Anniversary

Our one year step back and look over the blog

Hi dear readers! Ken here with today's post

Today marks the wonderful one-year anniversary of the YA section. We've gone from being a small blog with 20 subscribers on Blogger to just over 180 subscribers on Substack. It has been such a wonderful time. Many changes have taken place, so I'll be recounting how this year has gone.

Photo by Pierre-Etienne Vilbert on Unsplash

1. To start off with we went from a small barely surviving blog on Blogger to a thriving enjoyable blog on Substack. The journey has been so amazing! While there have been so many details to figure out, God has guided us throughout it all.

2. We started out strong with 6 authors, sadly that has dwindled down to just 2, with the original author having left just last week. God has called them each to their own things.

   Melody Polar
   has started her own blog reaching out to young Christian women.
   jack cuison
   has shifted his focus to his other blog “for the life of me.”
   Emery Lincoln
   has taken up writing her own part time blog called the Spymaster Files. The other 2 original authors have left, each for their own personal reasons. And we have picked up
   Abby A
   , who has been such a huge help, especially these past few months. (6+1-5=2)

3. This past year our first posts were writing controversies. Fun arguments that we would ask opinions from others on. From there we moved to writing book reviews and tools and tips. More recently I have started something called ‘The Art’ in hope that it would be easier to write and that I would love it a little more. That has been true. One thing that has stayed the same has been our devotionals. Throughout it all we have based the blog and what we have done, and do, on God. We believe that it is important to keep God as the top priority in all we do.

4. While this blog has been such a wonderful fun time, it has also been quite sad. As the last of the original authors, I have seen people come and go. Worked through the arguments that inevitably come when a group of teenagers try to work together. And overall, just tried to keep it all together.

I have decided that I will be continuing the blog. However, depending on how things turn out, I will be changing a few things. I'd love new authors or anyone that is interested in being a guest author. If you are interested, please just send

K.e.n

(me) a message letting me know you are interested. I would love to continue writing all types of posts, but for now will personally be focusing on devotionals and The Art.

Abby A

will continue to write with me and help me with the blog. We will be continuing the Writing contests, but for now the book clubs will have to stop. Jack was the primary reason that they happened, and I unfortunately do not have time to figure out a book club on top of school. We may bring them back depending on others, but for now we are pausing them.

If you have any suggestions for us as we embark on this next year let us know. And again, if you wish to help out by being a guest author or full/part time author please let me (

K.e.n

) know. Thank you so much for your time, and we look forward to this next year with you.

Last note: if you are interested in seeing the difference, between our original blog and now, I will be linking some of our first posts here so you can check them out:

Our First Daily Controversy

Our First Writing Tips and Tools

Our First Devotional

Our First Writing Contest

We are so glad of the support each one of you has shown throughout this first year, and we hope you’ll continue in that support. In this changing month, while we are still trying to figure what the blog will look like without Jack, we appreciate your patience with us. Thank you to all of you who have journeyed with us throughout this first year of the YA Section. We look forward to many more years.

Be on the lookout for emails with upcoming changes