“Slice of Life” has been up and running for a year. It was my first (and, so far, only) blog and so I had no idea how long it would last and whether anyone other than me (and possibly a few encouraging friends) would read it.
A year on and I can say that far more people have visited it than I thought would be the case. While just over 7,000 hits in a year (and no, this does not include my clicks on the site!) may not rank it among the world’s most popular blogs, I consider those 600+ hits a month to be a respectable number.
What I find even more interesting though is the geographical spread of the people visiting my blog. One of the tools of the site’s hit counter is a map showing me which parts of the world the visitors live in. I’m always amazed to see a little marker on say the Democratic Republic of Congo, a South Pacific island, the Philippines, Bangladesh or Iran. As I don’t know anyone in any of those places, the site’s reach is definitely beyond my immediate circle of friends and colleagues!
A year ago I wrote: “The aim of my blog is to attract readers, in my current home city of Brussels and abroad, with an interest in culture in the broadest sense of the word.” Well, that aim certainly seems to have been achieved.
A year on and I’m also doing a lot more arts writing professionally. I continue to get a complete kick out of it and am sometimes surprised that I’m paid to do something I love so much.
Still, the (unpaid!) blog will certainly continue as it’s fun to have another outlet to write about culture and, when I’m lucky, hear about others’ reactions, experiences and ideas.
Keep reading, enjoying and exploring!
