There are several reasons why but time is probably the biggest. Multiple new projects keep pushing me into various directions, severely limiting the time needed to research interesting new angles.
Good stories take a while to discover and develop.
Call me old-fashioned, but I’m a believer in quality, not quantity. Far too many blogs and content sites seem more concerned with putting something out there, just anything, in order to keep the search engine spiders hitting. That’s not my style and I won’t insult readers by doing so.
General interest runs a close second.
Like most bloggers, I keep an eye on the stats to find out about the audience. Unfortunately, the past several months have attracted far more spammers than readers. I’m not sure whether this means spammers think cemeteries are the new hot thing or whether it simply proves their complete lack of awareness.
Regardless, the combination of the two has made me realize that this very interesting ride has finally come to an end.
What a privilege it’s been.
I’ve traveled to unique places like the early Christian catacombs and an old western ghost town, accessed one of the most fascinating research places in the world (Westminster Abbey), and had the good fortune of meeting dedicated volunteers whose work in these historic sites all too often, goes unnoticed.
My sincerest appreciation goes out to all those who supported the Beyond The Ghosts… efforts over these past three years—4Culture, the Newcastle Historical Society, Ruth Pickering, Karen Bouton, The Seattle Public Library genealogy experts, and many others who took time out of their busy day to point me in the right direction.
Last, but not least, thank you to all those who stopped by to read an article (or two) and offered their encouragement. I’ll still be around to respond if the muse moves you to comment on particular post.
It really has been quite a fun ride. Many thanks to you all.
It seems a shame to ‘fade off into the west’ – are you really going to take down your blog?
After investing 3 years in a project, it may be understandable that you want to stop posting, but I don’t understand why you wouldn’t leave the archives up. There is great research here that can continue to be searchable and used by the online community.
Hope you reconsider.
Best of luck with your future projects.
Amen. Very nice blog. Why take it down, assuming you are not paying for hosting services. It may be dead, but that does not mean it has no interest for the living.
That sucks! I just discovered your awesome blog! But I’ll still be stalking it for research. 🙂
~Sherry
Sherry Soule Official Website
Author of the Spellbound Series
Hi Sherry: Thanks for stopping by and yes, while I’m not posting anymore, I’m definitely leaving the blog up for the time being because there is a lot of information that people can access–especially about the Pacific NW sites. Hope you enjoy your trawls and good luck with your next book!