During the past few weeks the BFOR group has been running a Blog Blitz, with group members writing about issues concerning readers in mid-life and beyond. There have been 26 posts, including reviews, interviews, excerpts and articles. We even had our own cartoon. All the posts were brilliant. If you missed any of contributions, you will find the links here. The Blog Blitz was great fun to run, and I sincerely thank all contributors for their originality and professionalism. We have certainly raised the profile of the group, and I felt we achieved a renewed sense of purpose and community.
So what happens next?
I do actually have some news for everyone...
The software which I use for the BFOR website is very outdated, and will expire next year, so change is necessary. I have, for some time, been reflecting on the direction the website should take and have learned a lot more about the group and its members from reading the Blog Blitz contributions.
I have decided to integrate the BFOR book shelves into a new magazine style website with an updated modern look and the addition of relevant articles to the home page which will hopefully draw traffic to the site. The service will still be free. The title of the site will change, (top secret as yet) but the BFOR name will remain as part of the site menu, so direct links to the book shelves can still be posted by authors. I will also be asking for occasional articles from BFOR writer members, where they can, of course, include references to their books. I may also ask for permission to re-use some of the Blog Blitz posts.
I have started creating the new site, and would love to share my efforts so far with you, but am determined to wait until it is nearer completion. It won't be long now. The old BFOR site will not disappear until I have contacted all the authors for permission to migrate the books shelves to the new site. Books on the current 'waiting list' will be put straight onto the new website.
If you would like to be part of this exciting initiative then please make sure you regularly visit our facebook group and follow our @older_readers twitter page. This is where more news will first be posted.
Claire Baldry is the creator of the website www.booksforolderreaders.co.uk and author of second chance love stories 'My Daughter's Wedding' and 'Different Genes'
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