Blogger Week 2015 was a multicultural festival of bloggers, journalists and social media mavens hosted by Black Bloggers Connect in Washington. This year’s 2nd Annual Blogger Week began April 27th and lasted through May 2nd. The week ended with a networking/speaker/panel finale titled, “The Blogger Week UnConference.â€
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There were four days of online festivities and three days of in-person events, which included Twitter parties, Google Hangouts, workshops, panels, and networking events. The Blogger Week UnConference featured hot-topic discussions and breakout sessions to promote innovation, creativity and success for bloggers and social media mavens.
Reputable writers and journalists were chosen to host workshops, and panel discussions, providing insight, tips and blogger-girl magic tricks to assist newbies in blog growth, website monetization and building brand following. Here are five follow-worthy bloggers, publicists, journalists and overall “power women†featured at this year’s Blogger Week:
Charell Star: Public Relations Specialist and Lifestyle Blogger, Charell Star has spent more
than a decade helping brands get their message heard and products sold. As account director for EGAMI Consulting, a leading boutique multicultural PR and event firm, Star oversees the day-to-day account work for Fortune 500 companies seeking to authentically engage with urban consumers. The firm’s current clients include P&G, HBO, and Verizon Wireless.Star is also an avid entrepreneurial and lifestyle blogger and shares her insights with her loyal “A Girl In A Dress†readers daily. Her blog, which focuses on motivational entrepreneurship, provides a unique cross section of small business, fashion, technology and beauty news and tips. Whether you are an intrapreneur, solopreneur, couplepreneur, teenprenuer, socialprenuer, or on the fence about stepping out on your own, this site is designed to serve as a resource and motivate you to follow your passions.
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Alexandra Elle, more frequently known as Alex Elle, has made an immense impact on women, both of her generation and beyond. She has quickly gained recognition for her candid, honest words, most notably in her acclaimed debut book, Words from a Wanderer
. Elle is also a natural hair blogger, jewelry designer, and poet. Her poetry and prose are frank, derived from real life experiences and the raw human emotions in which everyone can relate. “I’ve always been a writer,†she admits, “I found myself in writing my truth.â€She began sharing her personal thoughts on popular Web platforms (Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr) and quickly developed a strong following. Soon she found herself repeatedly faced with the same request: to compile her writings into a book. And so with the push from her growing online community, Words from a Wanderer was born, a collection of empowering notes and love poems. Self-published in spring 2013, the book cracked Amazon’s Bestseller Top 100 list for poetry, a truly remarkable achievement for a first-time independent author.
Joi-Marie McKenzie is an entertainment producer for ABC News, covering television, film, and music. She has been an important part of the team that has won national Edward R. Murrow Awards.
McKenzie is also the creator of The Fab Empire, an award-winning website that covers society, politics, celebrities and local events in Baltimore, Boston, New York, and Washington, D.C. McKenzie, with her team of contributors and photographers, has successfully created a brand that speaks to the needs of young urban professionals. Previously, she has freelanced for publications including The Afro American Newspaper, Clutch Magazine, NBC New York and NBC Washington.
GG Renee Hill is an independent author, blogger, and creativity coach under the influence of three children and a passion for soulful living. She is a self-described feeler and over-thinker who relishes her quiet time and believes in miracles. Her writing celebrates all the many layers that make women the beautiful contradictions that they are.
Her blog, All the Many Layers, is a resource for women who crave meaning, honest dialogue, and inspiration for the joys and challenges they face every day. Through her coaching practice, she guides women to channel their emotions into creative works and express themselves shamelessly. Since she
quit her corporate job in 2013, she has published two books and created several e-books and self-discovery courses. Her work has been spotlighted by xoJane, Total Beauty, Curly Nikki, Carol’s Daughter, Clutch Magazine, and several other online publications.
Ni’cola Mitchell entered the literary scene with one main objective: To Stimulate Your Mind, One Word at a Time. Through her independent publishing company NCM Publishing, Mitchell published numerous titles which have been featured on various best-selling lists throughout the country.
Mitchell’s distinctive writing talent has led her to become a featured columnist for Urb Society Magazine, and a nominee for the 2014 I Am a Diva, literary awards. With her outstanding representation of Las Vegas’ African American community, Mitchell was featured in the second edition of Who’s Who in Black Las Vegas. As well as being an author, she is also a motivational speaker and literary consultant, and was the recipient of the 2013 Queen that Rocks Award from the Heal a Woman to Heal a Nation Conference.