Farewell Charlotte
Three Septembers ago, I began this blog not really knowing what I was setting out to do.
I had long thought about the idea of blogging as a way to showcase my writing but I had no cyber identity other than news reporting I had done, and knew even less about the ins and outs of WordPress.
When I finally got around to sitting down and planning the blog’s structure, I asked myself where do I feel most creatively inspired? That’s when the concept of a café environment came to mind.
I love Cafés! I love the atmosphere, the buzz, the people watching, the aromas.
With a little help from Hemingway’s poetic genius, the name The Expressible Café came to life.
But in creating the layout, I still needed to find that one image, something that captured my feelings, the colour of my words, the visual inspiration to motivate me to keep going.
Finally, with the aid of the most gifted Laurie Near, I came across “Patience, Charlotte.” Something about that painting moved me immediately.
There sat vibrant Charlotte, amidst an array of books, good wine, poised to create, ready for anything. “That’s it!” I declared. It somehow summed up everything I was feeling.
Now, three years later, I am letting go of my Dear Charlotte. She may still appear from time to time and for now remains my blog logo, but she will no longer take center stage.
You see, each Autumn, as I mark the Café’s anniversary, I like to tweak things a bit. I’ve watched my writing change and grow and lately have felt it was time to let go of the image and sort of freshen things up even more.
And so I have re-launched the Café under a new format.
It has taken me a good part of the past few weeks to come up with this new scheme (hence my lack of postings) and I wanted to make sure I explained my choice and reasoning behind the switch.
I am always so eager to welcome new followers to the Café. I’m thrilled when my work gets noticed and even more pleased when I can engage with fellow bloggers or new readers in a discussion over topics and posts.
Yet I worry sometimes that my posts may get lost under the continuous scroll down the page. With this new homepage, I now have the opportunity to appeal to patrons by grabbing their attention immediately.
I love anchoring my posts with an appropriate punchy image that helps bring to life my words. Now the Café can offer a visual menu of my work inviting readers to pick and choose what they want to read.
It may seem like I’m suggesting you judge my posts by their cover photo, but that is not my intention. I simply understand the power of images. They pull you in and can move you to act or peak interest in the stories behind the visual.
And so I hope you enjoy the revised Expressible Café. I would love to hear feedback too if you’d like to let me know how I’ve done.
But most of all, it is my hope that you may come by armed with a good cozy drink and enjoy the comforts of the Café a little while longer than usual.
Here’s to another year. Cheers!
Paula Antonello Moore, Thoughts. Copyright: Tuesday, September 1, 2015.
Congratulations on your next step – ‘glad that Ms Charlotte was able to keep you good company on the start of your blogging/online writing journey!
Thank you so much Ms Laurie. Your painting will always hold a special place in my heart. Thanks for helping me along.
Love the new look Paula! VERY different. But that’s a good thing. This approach works well on other blogs, too. I think it’s a great way to do as you said: focus immediately on specific postings that can attract from the thumbnail snapshot. It’s also nice that you continue to freshen things up!
Thanks so much. I appreciate your loyalty too. Hope I can continue to entertain.