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A 2015 Year In Review

Posted on 30 December, 2015

2015 has been an incredible, whirlwind year. I can’t believe we’re now going into 2016! I thought that it would be nice to look back on the year that has passed and share some of my favourite moments!

Starting Book Pigs!

At the start of the year, I started a blog on Tumblr called Book Pigs, where I share pictures of some of my guinea pigs with books. It’s taken me by surprise just how much people have fallen in love with my piggies and it’s also made me try and up my photography game. It’s one of the best jobs, although there have been some funny moments, like when one guinea pig ran around under my bed for ten minutes!

UKYABA Prize

It came as a total shock to me when I won Champion of YA in the UK Young Adult Blogger Awards earlier in 2015. It means the *absolute world* to me to be recognised for something I love doing so much and I still can’t believe it, really!!

Visiting the Harry Potter Studio Tour

It was SO amazing to visit the Harry Potter Studio Tours for the opening of the Hogwarts Express with Holly, C.J. and Josh (and my dad!). It’s so weird, but so great, to feel as if you’re walking around parts of Hogwarts and living in the world of Harry Potter. It’s such a memorable experience because I don’t think there’s anything quite like walking through the doors of the Great Hall for the first time, a place that has inhabited your imagination for years and also a place you’ve seen so many times on your TV screens.

Stonewylde Gathering

I have discussed my favourite book series many times on my blog, and this year I got to go to the annual Stonewylde Gathering. It was so much fun and lovely to see Kit again. There was also a quiz later on that I’m sure I got very competitive at… It was nice to test my own knowledge on the books (because I’ve read them so many times!) but it also reminded me how you can read a book a million times and return the next time and find tiny details that you didn’t pick up the first million times. And…. I won! I’m pretty sure that is going on my CV now. LIFE HIGHLIGHT!

UKYA Events!

One of the best things about being a blogger is getting out and meeting like-minded people, and this year I’ve had the pleasure of attending quite a few events – publishing ones, book festivals, and others like the UKYA Extravaganza in Birmingham and the Young Adult Literature Convention. The above picture was taken at the UKYA Extravaganza (full post on it here) and it’s been amazing to see this event flourish this year, especially as it is author run. Emma Pass and Kerry Drewery have put a lot of work in it, so to see it doing so well is a credit to them.

#ukyachat

Running #ukyachat on Twitter is always the highlight of my week and this year I’ve been lucky to watch it turn from my baby into my child. Being able to talk to such wonderful people, and making lifelong friends out of it, is one of the best parts and I’m looking forward to a year of chats in 2016!

I’d like to take this moment to thank each and every person who has participated and supported #ukyachat in the past year – the authors, bloggers, and passionate readers who take part and have championed it. Thank you!!! You always put a massive smile on my face.

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2015 has been one of the best blogging years and I’m looking forward to watching how it develops in the year ahead. THANK YOU to all of you who have made it extra special!

What are your bookish highlights of 2015?

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UKYABA Awards – Champion of YA

Posted on 11 March, 2015

On the evening of Saturday 7th March, I was sitting in my bedroom when I received a tweet. Sadly I couldn’t make it to the UKYABA (UKYA Blogger Awards) ceremony on the evening, but I knew some of my friends were there. I had been shortlisted for the awards, but was sure somebody else would win because I was up against lots of amazing bloggers.

The tweet said that I had won an award. I went into total shock. I hadn’t wanted to get my hopes up because there are so many brilliant bloggers in our community that all deserved to win. For some crazy reason, though, I was chosen to win the Champion of YA award. I am still completely over the moon!

As I wasn’t there to collect the award in person, I thought I’d write out a few thank you’s today. I really hope I don’t miss anyone out!

When I started out 3 years ago, I never knew about the wider community. I had no idea I could become so attached to so many people in such a short space of time. In the 3 years I’ve been blogging, I’ve seen our community grow and become stronger, so connected.

I’ve always pushed myself to work hard on my blog and to do as much as I can to help out the wider community. I’d like to think that in ten or twenty years when I look back, I’ll still be proud of my achievements and know that I put every single amount of effort I could into it.

I’d like to thank my parents mostly, for putting up with me when I abandon them to go to events (and who put up with me when I do idiotic things like stand in cement when I go to those events), for supporting me when I stay up until midnight changing my blog design and I’m grumpy the next day. For standing by me no matter how crazy my ideas become.

I’d like to thank the people that take the time to comment on my blog, tweet me, watch my videos… Without you, I couldn’t do ANY of this! You make it all worthwhile and put a smile on my face every day. I have so much love for all of you!

Without the UKYA community, I wouldn’t be half the person I am today. My confidence has soared since blogging and I now do things every day that I wouldn’t have dreamed of doing 3 years ago. 3 years ago I wouldn’t have dreamed of going to an event on my own and, God forbid I had to talk to anyone! I would have been hiding in the corner!

My life is crazy. I’m currently balancing GCSEs and my blog and YouTube channel, but I love every single second of it. I wouldn’t change it for the world!

Thank you, dear reader, for allowing all of my wildest dreams to come into fruition! You mean the absolute world to me.