Bloggers Gone Wild (But Not Really...)

Great quality photo of one of the panels via my Blackberry at the Blog Better Boston Event

As mentioned in previous posts, I attended Blog Better Boston on Saturday, March 24th all day in Cambridge, MA. Since I would classify myself as an amateur blogger with big aspirations, I thought the event would be the perfect way to network and learn more about something that I really enjoy...and I was right!

The event brought together over a hundred bloggers and consisted of several panels and workshops ranging from "blogging basics" to "how to monetize your blog" to even "food photography." When not in sessions and learning how to "blog bettah," I took advantage of the free food and goodies courtesy of the great sponsors.

As seen above: canvas bag from Lyst, another canvas bag as decorated by Picasso (aka ME), a t-shirt from Roster, and a whole bunch of other gift cards and samples .

Now, I don't know about you, but I built my gym/sleepwear wardrobe off of free stuff thanks to three and a half years of college. When I get free stuff, I get excited! Not just normal excited, but "OMG a free bottle of seltzer water! This is so great!" excited. We had breakfast courtesy of Dunkin Donuts (bloggers run on Dunkin too) and lunch thanks to Au Bon Pain (that's French for yummy...just kidding).

My favorite part about the event was probably getting to hear from other bloggers and their experiences, whether it was working with a brand or building a community with their followers or other bloggers. I've only had this blog for a few months and kept my other blog, Boston 2 Britain, as a means of keeping in touch with friends and family at home while in London, so I don't consider myself a pro by any means -- maybe an advanced amateur (oxymoron?) -- but definitely someone who is eager to learn to better serve her loyal and wonderful readers.

Jess from The Cat's Meow looking fabulous and me, looking as though I just rolled out of bed
Photo courtesy of Jess (thank you!)

I think this was after I ate lunch, but I still look like a zombie... with cheetah print loafers

Another favorite part of the event was actually meeting and talking with other bloggers. As much as I enjoyed being talked at for the sake of learning, there's nothing like creating connections with other people with similar interests. While it was a bit difficult for me to break out of my shell at first (I'll blame the exhaustion...), I ended up meeting some really great people. Everyone was really nice and made me excited to call myself a Boston blogger! I might be a newbie, but maybe someday, I could be one of the panel speakers. Hopefully, by then, I'll know how to take a better picture...

Overall, it was a great experience and I felt inspired and excited to be a part of the blogging community. I wouldn't exactly classify the event as "wild" in the way your dirty mind might be thinking, but it was wild that so many people with seemingly little in common could come together and be a part of a single, cohesive community. That might not be your idea of a "wild" day with bloggers, but hey, maybe you should get your mind out of the gutter.