500th Post + Contest!

OK, so it's just only my 500th post here on Blogspot. I'm sure if I included all my Myspace posts, I'd be much higher, but that's too hard to count because I don't think Myspace tells you how many blog posts you've done.

I'm so happy I made it to 500 posts!! It's been a fun journey since moving completely to Blogspot back in July 2009. I started my Myspace blog back in late June 2007 and stayed there until November 2008 when I split my blog up. Myspace was not helpful when it came to posting pictures in blogs so I used this Blogspot as a way to do my In My Mailboxes, vlogs, and various signing recaps and pictures of books out in the wild. So, when I started this blog, I titled it Book Chic- In My Mailbox and More! because it was mainly for memes and the like. Well, after I moved completely over, the name bothered me a bit but I just kept it until a few days ago when I decided to update it. Now, it's just Book Chic and I love it.

You know what else I love? My header! It was an accident too. I was at one of Maggie Stiefvater's events and had gotten there just as the signing started, so the event was kinda over when I got there, but she still had time to fill so she just sat there and signed the occasional book but mainly chatted with my roomie, her bf and myself. I got up the nerve to ask her to sign my copy of Shiver and she said she wanted to doodle in my book, so I let her have free reign. She also drew my sneakers, which I had to hold up since she couldn't see them over the table.

Anyway, the doodle was so good and I just loved it so much that I wanted to make it my new header. I mean, it's totally awesome, isn't it? It took me a few months though to scan it in and then the lovely Susan of Wastepaper Prose produced the awesome header it is today.

Also, over the course of these three and a half years, I've had the opportunity to:

- go to two awesome conferences (BEA and ALA) and am now prepping for my second BEA (reserved hotel room today!)!
- meet over 50 authors (I'm sure the number is larger, but this seems like a safe bet), a couple of them several times (like Melissa Marr, Maggie Stiefvater (who I met at her first launch party!), and Sarah Dessen)
- meet TONS of bloggers that I then get to hang out with at events. Frequent partners-in-crime include: Susan of Wastepaper Prose, Monica of Bibliophilic Book Blog, Meaghan of A Bookworm's Haven, Andrea of Aine's Realm, and Skyanne of Harmony's Book Reviews.
- meet several awesome publicists, like Elyse Marshall, Melissa Bruno, Ksenia Winnicki, Marissa DeCuir, and Laura Lutz as well as an editor or two and the actual publisher of an imprint.
- get to know some really great friends that I love to talk to about anything, not just books and blogging.
- have my blurbs appear in/on two final books (Invisible Touch by Kelly Parra and Going Bovine by Libba Bray (paperback)), an ARC (Zen and Xander Undone by Amy Kathleen Ryan) and a couple press releases.

and countless other things. It's been such an awesome ride and I never want to stop!! Aside from all those things, I'm also grateful for all the readers and followers I have (I'm up to 436!) and for all the wonderful comments you all leave on my blog. I love getting each one and it always brightens my day.

OK, I'll stop gushing about all this and just get to the contest. I'll be giving away a signed Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater (with a doodle!) and a signed As You Wish by Jackson Pearce, both paperbacks, and of course will throw in some swag too. This contest will be open to North American residents only and will end on Friday, November 19 at 11:59 PM EST. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post; if you want, you can say what you like about my blog and why you keep coming back because that would make me happy. It's not a necessity though, so don't feel obligated. Good luck to all!