s awesome and continues to draw visitors every week.
The busiest day on the blog was July 21, 2008, when 2007 Golden Heart® inspirational winner, Carla Capshaw, was my guest.
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Back in February 2009, I ran a post, Blog Awards, in which I noted the two RWotJ had received. More recently it has received two more. Because I’m grateful to the generous bloggers who bestowed these honors and want to recognize them, I’ll mention the awards.
Lynn Raye Harris gave RWotJ the Lemonade Stand award, which is for sites that show great attitude and/or gratitude!
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Lynnette Labelle of Chatterbox Chit Chat and Sherrinda Ketchersid of A Writer Wannabe both gave RWotJ the One Lovely Blog Award, which is self-explantory.
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By accepting these awards, I’m also agreeing to pass on the awards. The number of specified recipients seems to vary from 5-15, so I’ll go with 7 since it’s one of my favorite numbers . . .
I pass on the Lemonade Stand Award and the One Lovely Blog Award to the following 7 sites (in no particular order) because all of you ladies have lovely blogs that show great attitude and gratitude.
A Christian Romance Writer’s Journey: Eileen Astels
On the Path: Jody Hedlund
Dreaming on the Job: Emily Becher
BookingIt: Jessica Nelson
The Writing Road: Beth K. Vogt, Scoti Domeij and Roxanne Sherwood
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And now, let’s continue with the celebration.
Grab a calorie-free cyber cupcake and check out the party favors (aka drawing prizes.) To have a chance at winning one of them, just leave a comment.
I’d love to hear what you’d like to see in the way of articles here at RWotJ. Please share your suggestions in your comment. This site is for YOU. I value your input.
I’d also love to have you tell us what’s been the high point of the past twelve months for you. Finaled in a contest? Sold a book? Had a baby? Sent a “baby” off to college? Welcomed a grandbaby to your family?
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Celebration Drawing Prizes
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To enter the drawing for one of the following six prizes, just leave a comment and include your email address when prompted. (I don’t share it, and I don’t add it to any mailing lists.)
At the end of the day June 6, I’ll chose the six winners. I’ll contact the winners and post there names here on June 7. Prizes will awarded at random.
One Necklace
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I purchased this from Premier Designs. The front reads “Believe.” The reverse side reads “Like there’s endless possiblities.” I got one of these for myself, too, and wear it all the time. It’s a nice piece of jewelry.
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Two Gift Cards
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There is one $5 gift card for Borders and one for my favorite fast food hangout, Taco Bell.
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Three Inspirationals Novels
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The books are: Longings of the Heart by Bonnie Leon, Love Finds You in Miracle, Kentucky by Andrea Boeshaar and The Edge of Light by Anne Shorey.
These are my once-read copies. I’m a careful reader and don’t even break the spines. 
You can read my reviews of these titles on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Borders and Christian Book.
And the winners are . . .
Beth Vogt won the Believe necklace.
Julie Robinson won the Taco Bell gift certificate.
Gail won the Borders gift card.
Pat Jeanne Davis won the copy of Longings of the Heart by Bonnie Leon.
Jessica won the copy of Love Finds You in Miracle, Kentucky by Andrea Boeshaar.
Edna Tollison won the copy of The Edge of Light by Ann Shorey.
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Note: Your comment also enters you in my regular drawings for a tote bag and a First Sale Scrapbook. You can see photos and descriptions at the end of the previous post.
May 30, 2009 at 7:47 pm
Wow Keli!!!! Congratulations! What a milestone for you! What an accomplishment to have such a wonderful blog that inspires and encourages authors and readers alike. May God continue to bless you as you extend His hand to those around you, and may He get you published so you can interview yourself someday soon on “She Sold” Day!!!
I’ve had a few high points the last 12 months. Getting my 2nd child graduated tomorrow, getting my oldest son married at Christmas, getting interviewed by YOU!!!, and the possibility of a new church home this month. Sigh, God is so incredibly good.
Love ya, friend!
May 30, 2009 at 7:57 pm
What fun to be the one receiving the comments this time. Love yours, Sherrinda, and hearing all the wonderful things that have taken place in your life this past year.
Congrats on gaining a new daughter-in-love and on having another grad in the family. Enjoy the graduation ceremony tomorrow.
I’m thrilled to hear there may be a new church in the offing. Please keep me posted.
And it was my pleasure to interview you. You’re a gem!
May 30, 2009 at 8:18 pm
Keli,
What a wonderful site!! Beth left notice of this site on the CHRW loop a week ago, and I am trying to catch up on emails, having just returned from a cruise celebration with my DH and son for my son’s 18th’s b-day and h.s. graduation. And scholarship to LSU.
You certainly have a lot to celebrate. Congrats on the 1-year anniversary. I wouldn’t know what to recommend since I am just being introduced to your site. But so far, it looks like great reading.
I know what you mean about Taco Bell. I had a hankering just yesterday,, and it was so lovely just to send my son and a friend of his out to bring some food home.
I’ve never seen a Believe necklace—just the stones, but now I see how they can hold significance for aspiring writers. Duh! Sometimes I’m a little slow!! Just never thought about it that way, though I do aspire to write. I haven’t yet entered a contest, because I’m not that advanced as far as story progression goes. But one day.!
Thanks for having this site. I think it’s motivating!
Julie
Oh, do you have my email to be entered in your contest?
May 30, 2009 at 8:34 pm
Julie,
So, you’re another Taco Bell fan, huh? I’m an addict. I had lunch there just today. Yum!
Congrats on your son’s 18th birthday and graduation. I hope the cruise was everything you hoped it would be. My daughter turned 18 this year and graduated a week ago today. Milestones. Ah.
All the best to you on your writing. And when the time is right, contests can be a great way to get feedback.
And, yes. If you leave your email addy when prompted, WordPress saves it for the blog administrator.
May 30, 2009 at 9:20 pm
Thank you Keli! That post was very persuasive. I shall have to refer back it when I’m full of self-doubt andI need prompting.
Cool on you having a daughter just graduating also! Congrats to her (and you).
Julie
May 30, 2009 at 10:50 pm
Keli,
When I first heard of RWotJ, you’d reached your 10,000th visitor. Now, you’ve doubled that. Congratulations! Your blog is such an encouragement to unpublished writers and debut authors. I can’t wait to read your own story of getting The Call.
Highlights of my year: my son’s graduation from UTSA and acceptance to Rice University and being your guest. A milestone I hope to add soon: successfully potty-training my youngest.
Congratulations on your daughter’s graduation and your example to other authors of the right way to blog.
Roxanne Sherwood
May 31, 2009 at 2:57 am
Thanks for the awards, Keli! I’m humbled that you conisder my blog note-worthy!
Congrats on your reaching such high numbers with your blog! That really is huge!
My recent big highlight is finaling in the Genesis and then also getting an agent! It’s been very exciting!
May 31, 2009 at 3:37 am
Congratulations, Keli! Having been a guest on your blog, I can say that the reason you are so successful with it is due to the courtesy, respect, and genuine admiration you show to your guests. And of course it is reciprocated. I thoroughly enjoyed my time as a guest and I am a repeat visitor. I really enjoy reading your posts and I appreciate that you shine the spotlight on newer authors, such as myself. I will continue to come back and check out what you post next. Here’s to many more years of success!
Margay
May 31, 2009 at 6:18 am
Keli ~
Thank you for the lovely awards! They are my first ones and I can’t stop smiling. Thanks too for inviting me for the interview a few months ago. It was truly an honor. Congrats on the blog – I am so happy you came up with the idea. I love reading it.
May 31, 2009 at 8:25 am
Keli,
Congratulations on the milestones you have achieved! I don’t think people really grasp all the hard work that must go into putting this blog out on a regular basis. Just preparing all those questions, reading up on the people you are interviewing, that alone is hours of work.
Thank you for sharing this with us. We love the interviews and especially the blogs that give wonderful advice.
Blessings and joy! Keep up the good work.
Sue
May 31, 2009 at 9:14 am
Keli, I really enjoy this site so let party with your two milestones. These cupcakes are delish! I have always enjoy the interviews and meeting new authors, so thanks for sharing this with us.
One of my high points this year is my son is in college and he had a 4.0 average this past semester! Yea!!!
May 31, 2009 at 9:19 am
Sorry forgot to leave e-mail
ghurt110[at]bellsouth[dot]net
May 31, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Thank you for encouraging Roxanne, Scoti and me over at The Writing Road with the awards! Happy to join in the celebration of your blog! Congratulations!
Beth@TheWriting Road
May 31, 2009 at 1:57 pm
Keli,
Happy Blog-Day to you! I can’t believe this site is “only” a year old – it has such a professional, established feel. You perform such a great service for writers.
Thank you two-fold – for my very first blog interview back in November – and now for my very first blog award. I’m stunned that my baby blog was even considered!
Keep up the good work, Keli!
Sarah
May 31, 2009 at 2:22 pm
20,000 visitors in one year—Wow! That’s so awesome, Keli.
Thanks so much for the blog awards and for keeping such a great blog here! I really appreciated being featured here and love reading about everyone elses journeys as well. You ask amazing questions!
May year two bring big blessings, Keli, at Romance Writers on the Journey!
May 31, 2009 at 5:45 pm
Thank you so much for the awards! I appreciate it.
When you said your blog is only one year old, I was a little surprised. It seems so professional and well thought-out. Congrats on your success with visitors and guests. I love reading about other authors’/writers’ journeys. Their stories inspire me to keep pressing forward.
My highlights have been getting partial requests on one manuscript and sending in two different fulls to a publisher. They both got rejected but I feel like I accomplished and learned something from it. I feel at peace that the manuscripts have merit somewhere else.
Those were my highlights. Maybe this year’s highlight will be a contract? 
Any chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting left?
May 31, 2009 at 7:19 pm
Keli, Congrats on reaching the two milestones. I always enjoy coming here and have been encouraged by your postings and the comments. I just love the personalized stationery that you sent when I won in a drawing this year. Keep up the good work.
patjeannedavis[at]verizon[dot]net
May 31, 2009 at 8:57 pm
[...] post: Romance Writers on the Journey is One Year Old! « Romance Writers … Tags: premier designs, premier designs online ** –> Jewelry Quick SearchRecent [...]
June 1, 2009 at 7:23 am
Congrats on being a year old. I’m so glad to have found you and your site and to have made a friend. Thanks so much for interviewing me and helping me with my journey.
June 1, 2009 at 10:48 am
Keli,
Way to go! Only a year old and such a popular blog. Congrats on the milestone that will, it is to be hoped, become a stepping stone for your career.
{{{Hugs}}}
June 1, 2009 at 4:35 pm
Congratulations on the anniversary!
June 2, 2009 at 4:52 pm
Roxanne,
Thanks for the kind words. I’m glad you enjoyed your interview. It was a pleasure to have you as my guest.
You must have been so pleased to watch your son graduate. And now to have him accepted at Rice. Way cool!
Hope things go well with your little guy and that he’s soon embracing his independence in new ways. I’m sure you’re more than ready to bid the diaper scene farewell.
June 2, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Jody,
Your blog is one I subscribe to in Google Reader. You have great posts.
Congrats again on your recent good news. I was delighted to see your name on the list of Genesis finalists. And then to hear that you received an offer of representation from a top-notch agent. Wowzers! At this rate I don’t think it will be long before you’re posting news of your first sale.
June 2, 2009 at 4:59 pm
Margay,
I was honored to have you as my guest. I’m glad you enjoyed the experience.
And thanks for all the nice things you had to say about me and my blog. I’m blushing.
June 2, 2009 at 5:02 pm
Emily,
I enjoy my visits to your blog and am glad I was able to bring a smile to your face. You do the same for me quite often.
Having you as my guest was a real treat. I’m looking forward to having you back for one of my Saturday Special: She Sold! stories. Won’t that be fun?
June 2, 2009 at 5:07 pm
Sue,
What nice things to say! I’m honored.
I thoroughly enjoy getting to know such wonderful writers through my blog. My work behind the scenes is a labor of love. And if my guests are happy, then I’m happy, because that’s my goal.
It was great to have you here. I’m eager for your return visit. I’ve been privileged to judge your work in a contest and know how well you write. I await news of your first sale anytime now.
June 2, 2009 at 5:11 pm
Quilt Lady,
It’s great to see you here. Glad you could join the celebration. And feel free to help yourself to another cupcake. I’ve put out some more, including Devils Food. Yum!
You must be mighty proud of your college son. A 4.0 is quite an accomplishment at any point, but in college even more so. Congrats!
June 2, 2009 at 5:13 pm
Beth,
The Writing Road is a very impressive site, another I subscribe to. You offer consistently great posts. Kudos to you, Roxanne and Scoti on running such a great blog.
June 2, 2009 at 5:16 pm
Happy blog b-day, Keli! What makes RWotJ special is the thought you put into every interview question. You give your guests and your visitors the royal treatment week after week.
I can’t wait to see what the next year brings for this blog AND for you! I’m toasting you with a margarita. Truly.
June 2, 2009 at 5:16 pm
Sarah,
I’m glad you enjoyed your time here. It was great to have you. And I was delighted to have the opportunity to meet your in person at the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference in April. You’re every bit as nice as I expected you to be.
Thanks for the kind words about my blog. They mean a lot to me.
June 2, 2009 at 5:22 pm
Eileen,
Thanks for saying such nice things about my blog. I attribute the success it’s had to my wonderful guests–like YOU! I’m glad you enjoy reading the interviews. I sure do!
I look forward to another great year. I’ve already got some super guests lined up. What a blessing it is to get to know so many awesome writers and debut authors. I’m indeed blessed.
June 2, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Jessica,
This year has passed so quickly. I’ve learned oodles and bunches. I’m glad you find the interviews helpful. Like you, I gain a great deal from each of my guests. Even though we’re all writing romances, each journey is unique, just as each story and writer is.
Congrats on those requests and for getting the manuscripts off. Even though they didn’t result in a contract this time around, I feel certain it’s only a matter of time.
I’m eager to have you back on the blog as a debut author, so keep on writing and submitting. And let me know when you sell, so I can squee with you.
And those Devils Food cupcakes I just added to the dessert table are heaped with scrumptious chocolate frosting.
June 2, 2009 at 5:52 pm
Pat,
I’m glad you enjoy your visits. I enjoy having you. And I’m glad you won one of the drawings. I wish I had goodies enough for everyone who visits. But you get to visit with my great guests, and that’s really the best part.
Thanks for being part of the celebration.
June 2, 2009 at 5:58 pm
Kwana,
Having you as my guest was such a blast. I loved reading the comments from your many fans. It’s clear you’re one awesome woman who’s full of creativity.
Thanks for the well wishes. And be sure to let me know when you, my New York friend, sell a book and are NYT bound so I can have you back as a returnee guest. Won’t that be tonz of fun?!
June 2, 2009 at 6:05 pm
Gwynlyn,
Thanks for joining the party. Great to have you here. Hope you got a cupcake. If not, I’ve added more. And check out the handsome young waiter I got to man the dessert table. He’s to drool for.
I appreciate your encouraging words and well wishes. Nice to have you on my side. I stand reading to cheer for you, too, so be sure to keep me posted on your good news.
June 2, 2009 at 6:05 pm
Gail,
Thanks for stopping by and sharing in the fun.
June 2, 2009 at 6:11 pm
Anne,
No party would be complete with you, my awesome critique partner and most loyal blog visitor. You’re a gem, and I hope you know it.
I look forward to the next year. I’m oh so ready to have you back when you sell and again when your debut novel hits the shelves. That will be quite the celebration.
June 3, 2009 at 3:19 am
Keli, it is all true, so don’t blush – gush. You have every right to!
Margay
June 4, 2009 at 3:14 pm
congrations on your blog and all the good interviews that you have held.
Please enter me into the drawing and I would like anything but would love the 3 books, I am 66 and semi-diabled, which means I don’t get out much so I read or play on the computer. May God bless you and anyone that wins.
mamat2730(at)charter(dot)net
June 7, 2009 at 12:08 pm
Edna,
How lovely to have you stop by. I’m with you. Reading romances is such fun. And how would we live without our computers?
June 7, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Thanks again to all who stopped by to celebrate my blog’s birthday. YOU, my awesome guests and visitors, are what make Romance Writers on the Journey what it is, and I’m grateful to each of you.
I’ve picked the drawing winners, and here they are:
Beth Vogt won the Believe necklace.
Julie Robinson won the Taco Bell gift certificate.
Gail won the Borders gift card.
Pat Jeanne Davis won the copy of LONGINGS OF THE HEART by Bonnie Leon.
Jessica won the copy of LOVE FINDS YOU IN MIRACLE, KENTUCKY by Andrea Boeshaar.
Edna Tollison won the copy of THE EDGE OF LIGHT by Ann Shorey.
Congrats, ladies!! I’ll be in touch.