It’s been almost nine years to the day since Deb Vanasse posted the very first post on this blog. 49 Writers was not yet a nonprofit organization back then, we had not started offering classes and events, and the blog still had its original name—49 Writers, No Moose. Deb’s first sentence in that first post reads “Amazing writers live in Alaska.” That is still—perhaps even increasingly—true today as it was then.
The blog started as a collaborative effort between Deb and co-founder Andromeda Romano-Lax. They hadn’t even met face to face yet, and probably didn’t know that almost a decade later we’d be looking back at years of activity while looking ahead into a promising offing.
Almost a year after the beginning, Andromeda wrote “This blog, I hope, will be an experiment in fostering another little piece of community, with an Alaskan flavor.” I think it’s safe to say that her hope was realized. It has built community, one that maintains a focus on quality writing. Like many of you, I’ve seen how the blog, and the community and programing that burgeoned from it over the years, bolsters a craft-driven creativity among writers at all stages of development. I’ve also seen how it connects readers with writers, and Alaskans with non-Alaskans. I’ve seen how it connects people and sparks friendships, writing groups, inspiration, ideas, and understanding.
This post is our 2,252nd blog post to date. As of mid-morning today, our all-time pageview history numbered 1,081,184, with 19,080 hits and counting just last month alone. People not only in Alaska but across Canada, the U.S., and the globe read this blog.
Perhaps you’ve seen our new 49 Writers website. I’m pleased to report that we’re migrating this blog from its original Blogspot habitat over to the new website. Instead of having two different URLs—one for our blog and one for our website—they’ll live together under the singular 49Writers.org roof.
All 2,252 of the posts made on the original platform have been imported into the new site, so our entire archive remains searchable, linkable, and loveable as ever. It was impossible to avoid some formatting fracases during the transfer of existing posts, so I apologize in advance for any untidiness on that front. I trust that we’ll have smooth and aesthetically pleasing sailing from here forward.
Also, we were able to re-subscribe most of you who subscribed to the old blog, but you’ll need to confirm it via email. If you’re not subscribed automatically and would like to receive new postings by email, please head over to the new blog and enter your email address in the “Blog Subscription” field in the sidebar. You can always unsubscribe anytime.
Your old links to the original blog should still function, pointing toward the same post on the new platform. In the meantime, consider updating your blog bookmarks to point at the new URL, which is http://49writers.web907.com/blog. While you’re at it, get in there and dig around a bit. Use the “search” function to unearth some of the gems in that deep pile of posts. Reminisce or catch up. And if you find yourself eager to write, or hungry to connect with other writerly folks, go ahead and click on that “Register for Classes” link in the top left of the page, and sign yourself up for this term’s online workshop or one of the face to face classes in Anchorage.
So that’s the update! Time, now, to celebrate our first many years, our first 2,252 blog posts, our first million+ pageviews, and all those yet to come.
Thanks,
Jeremy