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The Top Five Posts of 2022

Vintage Bridge Cookie Cutter 
A favorite family cookie cutter.
        
Snowy Yard
                                It snowed just before Christmas, then we got freezing rain. You too?


Laura Bray author 
Me on Christmas Day

Liberty Theater in Camas WA 
My daughter and I love to go to our old, downtown theater to see Christmas movies from the 1940s.

Before we start the new year, I wanted to take some time to say goodbye to 2022. While I don't get hung up on checking my blog statistics, I do like to see what your favorite posts were and then maybe refine what I will write in the next year. So are you ready to see what the top posts of last year were?

Top 5 Posts of 2022

5. Roasted Tomatoes and An Empty Nest 

Well, it seems many of you are in the same boat I am, slowly counting down our days to an empty nest and dealing with all the feelings that come with sending your child into the world and then looking around and wondering who the hell you are now. I'm guessing there will be few more tear-stained posts about this topic in 2023 as my daughter is due to go off to college this fall. Get the tissues out. 

Or I could be wrong and you just like my recipes. If that's the case, fear not! I'm an emotional eater so there will be plenty of food posts too. In the meantime, why not make some Bisquick Chocolate Chip Cookies? It's the only other recipe on here.

4. A Seattle Travel Guide for Writers 

Do you really love my travel guides or were you just happy about the fact that pandemic eased up enough for all of us to travel more?  Either way, if you are planning on a trip to the Pacific Northwest this year this post will give you a few places to check-out (even if you aren't a writer).

3. Finding Your Purpose in Midlife 

I don't want to call attention to any of our ages, but between this post and the empty nest post, I'm beginning to think a large chunk of my audience just might be women of a certain age. Hello friends!

In this post, I talked about some of the resources I used in 2022 to pull myself together and start on my journey into late-midlife. Since the publication of this post, fellow mid-lifer, artist Lori Roberts, released a new e-course called The Unfolding, which I would highly recommend if you are still searching for help. I got to write an essay for the course about my Midlife Manifesto and would love to see you over there! Sign-up here. (Hurry! There's an early bird special until February 1!)

2. The Sugar Thief

I'm pretty pleased that one of my memoir essays appeared in the top five list. This piece is one I was especially proud of-one that made me realize that all the work I was doing on my writing was starting to pay off. (Of course, I look at it now and see some mistakes but you know, that's good. I would be worried if I didn't think I'd improved as writer since then.)

I am writing another story about the girl in the story that involves a 1970s canoe trip and that story wouldn't have been put down on paper if you guys hadn't started clamoring for me to tell you what happened to "Stacy". Thanks for the inspiration!

1. Fridays Are For Art

In this post, I talked about my creative process. I shared where I find organic inspiration, how I avoid being unduly influenced by others, and how I protect my creative work while it is still in it's newborn stage (which is why you haven't seen Stacy's canoe trip story yet-except for the first paragraph which you can find here). 

So what's new for 2023?

I've been thinking a lot about what these posts tell me about our little relationship here. One big realization is that you guys don't really want writing tips. You are readers at heart I think and I should focus on that. I'll share what I'm reading and writing, talk about how I organize my books, or build my library. Maybe I'll write about ways to enhance your reading experience (cookies and tea, obviously). 

I'll also share stories about my midlife journey, gardening, travel, and cooking. All these are topics that are close to my heart and I think they are close to yours too.

What I would like to know though, is what do you want to read about? Am I on track with the subjects I'm thinking you want to hear about? Do you have burning questions or curiosities about my life that you would like me to consider sharing?  Maybe you would like to see more photos of where I live and what I'm doing? Let me know in the comments and I'll add them to my list!

Finally, will you do me a favor? If you like my blog, will you tell a friend to come and visit me? I love meeting new people! Since I don't use social media, I need help getting the word out so if you could take one minute out of your day to send an email or text to a friend, I would love that. Or maybe link up to one of your favorite posts of 2022 on your social media? Thank you, thank you! I can't wait to spend another year sharing my stories and getting to know you.

 

 


 

 

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Comments

  1. Nicole MacPhersonJanuary 4, 2023 at 3:51 AM

    Laura, first of all, that heart sweater and tree brooch! I love them so much.
    For me, the Sugar Thief and Roasted Tomatoes - I think about those posts still! I love reading all of your writing, but I particularly like your stories about the midlife journey, nostalgia, and gardening. That said, I like everything you write. As my nest starts to empty I am thinking about Getting Serious About Writing, and to that end, I don't mind reading writing tips! I guess what I'm saying is I'll read what you put out there!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Laura BrayJanuary 7, 2023 at 2:35 PM

      Thanks Nicole. The brooch belonged to my grandmother and she always wore in on her green, wool coat, during the Christmas season.

      Delete
  2. AnonymousJanuary 6, 2023 at 3:44 PM

    Yep. You've got my support. I will share on IG and facebook. I must say that I don't hang out there much after I did a detox after you wrote about it. I would be happy to let them go altogether but I need them for promoting my workshops and art.
    I do love everything you write about. You have a easy way about your writing that makes it so calm and easy to read. I love the Roasted Tomatoes and really encourage you to write your cookbook. One thing I would like to learn is how you go about finding some writing group/s or someone to connect with writing. I've done some searches but get all these "meet-up" groups that have over a thousand people. Eck.
    Keep going the way you are and people will come.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Laura BrayJanuary 7, 2023 at 2:37 PM

      Thanks for sharing. As for writing groups, try some of the Meetups. You just might find a few people out of the 1000 that you will click with. (Really, there's usually only a core group of a few people in those groups that regularly come to meetings anyway.)

      Delete
  3. Anne ButeraJanuary 7, 2023 at 9:23 AM

    Happy New Year, Laura! I enjoy your blog with whatever you'd like to share. I love getting a glimpse into your world.

    ReplyDelete
  4. charla47January 7, 2023 at 4:50 PM

    Yes, I do love your blog. I love hearing about your life, organization, embroidery (you got me started again) and love all the photos.

    ReplyDelete

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