The Sunshine Blogger Award!
- Oceana Rose
- Apr 4
- 5 min read
Ahh, I’m so thrilled. Last week, my blog got nominated for the Sunshine Blogger Award— a tag for sharing blogs that brought you a little sunshine. I feel honored! <3 Thank you so much, Ysabel and other Whales for the tag!
The Rules:
Display the award’s official logo somewhere on your blog.
Thank the person who nominated you. (Thank you again, Whales!)
Provide a link to your nominator’s blog. (Check out their blog, The Easterling Quill, here! They have some very promising content. <3)
Answer your nominators’ questions.
Nominate up to 11 bloggers. (I ended up just doing five.)
Ask your nominees 11 questions.
Notify your nominees by commenting on at least one of their blog posts.
Here are the questions I was asked:
What’s the origin story of your blog’s name?
Oo, good question! I actually have an entire blog post dedicated to this question. You can read it here!
But in short, it came from Acts 3:13-24. “The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him. But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses.” (ESV)
I love thinking about the ways God is the Author of Life!
What inspired you to start a blog?
The main things that inspired me to start blogging were:
My friend, Ella Rose. She started a beautiful blog some years back and I absolutely loved it. I wanted to start a blog like her someday. She recently closed her old blog and started an author website and a new blog. (See the first of the blogs I tag at the end)
A desire to become a better writer! I wanted to grow in writing skills and blogging has been wonderful for that.
The joy of sharing my passions about stories and theology with others. I love talking and writing about stories and sharing my thoughts and beliefs with other people!
What’s something you love incorporating into your work/s that you don’t see often in books? (Or what’s something you wish more authors would put into their books?)
A deep belief in the magic of the world. Some of my favorite books (especially classics) get this right and I really appreciate it! Though many books today have lost that spark. They’re written as if they have to be ‘realistic’ with no room for the truth of how magical this world is. I really want to incorporate this in both my fiction and non-fiction writing. As G. K. Chesterton wrote in his book Orthodoxy: “Fairy tales say that apples were golden only to refresh the forgotten moment when we found that they were green. They make rivers run with wine only to make us remember, for one wild moment, that they run with water.”
What’s your favorite type of weather and why?
I love warm weather with slightly cool breezes, especially at the beginning of spring! I love the hope and promise of summer that it brings.
What song have you been listening to the most recently?
Right now, a song called “Dear Sam” by TROY. It’s a really sweet song!
Closely following is “Goodness of God” sung by Praise and Harmony. Go listen to it. It’s beautiful.
Pineapples on pizza, yes or no? Why? 🎤
YES. Because pineapple and ham taste delicious on pizza. Disagree with me? Then why do people put pineapples on burgers and kabobs? I promise it’s not crazy. ;)
What kind of pet do you wish you could have? Anything from a lizard to a unicorn!
A red panda. I love, love red pandas! They’re so plushy and cute and just ahhh!! I would love it to death!
What’s the funniest thing you heard or saw today?
Well, not today, but an evening or two ago I was sitting outside with my cousin watching a summer storm come. We saw a number of Mourning Doves flying from one tree to another. The funny thing is they squeak with every flap. It’s so funny to hear them go ‘ee-eee-eee’ from tree to tree!
You travel back in time and meet yourself from five years ago. Would you get along with him/her?
Oh interesting question! About five years ago I was a bit more self-confident and often struggled with being over-corrective of people I loved. At the same time, I loved nothing more than being there for my friends and having a deep joy for life. So honestly...I think I would! We would get along because of shared taste and perspective on the world. And I would love to give my past self some advice and encouragement!
Drop your favorite quote!
Proverbs 3:4-5 “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.”
I’ve had this memorized since I was little and it’s so comforting to me. I don’t have to have everything figure out because God has written my story. <3
Do you have any advice or encouragement for people thinking of starting their own blog?
My advice would be to use the experience to conquer perfectionism. Use the deadline of weekly or fortnightly posts as an exercise in posting things that aren’t necessarily polished the whole way. It’s good to get over the worry of messing little things up. Learn to love your bad or so-so writing. It’s all part of the process of growing and learning. It’s 100% okay to make mistakes. Give yourself some grace. <3
As another piece of advice, save up some blog posts before you launch! It helps a lot whenever life gets busy. Blogging is a commitment, and it cuts back on the deadline stress to have some posts saved up for when you need them!
Those are all the questions! Now for my nominees!
Nominees
Here are some blogs that I want to nominate for the Sunshine Blogger Award. I always find a little ray of sunshine when reading them. <3 I would highly recommend checking out these blogs!
Ella Rose - https://ellarosebecker.com/blog/
Belle - An Old Fashioned Girl
L. E. Levens - Keepers of Light and Legend Blog
Elisabeth G. Biggs - The Key of E
Shiloh - GracefulSoul
Alrighty, here are your 11 questions!
What is one book that helped inspire you to start writing?
What is one Psalm that has been speaking to you recently?
What are your top three favorite movies?
What is your favorite season and why?
Do you have a special drink/snack that you like while writing?
What theme/topic do you feel most driven to share through your writing and why?
Which literary character do you most share personality with?
If you could meet and talk with any author (past or present) who would you choose?
What question would you most want to ask said author?
Do you listen to music while writing? If so, what kind of music?
What is the best/most helpful writing advice you have ever received?
Yay! I completed the list. I hope you all enjoyed reading this. I would love to hear your thoughts or answers to any of the questions in the comments! Which question did you find most interesting? How would you answer it?
Oh my goodness, Oceana! I am so honored and touched that my blog helped to encourage and inspire you. Thank you! I'm so proud of how much you've grown in your writing since we first met, and I cannot wait to see where the Lord takes you with it! He is using you, and you are amazing!