Big Women Big Love Cast (source: LifetimeTV)‘Big Women: Big Love’ is a new reality series on Lifetime that premiered at the beginning of this year. The series follows the dating experiences of 5 plus size women, each with different relationship backgrounds. Some have had serious relationships in the past others are new to the dating scene.
In the beginning I was hesitant to watch. Bigger women get enough crap for their size and I wasn’t sure if this show was just another way to show how horrible and miserable it is to be a larger woman. We don’t need pity from anyone and we certainly do not need anymore negative portrayals of plus size women anywhere else. There is enough hullabaloo floating around as it is. (more…)
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I was reading a post on Brown Girl Bloggers titled Blogger Discussion: Is The Blogroll Dead? and it reminded me that I have not added my blogroll back since I revamped this blog. It also got me thinking about how this “trend” has became a thing of the past.
For those of you new to the blogosphere a blogroll is a list of favorite/frequently read blogs. The picture is a screenshot of the blogroll on my other blog.
I am what some folk call an “old school blogger” I have had an online presence since around 1998 and have seen trends come and go. From the types of templates used to the topics that people blog about. Having a blogroll was a way for bloggers to share the blogs they enjoyed reading with their readers. Sometimes it would strictly be their friends but other times they would break it down into categories/topics. A long time ago I had mine separated into categories. For example I would have:
– personal blogs
– webdesigner portfolio’s
– fashion blogs
I commented on the Brown Girl Bloggers post noting how having a blogroll is a norm (to me) and that I noticed it has died off. It is such a norm to me that when I started discovering new blogs in the past couple of years I would search an entire blog and be confused about where their link section was.
I now realize that the idea of a blogroll really was a trend and a lot of bloggers not longer have them on their blogs. What is popular now is link roundups (which I do plan on doing again), guest blogging (not as popular as it originally was) and/or doing spotlights on one or more bloggers at a time.
Part of it makes me think bloggers are afraid that they will lose their readers to other blogs. I understand this and I fear that as well sometimes. However, I also believe that if someone likes your blog they will eventually come back to see what you are working on. Focus on giving your best and doing what brings you joy. The readers will come.
Personally, if I really like a blogger I will come back again and again. I have been a fan of some of my favorite bloggers for years. I have seen them go through career changes, marriage, divorce or build businesses and break down barriers as well as so many other events and circumstances. Them linking to another blog has never changed my adoration for them.
For the bloggers that I really love & inspire me I am always interested in what inspires them and brings them joy. It is sort of like when your favorite person (family member, friend, celebrity) shares who inspires them the most. When a blogger links to another blogger it makes me appreciate them even more. They are giving me something fresh and new to discover.
One of the best things about a blogroll is that it is usually a static page or list on the blog so even if the site has not been updated recently, I can check out some of the links they posted until there is a new blog post on that blog. When someone links to something within a post if you miss the post or it gets archived you have to do some digging but if the link is on a blogroll it is right there for you to visit.
It is up to you as a blogger to decide how you want your blog to look. You can have a short list of your favorite blogs, a long list or no list at all but for me the blogroll is not dead. It is very much alive. Don’t be afraid to try it out and see how it works for you.
I am going to add a list of my favorite blogs somewhere on the site in either a blogroll or on a static links page within the next couple of weeks and I hope y’all discover a new blog to enjoy because of it.
Note: Since posting this the Brown Girls Bloggers website has been closed.
What are your thoughts on having a Blogroll?
Do you have a list of your favorite blogs on your website?
Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links which means I will earn a small commission (at no additional cost to you) if you decide to purchase something featured here. This commission will be invested back into hertaintedlips.com as well as help me buy a cheap bottle of wine or some Starbucks. For more information please read our disclosure page.
