So I opened my inbox and found...

When we last left our hero, she had 56 followers. She opened her inbox and found it flooded with comments from lovely new blog friends. And when she returned to her blog, found she had 108 followers!!!

And that's about as much writing about myself in the third person as I can stomach.

That's right. In three days, I have gained 52 new followers. And it is all thanks to the fantastic KarenG at Coming Down the Mountain. Karen, thank you so much for hosting the Blog BBQ. I've got so many great new followers and I am now following lots of new interesting blogs. I'm sure I speak for everyone reading this when I say you have done us all a great favor by helping us connect.

I'm working through my new list of friends and promise to visit everyone who's joined me here. It may take a little while but I'll get there.

So, wow. 108. That means I'm going to have to step up my game here. More regular postings. And maybe even a contest to celebrate. More details soon.

I am in awe of people (like the incomparable Elana Johnson) who have hundreds and even thousands of followers. I must admit, I don't aspire to this. I know that for people writing YA, blogging is an essential tool for connecting with readers. I don't write YA and therefore I honestly don't think blogging will help me connect with thousands of potential readers (some, yes, but not to the level of YA).

I blog for a few very specific reasons. At first, I blogged because I thought I was supposed to. And then I blogged because I got a little obsessed by it. And now, I'm blogging because I've met some great people and want to form relationships with other writerly types. One of my main goals for blogging is to find some good crit partners and beta readers (a post on that is definitely in the works). I'm also about to start a new project and I think blogging about my process as I go may help me to crystalize my thinking.

Think back to when you started blogging. What were your reasons for blogging? Have they changed since you started? This isn't a rhetorical question...I'm genuinely curious.

Anyway, thanks for joining me. And keep watching this space for contest details...