Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Shine's Woman of the Year (Community): Brett Blumenthal

Any experienced blogger will tell you that blogging is easy, but writing a consistently good blog can be hard. To be a great blogger you need determination, commitment, and a love for what you're doing. This is why I have the highest amount of respect for our users who are dedicated to Shine and blog here on a regular basis. To be blunt, keeping up a good blog takes work!

There's one blogger who's a stand-out amongst our users and makes blogging look easy. Her name is Brett Blumenthal and she's our pick for Shine's Community Woman of the Year.



Some of you may know Brett; if you frequent Healthy Living you've probably read her many posts there. For those seeing Brett's name for the first time, here are just a few reasons why Brett is so deserving of this title, and why we unanimously admire her here at Shine:
  • Did you know that Brett was one of our first users to blog on Shine? Her debut post "Stevia: Finally, a sweetener that isn't bad for you" went up on April 29, 2008. At last check, Brett has 106 live blog posts on Shine, an average of 4 postings per week.
  • Brett has two - count 'em! - two posts that were selected for Yahoo! front page promotion: "Why losing weight is so hard and gaining weight is so easy", and "Natural sweeteners that can replace sugar". An article has to pass some pretty strict editorial hurdles to even be considered for front page promotion, so you can imagine what a cool accomplishment this is.
  • Brett's posts get viewed so many times that she routinely makes our daily Top 10 list of posts with the most page views (web speak for eyeballs).
  • The editors often feature Brett's posts on Shine because they are timely, informative, and always well-written (all of you grammar-challenged bloggers take note!). This means her post is moved up from the raw feed and placed in "editor's picks".
But the title of "Shine User of the Year" isn't just about popularity and page views. The fact is that Brett is simply a great blogger. Her blogging style is concise and has a sense of purpose, but most importantly, she believes in Shine blogging tip #1: "Blog about what you're most passionate about". Brett writes about health and wellness topics that are relevant, valuable, at times provocative, but always in tune with our users' needs. Lastly, Brett embodies the qualities of a conscientious blogger by revisiting her posts long after they've been posted to read comments and answer questions from fellow users. This encourages conversation, which is what Shine is all about.

It takes a lot of character and enthusiasm to keep a good blog going, and this is why we applaud Brett for being our first Shine Community Woman of the Year. From all of us here on Shine, congratulations, Brett!
Syndication:

From the Community…

Comments 1-10 of 138
  • Sam's Avatar
    Posted by Sam Wed Dec 24, 2008 9:48am PST

    :)

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  • Magaly's Avatar
    Posted by Magaly Wed Dec 24, 2008 10:22am PST

    Congrats Brett; I am a new blogger and I will be reading your articles and you will be my mentor. Keep up your great work.

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  • mickey or mickithekid2003's Avatar
    Posted by mickey or mickithekid2003 Wed Dec 24, 2008 1:49pm PST

    what fame is there in blogging?

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  • 's Avatar
    Posted by Wed Dec 24, 2008 8:31pm PST

    o cool thanks for telling me and MeRrY ChRiStMaS

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  • dolphin™'s Avatar
    Posted by dolphin™ Wed Dec 24, 2008 10:59pm PST

    Congratulations Brett!

    Wishing Also the Entire Shine Staff

    For Giving People A Place To Be,

    A Fantastic Christmas and A Very Prosperous New Year!!!!

    dolphin

    Report Abuse
  • BethF's Avatar
    Posted by BethF Thu Dec 25, 2008 7:40am PST

    Brenda, I needs some pointer on to be a goo blogger i have never done this before about a mounth ago and i must be dull because do'nt get any resonce from my post. help! buffie

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  • Victoria's Avatar
    Posted by Victoria Thu Dec 25, 2008 7:59am PST

    hello everyone , i'm new to this also. merry christmas

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  • Paige's Avatar
    Posted by Paige Thu Dec 25, 2008 11:42am PST

    Because of her blog about Stevia I now have a box of Truvia in my kitchen cabinet right now. Even though I don't find it to be sweet enough I stick with it anyway because I know its best for me, thanks Bret.

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  • Henry K's Avatar
    Posted by Henry K Fri Dec 26, 2008 5:44pm PST

    Congradulations Brett. I guess I need to read your blog because I am haveing a little trouble keeping my weight under control. I know I am becoming a boarderline diabetic so I have to watch my sugar.

    Many people are affected by this ever since corn syrup made from genetically engineered corn was put into everything we eat.

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  • Henry K's Avatar
    Posted by Henry K Fri Dec 26, 2008 5:47pm PST

    I forgot to mention that I write about various science topics affecting humans and the climate here on Earth. Undersea volcanoes may be responsible for melting Arctic ice not human causes.

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