Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Positive Post Tuesday

Last week, I hosted an event based on an idea I had. This event, Book Blogger Appreciation Week, turned out to be much bigger than I imagined. I was pleased with the turnout, but of course when you invite that many people to your front door, you also invite criticism.

Throughout it all, though, I've made some great blog friends and the kindness, help, and support of these people kept me going when the dark times hit. :)

Jennifer of Literate Housewife
Julie of Booking Mama
Yasmin of APOOO Books
Wendy of Caribou's Mom
Holly of Book Binge
Tracy of Bookroom Reviews
Dawn of She is Too Fond of Books

And one more person....I had just finished reading a particularly scathing survey response (and yes I mean scathing...I know what constructive criticism is and what ranting is. ;)) and was a feeling a bit down (and somewhat like a total failure...hey, I'm sensitive! ;)) When I read a survey response to the question, "What did you like best about BBAW?" And someone answered "Amy!" and it made me burst into tears. It was just the sort of nice thing I needed to read after after the other survey. So thanks to whoever said that. :)

Thanks all for your encouragement and for being a sounding board when I ran against certain issues, and also for just being generally awesome.

You can read more Positive Post Tuesday posts at Brody Harper's site.

(by the way...this is my 1,000th post)

46 comments:

Anonymous said...

Amy,

Whomever (or is it whoever??? I never know) wrote that friggin' RIDICULOUS survey response is a jerk! That person obviously has no idea of the amount of VOLUNTEER hours you put into it... not to mention your own dollars in give-a-ways!

When my RSS Feed pops up in bold with (1) next to "My Friend Amy," I click it before all others (... really, I click on Books on the Brain first... then My Friend Amy... oh, semantics!). Your blogs are great. Your contests are fun.

Who(m)ever the POO POO PERSON is... SHAME ON YOU! Tisk Tisk. If they could do it better themself, then go at it next year... but, we'll all be too busy at BBAW and won't even read yours!

Sher
A Novel Menagerie

P.S. During BBAW week, I hit my first 193 visits day.. almost 200. My highest hit day so far in under 2 months. I credit BBAW.

P.S.S. Happy 1,000th post! I love those milestones!

Anonymous said...

I completely agree with Sher! Don't let the bleepity bleeps get you down. You put together an awesome online event for people you don't even know. How incredible is that?

BTW, congratulations on your 1,000th post! Wow!!!

Anonymous said...

Congratulations Amy, you pulled off a really big event. Pat yourself on the back for that. Though I did not participate in BBAW, I did follow it and found some really good blogs.

Lenore Appelhans said...

Seriously! Someone is always going to be disgruntled but don't let it get you down. I am very proud of what you pulled off!

Chrisbookarama said...

I don't know if my Google Reader likes to burp and miss posts but I missed the survey.

There's always going to be Negative Nellies. You did a great job. What a crazy amount of work you put into it. Congrats and pat yourself on the back!

Lezlie said...

BBAW was awesome!! Never mind the nutcase who said otherwise. Rest up now, Amy, because I'm already looking forward to next year!! :-)

Lezlie

photoquest said...

I don't have a Blog Site but visit them daily. I thought you did a outstanding job!! I found so many wonderful blog sites i didn't know about. And added many new books to my wish list off of their site just going threw books they had read. Thanks again Amy!!

Anonymous said...

I agree, it was awesome. You did a fantastic job. No one was forced to participate, so I don't know how they think they have the right to complain like that. I'll be the ones who do the most complaining aren't volunteering to help next year. I was very impressed with all of your hard work!

Jen said...

There is always going to be someone who feels the need to tear other people down. It is probably a lack of self esteem on their part and possibly some jealousy that they didn't think of the BBAW. I'm not a book blogger, but I did enjoy most of the content. Congrats on 1000 posts!!

Anonymous said...

1,000? Whoa! I just did my 400th and thought that was a lot.

Oh, and I agree with the encouraging survey (I retyped that word like 10 times because I kept wanting to put "servay." Yikes!) person. You're definitely a good part of BBAW. It's great to have a host that is so personable and not militant.

Mary (Bookfan) said...

I can't imagine anyone being negative in such a manner. But that usually speaks to their life and not the person who's on the receiving end of the rant.

Amy, well done! I didn't participate but I watched and will jump in next year :~)

Anonymous said...

Oh, Amy, I feel terrible that someone used the survey to be nasty to you.

Actually, I feel terrible that someone was scathing and nasty at all but to do it anonymously, on the survey which you are using as a tool to improve BBAW (I thought it was pretty perfect, myself) well, that just seems kind of low, IMHO.

You are awesome. BBAW was awesome.

And hats off to Jennifer, Julie, Yasmin, Wendy, Holly, Tracy and Dawn!

Oh, and congrats on your 1,000th post. Impressive!

Yasmin said...

THE BEST PART WAS AMY...I love it because while many of us took this for granted you were...but I know you didn't mention it to get accolades...but I'm glad that you did.
And Amy you are in my prayers...I woke up this morning with you on my heart...because the last email I read last night was your Twitter. ;) It really broke my spirit that folks were sending you cowardly nasty grams via your survey. And I say cowardly because I've found that too many folks ANONYMOUSLY do things on line that they wouldn't dare do in person or say to your face.
Okay I'm not a very religious person...but I am a spiritual person so please indulge me for a moment...In the 4 Agreements by Miguel Ruiz the second agreement is DON'T TAKE IT PERSONAL...folks who often critize others do so because they're JEALOUS, petty, mean-spirited, angry and hurting so they need someone else to latch out at. Right now...it unfortunately happens to be you.
THE EVENT YOU PULLED OFF LAST WEEK WAS THE EVENT OF THE CENTURY FOR BOOK BLOGGERS...so trust me you're going to have a lot of haters...but as long as you have a few folks who have your back (and God on your side) there is nothing that you can't do.
To the haters...I say eff off.
WE GOT AMY.
Okay...yeah I went from spiritual to street all in a few words...lol...but I'm a Virgo and we tend to be very loyal to those we care about...although we don't make friends very easily.
So Amy I don't know if you're in my life for a season, reason or a lifetime...but while you are you will be in my prayers. ;)
xoxo

Yasmin said...

PS--I got so caught in the fact that folks were attacking you that I forgot to say CONGRATs AND Congrats going out to Sher as well. Another blogger I found via BBAW.
xoxo

Gwendolyn B. said...

Congratulations on your 1,000th post! Amy, you do a phenomenal job, and what you undertook last week was staggering! I cannot imagine all the hard work and hours of time you devoted to BBAW. You did an exceptional job, bringing together dozens, if not hundreds, of people. I'm sorry you had to suffer through someone's thoughtless ranting, but know that there are far, far more people who appreciate you and what you have accomplished. While critiques and criticism have their place, it is always harder and more rewarding to create something. You created a joyful and educational celebration -- and nothing anyone can say will diminish that. I think you deserve a standing ovation and a shower of rose petals - how do we do that online? Thank you for all that you have done. You are wonderful!

Anonymous said...

I have to agree with the others...you didn't HAVE to do this...this was something you thought would be fun to celebrate book bloggers...you VOLUNTEERED to host this (along with others)...how can someone send a ridiculous survey where they complain??? Doesn't make sense...yeah, there might be ideas to improve it (there is always room for improvement in anything you do)...but to be nasty about it and complain - that just goes beyond my comprehension!!

CONGRATS Amy - and you did a FANTASTIC job with such an overwhelming, first-time event!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh Amy! You did a fantastic job on BBAW! I cant even imagine all the work that went into it. It was a lot of fun and it's impossible to please everyone. Please dont take the nasty comments to heart. If they didnt like it they didnt have to join in...or they could do their own event just the way they want it. But especially since this was so new, it's hard to know what to expect when you're planning it and you cant just not do it because it wont be perfect. By just doing it we learn what we liked and what we'd like to change. But others dont have to be nasty about it.

Thanks so much for hosting BBAW. It was so fun checking out other book bloggers and getting to know people I wouldnt have otherwise.

S. Krishna said...

Congrats on your 1000th post!

And really, don't worry about that scathing review. You can't make everyone happy, some people are going to be miserable no matter what. Take it from the vast number of us who were fawning over the amazingness of BBAW, you did a great job, and we couldn't have asked for a better host!

Anonymous said...

I just wanted to let you know that although I didn't get "involved" with BBAW (I was working crazy style hours and forgot to officially sign up) I did participate in a lot of the different things you had going on, discovered several new blogs, and truly enjoyed the whole experience. I think you did an AMAZING job with it and if BBAW every occurrs again, I will definitely participate and do even more, probably giveaways or something. So, thanks again, the week was perfect and I think you went above and beyond what could have been reasonably expected of a blogger doing something like this on her own time. Don't let the negative nancy's get you down... the event was phenomenal!

cindysloveofbooks said...

Amy congrats on your 1,000th post. Wow hard to believe eh?

You did a great job on the BBAWs. I had alot of fun and discovered a whole new bunch of blogs that I might not have known about otherwise.

Just remember that no matter what you do there will always be people who will have to add their negative 2 cents. I am sure the positive out weighs the negative.

You rock Amy. :)

Anonymous said...

They are just jealous they didn't think of it themselves! Unbeliveable, how cowardly. Congrats on your post and go have a fun weekend with your family my dear:)

Anonymous said...

Amy, BBAW was so much fun! I discovered a lot of wonderful blogs that I didn't even know existed.

I know from experience that when you have a negative attack, it is so easy to concentrate on that instead of the multitude of praises we hear. Just try to remember that there may be something going on in the negative person's life to make him/her be so bitter.

I hope that you do this again next year. (By the way, did I miss the announcement of the giveaway winners?)

Serena said...

You know I think you are tops!

Ranting is unnecessary and unprofessional and dare I say inhumane! Ok, enough of that.

Amy you rock, and BBAW rocked...I had a great time and look forward to next year's events.

On behalf of whomever said you were the best part of BBAW, You are welcome for the compliment! I thought about how great you are as a person the whole week...for volunteering your time, organizing, participating, getting sponsors, publishers, authors, etc, to participate...you did a great job!

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on your 1000th post!

Everyone was able to participate in BBAW to a large extent or a smaller extent as they wanted to or had the available time. BBAW was so well run and organized; it was so much bigger than I even imagined. You and everyone that worked on it are tops!

Ramya said...

i am going to just say what everyone else has already said.. but yeah.. thank you so much for taking it upon yourself to organize an event of this caliber! I mean, just putting together all this must have been such an arduous task!! hats off to you for having the patience and determination to get this done! thanks for an amazing opportunity to meet so many more book bloggers!:)

Anonymous said...

Well, BBAW was super awesome, and it never would have happened without you so, ipso facto, you are REALLY super awesome. I was not nearly effusive enough in my survey answers, I just sort of threw in short statements, but you are really, really amazingly fantastic for getting such a huge event together and having it go off so smoothly in such a short amount of time - and for even thinking of it in the first place!

avisannschild said...

I want to add in my two cents' worth because like Jen (Devourer of Books) I feel like I wasn't effusive enough in my praise in the survey. You did a fantastic job, Amy! Thank you so much! Ignore ranters -- as you pointed out, that's hardly a constructive way to offer criticism. As for giveaways not being open to overseas participants, I sympathize with their frustration (as I sometimes feel frustrated with contests that are not open to Canadians, or worse, only not open to Québec residents), but the reality is that in order for that to happen overseas participants will need to get involved in future incarnations of BBAW and bring overseas publishers on board...

Congrats on your 1000th post! That kinda boggled my mind! (I've only got 45 posts under my belt.)

Can I say it again? BBAW was amazing!

Anonymous said...

Whenever you take on a leadership role and try and do something for the good of others ther's always going to be the sour grapes thrown at you from the peanut gallery. You did a ban-up job, and my thanks also to those who you listed as being such a help to you. Keep on keepin on, girlfriend!

Marvin
Blogs at Free Spirit http://inspiritandtruths.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

You did a fantastic job Amy and I wasn't even part of the event :). What an amazing idea and I hope you do it again next year (minus the rediculous ranters)!

Huge Congrats too on your 1000th post! That's HUGE!!!! Keep up all the good work :).

Anonymous said...

What would possess a person to write a scathing survey? People are so unbelievably rude! You are AWESOME and I am blown away by what you did last week! It's flabbergasting!
Smallworldreads.blogspot.com

Wendi said...

I thought BBAW was wonderful! I can't wait to participate next year! If you need help, please let me know. :) By then I hope to know more about blogging, so I can feature BBAW really well on my site.

Congrats on your 1,000th post!!! That is amazing. :)

Take care (and don't worry if a person or two grumble, you helped create a great week of fun, celebrating, and sharing of books for a lot of people!) - Wendi

http://wendisbookcorner.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

CONGRATS on your 1000th post - wow!

As far as scathing comments...let me guess, the person (or persons) responsible didn't offer up any suggestions, they just criticized...and they didn't offer to help you either, did they? So...I say "ditto" to Yasmin's comment above. And also, don't let the gripers get you down...you pulled off a phenomenal week, Amy. The vast majority of blogs I visited raved about BBAW. The two or three who were throwing rocks aren't worth losing sleep over. I also 100% agree with the commenter above who suggested international bloggers getting involved to solicit giveaways from non-US based publishers...

My final thoughts - you were an angel to take on this huge task and pull it together very quickly. I met a lot of new bloggers last week, thanks to BBAW and AMY!

Now, go do something fabulous for yourself :)

M. said...

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, of course, but of all the people who expressed criticism, I wonder how many have ever masterminded and carried through on a project like you just did? Somehow, I don't think very many. It is very easy to tear down from one's armchair. It is not easy to build up, and kudos to you for having an idea and following through to the end.

Ladytink_534 said...

Oh those meanies don't know how much hard work you put into it. We appreciated it Amy and you did a great job!

1,000 posts is incredible!

Michael said...

Congrats, girl! You done good. :-)

Michael

Book Bytes
http://sactobookbytes.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

M. is right. BBAW became a big project. A rather unexpectedly big project from what I can tell. And it was the FiRST BBAW. Of course there are going to be glitches.

I know I could not have pulled something like this off. And there is a difference between a rant, a criticism, and a suggestion. Seems like overall, most people enjoyed the week of "nerding out on books." I love that phrase btw.

I think most people who rip someone apart don't realize what it takes to put any project like this together. Sounds like there's some jealousy going on in that rant. Basically, what you did was conceive, develop, and implement a book bloggers convention on the Internet. Holy Cow! Setting one up in rl is hard enough. A virtual one? Even harder.

This was BBAW's maiden voyage. I say 2 thumbs up! I just wish I could've helped with it, but then, I've just started getting my own blog really rolling.

Amy said...

Thanks everyone! I do need to focus on the people who enjoyed it. I know there's room for improvement and with more people working on it next year, we can have a even better year (and share the blame, lol)

You guys are the greatest! Thanks for your encouragement! :)

Anonymous said...

You did a great job Amy! I agree that the first year is always the hardest. A trial and error. Of course, it will get better. That was a huge project to undertake and I'm sure it wasn't easy! Thanks a bunch!

Holly said...

Oh Amy, I'm so sorry that someone was awful to you in the survey. It's unfortunate that some people can't criticize constructively or not say anything at all.

But I have to tell you, I'm in complete awe of what you put together last week. It ran smoothly and was a huge success. You worked hard and deserve cookies (and maybe cake, too) for all the time and effort you put into BBAW.

The event was fabulous and I hope you'll let me know if I can help with it next year.

One more thing: You really made my day! Thanks so much for mentioning me here. I feel like we got acquainted last week and I'm so glad. I kind of had a crappy day today, so seeing this was great. Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Amy! congratulations on a hugely successful BBAW! congratulations on your 1000th post (WOW!)! I'm so glad that such a *positive* survey comment came in just after the scathing one -- keep focused on all the upbeat remarks ("one bad apple doesn't spoil the whole bunch" and all that). You took on a HUGE project and soared with it (IMHO). Thanks for the nod to me (for encouragement?) - I enjoyed getting to know you over the past few weeks :)

Anonymous said...

Well, I appreciate the work you put into it. When it comes down to it, BBAW was about finding new blogs. It was about hearing from readers and authors and other bloggers on book blogging. It was about getting to know each other. It was about making some noise for book bloggers.

It was not about everything to everybody. It was not about getting stuff.

Anonymous said...

*sigh* The missing word is 'being' as in:

It was not about being everything to everybody.

Amy said...

You're so smart Ann! And right.

Anonymous said...

I'm guessing someone beat me to it, but I gave you the I heart your blog award today over at my blog.

And I had a blast during BBAW...of course, I'm blaming you for my Google Reader being out of control...but that's a good thing and you should be proud. You did an amazing thing...from coming with the idea to organizing and pulling it off. I believe the book blogging community is a heck of a lot stronger thanks to you!

Anonymous said...

Congrats on post #1,000!

That is an impressive milestone.

Jen (Devourer of Books) said...

Amy, for all that you did with BBAW and all you do on your blog I'm giving you an award!

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