Changes…

Hi Everyone,

Last week provided me with two simple facts:

1. We lost another family member and there is no way for us to travel to be there to support our loved ones. Grieving from miles away is painful and lonely. I know I am not alone when I state that many of us are ready for the new year… a positive and productive new year.

2. My grandfather’s illness is advancing and it is becoming difficult to be the sole caregiver. I need help. My Mom is also finding it harder and harder to leave for work everyday, not knowing what is going to occur here at home.

Thanks to last week, I have spent the entire day today making changes to this site. As I have stated in my About Me page and in my very first post, I dream of becoming a full-time reviewer. Unfortunately, with the basic WordPress blog that I had and the small Wordads, I wasn’t making enough money to support my family… My family is top priority, but this blog, these books, the authors and all of you have become a part of my family. I will continue working on this site and writing my reviews, but I needed to find a way to earn more money. (Goal for 2014: Mom can go part-time and be here more often, while my reviews and blogging pay the bills. Sounds nice, right?!)

So what does this mean? Well, I have switched my blog from the basic WordPress.com to a self-hosted site. (Something that I had been saving for, for a long time.) I have spent all day, transferring, uploading, checking and verifying information and posts. Everything is here and running as smoothly as possible. All my reviews transferred, all of the pages and posts, too.  Some things that are different: the Twitter feed is new and the Goodreads feed is now a link. (It won’t update automatically, if I use the widget.) The follow button is different now, too. Instead of followers, it allows for subscribers. Subscribers will receive one email a week that will contain all the posts from that week.

Sadly, I lost the WordPress followers from my blog. They didn’t transfer over with every thing else. I am deeply sadden by this and have tried any and every thing I could to fix it, but I can’t. So if you used to follow my posts or know someone who used to follow my blog, could you please Subscribe to it now (and help me spread the word.) Thank you! I despise the fact that I lost some followers and have temporarily complicated things for you. So sorry. (If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.)

Why did I switch to a self-hosted blog? With a self-hosted site, I have more freedom on what I can post, plus I have the added benefit of being able to post ads. They will be minor and will not interfere with any posts. (You can note, at the bottom of the page/post there is a Google Ad already in place.) These ads will allow me to earn money to support my family and follow my dreams.
I can’t thank you all enough for your support. I truly appreciate it. You all have become a part of my extended online family and I look forward to discussing books with all of you, for years to come.

Until tomorrow… Thanks again for everything.

Enjoy!
~Ariesgrl