I can't quite believe it, but it's been ten years, and over 1,400 Posts, since I launched this blog on December 2, 2008 with a review of The Year's Best Horror Stories: Series V.
Back in '08 the presence of Google Blogger meant that you didn't have to learn html in order to start up a blog, nor pay a fee to have the blog maintained for you on a private server. So I sat down and composed some initial posts, and on December 2, I launched this blog.
My ambitions in starting the PorPor Books Blog were simple: I wanted to archive and share sci-fi, horror, and fantasy pop culture from the era of 1968 - 1988 with fellow Baby Boomers.
I also wanted to have a way of letting the younger generation of sci-fi fans know that there was a large body of worthy material from the New Wave era, up to the beginnings of Cyberpunk, that they would want to investigate. I wanted them to realize that sci-fi and fantasy novels didn't have to be 500 pages long in order to be engaging and entertaining.
Like most folks new to blogging, I was a bit naive back then, thinking that within a few weeks of starting up I'd have several thousand hits per day. Needless to say, after several months I had received less than a hundred...........I was disappointed and wondered how to build up my readership.
I reached out to Curt Purcell at the Groovy Age of Horror blog and asked if he could post a link to my blog. Curt of course generously agreed, and within a matter of days, my readership doubled. Curt also provided some useful guidance concerning what was permissible in terms of considering material to be in the 'public domain', or eligible for excerpting for 'review purposes', when it came to creating posts.
Nowadays I average about 425 Pageviews per day, according to my Google Blogger stats. For reasons that are a complete mystery to me, my most visited post of the past decade was one I did on genital herpes in the 1970s that brought in 16,371 Pageviews........?!
My appreciation to all who visit the PorPor Books Blog, whether you visit the site on a daily basis, or on a more occasional basis. I've spent quite a bit more money and time on the blog that I had anticipated, but it's been a very rewarding thing to do. So I'm looking to keep it going for another few years, if not longer.....!?
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8 comments:
Just wanted to say I've been a reader of the PorPor blog for a few years now. Can't recall exactly how I came across the blog (come to think of it, it was probably from The Grovy Age of Horror), but I've been a fan ever since. I typically read through the RSS feed. Simple, effective, and I never miss a post. Keep on keeping on!
I've always enjoyed your reviews. Keep up the good work!
great blog, keep up the good work!
Thanks for all the hard work you've put into the blog. I always look forward to new PorPor posts popping up in my feed.
Nozzle Top!
Congrats on 19 years and here's to many more. One of my favourite blogs, always interesting and full of things I didn't know.
Of course, I meant 10 years. But here's to at least 9 more!
Congratulations, tarbandu, and thanks! Over the years I've had lots of fun here at your place, and learned plenty of things, too.
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