This is just a message to express my appreciation to you the readers of Thoughts On Film!
The site ended 2012 with almost 50,000 unique visitors and over 2 million hits. It might not seem like a massive amount compared to some of the other bigger sites out there but for me it’s fantastic considering the site literally didn’t exist a year ago. I sincerely thank everyone who took the time to visit, comment, share, retweet, follow, like, subscribe or simply to spread the word even in the slightest about the site. In under a year it has grown so much, certainly more than I thought possible in such a short amount of time.
Having written for a number of different websites over the last five years or so (including a previous website of my own which is now debunked) I decided it was time to give my own site a proper go. So way back in January, with the idea of a site name, the eagerness to properly run my own operation and willingness to continue writing/rambling about my passion for everything film, things took off from there. It’s tough work sometimes, what with trying to balance my writing with other things and the obvious lack of pay, but it’s the fact that I am in control of what and when I post and my general enthusiasm for cinema that keeps things going. I published over 100 movie reviews on the site with several features and interviews in addition. Oh, and on top of that I watched a total of 584 movies between January 1st and December 31st (you can check out my film watching diary here), which should give you some indication just how much I love movies.
The success of the site sat right alongside my graduating University with an Honours degree in Media & Communication in June last year, having worked hard at accomplishing that for four years. Hard work evidently does pay off and for me that was as true with my studies as with this site. Among the general milestones I am glad I crossed along the way – not only site visitor ones but being given the opportunity to attend press screenings and festivals – I am especially proud that my site has been quoted in several places, notably on various promotional material for the feature film Booked Out and the short film Familiar. The fact that other people have put enough value in me and my site in such a way is humbling and very much appreciated.
I”ll be pushing forward with more content in 2013; more reviews, features, lists, festival coverage, and hopefully more interviews and competitions too. I also welcome any suggestions you might have for different content on the site – what you would like to see that I don’t already write about? What do I write about that you would like to see more of? If you have any ideas please do drop me an e-mail or leave a comment below.
I’ll stop chattering on now but before I do I just want to again say thank you to each and every one of you who has visited the site – whether you’re a regular reader or first-timer – and I hope you continue to enjoy my thoughts on the world of film!
