I received this lovely award from Priyanka Nair all the way back in January, but I’m rubbish at doing tags and awards on time so a big sorry for not getting to this sooner, and a big thank you for this lovely award 🙂 🙂

Sunshine Blogger Award one

So, the Sunshine Blogger Award is supposed to be given to bloggers who inspire positivity and joy – I am so honoured to be given such a lovely award (the first to 2! 😮 ), especially after such a short time of blogging ❤ 🙂

Rules:

As with most awards there are rules to follow and these are:

  1. Once nominated you must like and RT the blogger who nominated you and read their post and answers.
  2. Like and retweet the post and follow their blog.
  3. Then it’s time to write your own post and answer the questions you have been given.
  4. Choose 11 bloggers to nominate and create 11 questions for them to answer.

Questions asked to me:

So here are the questions I have been asked, I hope you like my answers 🙂

How is blogging making difference in your life?

Blogging gives me something to focus on.  In the past I’ve suffered some traumatic events in my life which, with my OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) and anxiety, just made it very difficult to cope with changes and all the problems that came up.  Blogging was like an escape for me.  I felt free to be able to share my ups and downs as well as focus on reading (and reviewing) which acted as an escape from the world of worry I was in.  The more I blog now the better I honestly feel.  I’ve become more confident in voicing my own opinions on things (something that was difficult for me since school) and I’ve become confident in my own ability as a writer too.  I also love the fact that I’ve met so many like-minded people who love blogging too.

When did you start writing and why?

I created my first blog back in 2015 (although I had no idea what I was doing at the time) but in terms of writing I’ve been doing it ever since I can remember.  I’ve always loved writing stories as a teen and child and I think the first stories I ever wrote were fully illustrated (by me! 😀 ) new tales of Whinnie the Pooh and his friends.  If I search my boxes of packed up stuff I’m sure I can still find one of my notebooks where I drew all the characters and wrote the stories! 😀

If not blogging then what is your way of artistic expression?

Inventing stories and both writing stories and drawing.  I actually love doing arts and crafts and I used to draw and paint a lot, it was my other outlet for creativity when I wasn’t making up fantasy or science fiction stories 🙂

Your favorite category of blogging?

I think I like lots of different blogs and blog types but I definietely find it easy to talk about books and love reading other people recommendations and opinions on all things book related.  I also love writing poetry, rhyming just comes naturally to me, and I find it a great outlet for all my emotions 🙂

Suppose you have to Rename the term blogger, what it will be?

This is hard, I’m not sure what I’d call a ‘blogger’.  An inspiring creative?  An inspiring entertainer?  I do believe all bloggers whatever kind of blogs they run do inspire us in different ways, whether it’s inspiring us to try new hobbies, inspiring us to try new books, to enjoy nature or to improve our health, wellbeing or just our way of seeing something, every blogger is a creative person who helps to inspire us to enjoy life and in that  way they are entertainers too.  I think blogging is brilliant, it has made it possible to meet and listen to regular people from all walks of life and share in what they love to do and talk about.

Share one of a favorite blog post of yours and why you think it is the best?

One of the toughest blog posts for me was one about mental health and in particular about a coudition I personally suffer from.  Living in the Bubble of OCD was a blog post that I felt explained one of the conditions I have and I felt so nervous putting it out there as I didn’t know what people would think, but I’m proud of myself for posting it and getting personal about this as I believe more people need to be talking about mental health to get rid of the negative stigmas surrounding it.

Who is your favorite Blogger?

I don’t think I can name a favourite.  I have many bloggers I follow and whose opinions and posts I just love to read.  I could list them but I know I’d feel terrible if I left someone out so I don’t want to say who my favourite is as everyone is my favourite for different reasons.  You’re all my favourite  🙂 ❤

Who is your favorite Author?

I find it hard to pick a favourite author as well!  I like too many books to have a particular favourite!  It’s like asking me what my favourite book is and that depends totally on my mood at the time but I definitely love lots of different books by lots of different authors… Lame answer I know but I’m just terrible at picking someone specific.

Do you watch Netflix series, if yes, which is your favorite?

I don’t have Netflix!  Am I alone on that? 😮

What inspires you?

My mum has inspired me a lot in my life, she has always been a strong person and wonderful in every way possible.  Apart from that I suppose life in general and the people I meet inspire me.  I write a lot of poetry and get ideas for things to write about (including blog posts and story ideas) from the things that have happened in my life.  In the past my life has been a struggle (it still is sometimes) and it’s often those darker times that later inspire me to write and do things that I hope will make life for me and others easier.

Any message, you want to give to the readers?

I’d like to say two things.  To those that read the blog and my, sometimes un-ordered, thoughts on such random topics, I want to say thank you.  In the years before I started this blog I found it hard to open up about myself and be able to talk about things that really matter to me and it’s given me such wonderful confidence to have everyone be so accepting of my no-niche blog.  I want to thank every single one of you who has ever read any of my posts (including this one) because I do feel that although we blog for our own reasons, it’s knowing our thoughts are being read, maybe even helping someone else out there, which make blogging so worthwhile.  So again, thank you. ❤ 🙂

I’d also like to tell anybody who is feeling unsure of themselves, perhaps a new blogger, unsure of whether your blog will be read, or anyone who is feeling self doubt about what they want to do.  To you I want to say that it’s okay to feel lost or unsure, it’s okay to doubt yourself but you can and are good enough and strong enough to do anything you want to.  If you are a new blogger and are worried that nobody will want to read what you have to say, or perhaps you think your own niche (or indeed no-niche) approach won’t get an audience, then please trust me, it will ❤  Everyone has feelings of self doubt at some point in their lives, but we need to push ourselves into doing what we are initially nervous about doing, because not doing something and regretting it later is far worse than diving in and trying.  Trust me, I’ve tried both approaches and regretting is a horrible thing to feel, so please trust yourself and know that there are so many other people who do or have felt just like you might do now ❤ 🙂

Nominees:

I am supposed to nomiate 11 people for this award.  Now I usually don’t like tagging people in posts in case I forget someone who will then think I didn’t care so much about them but in reality I am just bad at remembering all the wonderful people who I follow and who are inspiring.  So if you haven’t made the following list please don’t get offended, I’ve also left out those who I know for sure don’t do awards (so please don’t get upset for not getting on the list either).  My nominees are:

  1. N S Ford
  2. My Simple Mind
  3. Suzanne Rogerson Fanatasy Author
  4. Shalini’s Books & Reviews
  5. Book Reviews and Tours by Rachel Read it
  6. Wellbean Blog
  7. The Wellbeing Blogger
  8. Bookish Fame
  9. Chrikaru Reads
  10. The Chronically Unimaginable
  11. Happier Times

My Questions to nominees:

  1. When did you start blogging?
  2. What inspired you to start your blog?
  3. What do you enjoy doing when you aren’t blogging?
  4. If you never started blogging, what would you be doing instead?
  5. Is there anyone who inspires you/makes you smile?
  6. What’s your favourte food or foods?
  7. What sort of books do you like to read?
  8. Do you like animals, and if so what’s your favourite?
  9. Where would you like to be in ten years time?
  10. Do you enjoy travelling, and if so where?
  11. If you could go back in time to any period in history, when would it be and why?

No pressure if those nominated don’t want to take part but if you do please, please link back to this post so I get a notification and can see your answers (otherwise I might miss your beautiful post).  Thank you again and I hope you enjoyed reading my answers 🙂

What did you think of my answers?  What answers would you give to my questions?  Let me know what you think in the comments below 🙂