Thank you to Stacy Harrison for writing this blogger interview.
Blog Address: revisionsofgrandeur.wordpress.com
What is your blog about?
Revisions of Grandeur is a platform for encouraging and supporting one another as we revise our beautifully imperfect lives.
What inspired you to start your blog?
I’m from a close-knit community in the rugged and beautiful Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Over the past few years, several friends and acquaintances from my community have endured major trials such as cancer, tragic accidents, children being diagnosed with life-threatening medical conditions, and so on. These friends have exhibited incredible strength, dedication and resilience through their trials. I couldn’t get their stories out of my head – I wanted to share them with the world so that others could be inspired and encouraged in their own walks.
Revisions of Grandeur was birthed when my friend Gwen Sternhagen agreed to share the story of her son Blake’s diagnosis with Spinal Muscular Atrophy. I wrote my first installment of Grand Edits Guest Features, and it was well-received by our community and beyond. I have since written seven more guest feature stories that have touched the hearts of thousands of readers around the world.
The blog also includes positive and encouraging personal essays about my own experiences as a wife, mother of three boys, friend, writer, and teacher, and a new thread called “Darndest Things” that features amusing things children say and do.
When did you start your blog?
When I started blogging in October of 2014, I assumed I would have a small audience of family and friends – maybe 100 people. Because my wonderful readers began sharing my posts and WordPress selected two of my essays to be featured on their Freshly Pressed feed, things picked up quicker than I thought. Eight months later, I have nearly 3,000 subscribers. I am blown away by the support from my community of readers!
How do you motivate yourself to keep the blog up and running?
Writing is intrinsically rewarding for me, and I delight in encouraging others, so the blog keeps itself going as long as I set aside the hours at the keyboard.
I’m never at a loss for material. When you live life with your eyes open, you find you are surrounded by an abundant wealth of ideas begging to make it to the page!
What do you find the most frustrating aspect of blogging?
The most frustrating aspect of blogging is also one that makes it exciting: vulnerability. I rely on my readers to engage with the post and share my work. Sometimes, feedback is abundant. Other times, I spend a few hours on a post and scarcely receive any engagement. For me, blogging has never been about reaching the masses or becoming famous – it’s about connecting with individuals and using my calling to encourage other human beings. As long as I keep focused on my mission, I will never be disappointed.
In the future where do you hope your blog will take you?
I’m enjoying where I’m at right now with the blog, but I do have hopes of authoring books in the future. The blog is keeping me in the regular practice of writing, honing my voice and skills, and helping to build an audience for future publications.
Have you met anyone interesting/famous on your blogging journey?
I have met hundreds of interesting human beings in the first year of this journey – parents, poets, farmers, bloggers, spiritual leaders, editors — regular people doing life the best they can. I am thrilled to connect with such a wide variety of people through the blog in a way that would be impossible in my small, rural community.
If you could do only ‘one thing’ today then what would it be?
After writing some words, I’m heading to a local you-pick strawberry farm with my husband and three sons to collect flats of sweet, deep red berries. I can’t imagine a better “one thing.”