One of things I love about BlogHer, now in its third year, is the number of diverse women I meet from around the country and in some cases, the world. In my Silicon Valley blogging circles, people are mostly writing about start-up life, venture capital, Web 2.0 trends, the world of social media and why every new online network is cooler than the last one. At BlogHer, I run into an array of topics, interests, passions and writing styles.
In a long elevator ride that went from top to bottom at least eight times, I shared stories with women from Kansas, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Florida, New York, Texas, Wisconsin, Canada, England, Oregon, Washington (state and DC), Massachusetts and Connecticut.
They’re writing about motherhood, humor, politics, issues that affect women like education, healthcare and war, spirituality, crafts (who knew there were so many blogs on knitting, sewing, craft making, stamps/albums and beyond), and two of my favorites: fashion and food/wine. There are so many great fashion and food bloggers, I could spend days getting lost in their stories, recommendations and photographs.
There were women authors who also have blogs that are topic-less, meaning they write about everything, a bit like me minus the technology. In a recent blog post, Ruth of Ruthless in the Suburbs quotes Oscar Wilde (a favorite of mine as well): “Life is far too important a thing ever to talk seriously about.” Amen, Oscar. Which reminds me of a joke. So this horse walks into a bar, sits down on a stool, and the bartender comes over and says, “Hey, why the long face?” She has a second blog that reviews books.
Other interesting women I ran into include Romi Lassally of True Mom Confessions — formerly with Huffington Post — Victoria Revay from NowPublic, IzzyMom, Meagan Carberry of True Office Confessions, 16 year old Chloe Spencer, Holly Burns who blogs at Travelocity, Stacy alias Mrs. Squirrel, Cheryl Colan, Cristin Jones and Helene Taylor, who has a blog about “Modern Divorce.”
Also, see my Faces of BlogHer and BlogHer photo album.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
