i've been feeling blogger burnout a lot lately.
i don't know if it's just end of the year blahs,
"stage fright" of knowing people are going to read what i post, feeling i've blogged it all
or my 1 year blogging anniversary or just me.
that's refreshing to see you write about this.

modmom

i know how you feel. at least twice a year i think about closing up shop. sometime it seems like one endless sea of products to write about and well, if that doesn't excite me i doubt it excites my readers. so i try to remember to try new things, add new content and test out ideas to keep things fresh. they don't always work but they at least keep things interesting.

;)

d*s

I'm glad you are writing about this topic and I feel better that other people feel like this too! Hopefully, I be inspired to get back to doing something soon. Thanks for the tips!

I can totally understand the blogger burnout too. Lately I've been working an average of 6 days a week between two different "real jobs" and then spending virtually every free moment either working on my blog or my other business. Luckily this past weekend I unexpectedly had two days off from work in a row and I was able to catch up on some "me time", so I feel a little more refreshed now. It is very difficult to strike a balance sometimes though.

Maybe the lack of integrity in which you handle your job is why you are in a rut. I am one of many aware of your false negative comments, harassment and basic bullying. Wouldn't it be fascinating for your readers to be aware of your underhanded tactics to climb the ladder? I have kept a record of every false comment you have posted, and I know of others doing the same. It is time for you to stop Grace because we will fight back. Not the tacky way you do, with you and friends (we know who,btw) helping you leave sad, insecure lying attacks on other blogs, like AT. But with the law, there is a thing called defamation of character and my lawyer can easily build a strong case against you. And, The NY Times (who already called you out once) or TMZ.com, so many options. If you do not stop your harassment, you will be called out. The ISP of one of your accomplices has already been found out and pages of evidence are filed on you. We won't stoop to your childish attacks, but we will reveal who you really are to the world. Did you ever think that all the people you are attacking would join together? Worst nightmare, huh? But the design community actually speaks to each other and your reputation in the design world is pretty sleazy, sorry to say. Your readers only see the fake side. People aren’t as stupid as you think they are, they will figure it out.
Hilarious you include the disclaimer and warning to people about to comment, obviously because those are your own tactics and you are afraid people will do the same to you. Wise up Grace, you don't want to ruin your own career by not playing fair and the people you are trying to bully are getting really sick of it. Don't think you have so much power you can get away with it anymore. We have all been tolerant way too long.
I know you won't post this and don't care. It's time you know that there will be retaliation if there are any further attacks, we can all spot you and your friend a mile away, don't think you are so slick. Quit your insecure and sleazy attacks and we all can move on. I PROMISE I will call The Times and show my evidence and my comrades as well. You can actually build a career without stepping over others. Maybe when you realize that you won’t be so damn insecure and feel the need to put down others to make yourself feel better.
You can only push people so far until they snap.

WOW! That's enough to make somebody close up shop for sure!!!!

what was that about? who does grace bully? and what did nyt call her out about?

Hi Grace,
Kudos for posting "one of the many you are trying to bully". This is the most jejune and inane posting I've seen in a long time. And talking about defamation of character, this is the kettle calling the pot black.
You are doing a great job, don't let nincompoops deter you.

what kind of ridiculous rant was that? sounds like someone could benefit from tip #1 - "get away." guess you're not the only one who's spent too long staring at the computer screen, grace! the voices in your head aren't real, "One of many"! maybe you should take your pills.

It's actually kind of nutty that people seem to just wait around to make catty comments all around the internet these days. I'm really sorry that whoever this is didn't have the courage to sign their own name, or just write this to you personally, instead of leaving a publicly threatening and slanderous comment that has nothing to do with the post!!! Could this be called BLOGRAGE?

Anyway, I thought this was a good post and definitely something to think about... be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it! I never considered that in the midst of working so hard toward a goal, that that goal could burn you out!

Great post!

WHO

Wow, Grace, it takes a lot of courage to allow people to post such attacks. Keep up the good work and don't let the crazy stalkers get you down.

If you wanna yell at Grace, go write her an email and spare the rest of us your unstable ranting.

Susan

Has anyone thought there might be some validity to the comment?

I think that "one of many" was very crazy-sounding and didn't back up any of their claims with any facts. On the other hand, if someone is that upset about someone, there must be some reason. I'm gonna say that "one of many" has anger issues, but grace has professionalism issues. both of them need to deal with that in a constructive way.

Great post, I guess we all feel like that! And the "rant", who knows? I remember the New York Times article, it caused a big stir. Maybe people are afraid to say anything, we shouldn't assume that anyone who comments is crazy just because they don't love d*s.

She has professionalism issues because of what someone clearly unstable said? Throwing around threats and bizarre comments about calling The New York Times (???) does not make someone's claim valid. I think we're dealing with someone, like they said, that's on the verge of something. I'm guessing that something is a mental breakdown?

Amy

I think grace has professionalism issues due to the content of her posts on this site, not because of what an angry personsaid.

I want to take a minute to clarify that BizBox is a Slate-run promotional blog where we invite bloggers like Grace and Andrew to share their stories. The comments policy posted above is Slate's policy, not Grace's.

Jennifer

i don't think this is the appropriate forum to hash out any personal issues against slate authors. grace bonney generously donates her time to share times with us, and i hardly think this is an appropriate use of slate's system.

if people have issues with grace, which i can't understand, because in my mind she's done nothing but bring support and positive attention to the indie-design movement, then they need to deal with it on a personal level, rather than an anonymous public forum.

grace- i'm a huge fan and appreciate your work every day!

What's unprofessional about any of these posts Xamuel? Tips on running a shop beating a rut? When did that become unprofessional?

But why do you assume they are clearly unstable? What do we know? We just read the blogs but don't know what else goes on. Maybe one of many has anger issues and maybe d*s does have professionalism issues. I agree with Xamuel, there must be a reason. We shouldn't be so close minded and just call someone crazy because we don't know what's going on.

now now boys and girls...

Looks like "One of the many" is doing all the bullying and threatening here him/herself... !! If there is validity to the comment, it won't be resolved by posting angry comments which make the anonymous poster look crazier than the accusations he/she is making...

I'm sure there's an easy explanation and a friendly easy solution. There always is!

now kiss and make up! valentine's day is coming.

make floral arrangements not war

fred

The professional issues are within the contents of the posts, how peole are dealt with and how other issues are dealt with. There are a lot of stories going around that don't appear on the blogs.

Lara

Could you be more specific? What are the "issues being dealt with" within the posts here?

Sorry, I can't say or should I say, I won't say, simply to protect myself. I don't want to become "One of many". All I know is that "One of many" is going off about being bullied and attacked and I don't want to be included on that list. And I have heard from other people the same kind of story.

i'm with fred completely. what a waste of time to write posts like "one of many..." did. what a damn big waste of time. as a small business owner & blogger i really appreciated this post.

I agree with Fred, this is not the forum, but he (one of many) also said, I'm sure you won't post this, so maybe he just wanted the message to go to grace and didn't want to use a personal email.

I think "I'm sure you won't post this" was meant as a dig, not as a way to avoid attacking the author in public. What any of this has to do with avoiding a business rut I don't get...

I enjoyed reading about getting out of a rut, it was a good post, just got through one myself! But I can't help but wonder about what bullying has gone on. When someone has a design blog that big, it is very easy to throw your power around. I agree with Xamuel too. Someone doesn't write a letter like that without there being some truth to it. The design and blog world can be very dog eat dog., I think we all know that.

The truth always eventually comes out.

floral arrangements...not war!!!

the best thing i've learned when these types of things happen is to mind my own business and keep my head down. this is clearly a cry for attention, we have no way of adjudicating anything, even if someone produced "pages of evidence" which could be electronically altered. so it's best to just ignore it and move on. it's unfortunate that these bar-room brawls break out, but they do. on blogs, in real life, every where. except maybe in the rut. or maybe this is because of a rut and someone is looking for excitement...

I feel the same about getting into (and out of) a rut. It's nice to hear the honest experiences of someone going through it, and to have the "remedies" outlined. I've probably utilized most of the suggestions, without even realizing that those simple acts were just the thing needed to help move away from the plateau. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, I found a lot of affirmation and useful reflection in the post.

I've heard the rumours too. Hate to say it, but if everyone is going to call "one of many..." crazy, I have to confess, as a local designer, I've heard some scary design sponge stories firsthand. People are afraid to talk cause suddenly rumours are spread and the designer is blacklisted.
I read this post because I am a small business owner and found it very informative but I'll be honest- what one of many is saying does affect me. If you don't bend over backwards for certain blogs or editors, you get talked about and blacklisted. Apparently "one" finally couldn't take it anymore. Anyone see Devil wears Prada?

Hi Grace,

Thanks for the tips. I think there might also be ruts which aren't necessarily related to what you're currently doing, but what you'd like to do. I know it sounds pathetic, but it's less traumatic when you realize that other people are going through the same 'numbness'. It's also inspiring (for personal ruts) to see other people's stories of how / what inspired them to realize their dreams. (like Joy's guestblog on your site this week featuring interviews with shop owners, which i find inspiring because i'd like to open a shop!)

So thanks for keeping your posts here well-rounded and trying to present all the different aspects of embarking on/carrying forward an activity which requires extreme personal dedication and motivation! Kristina

p.s. Glad to know you won't be closing down design*sponge any time soon!

It's easy to put your head down and ignore it when it isn't happening to you. Maybe it isn't a rut or cry for attention, but the truth? You guys would be horrified if you knew what goes on behind the scenes. Most bloggers and editors are great, but there are always the ones that are power hungry willing to do anything to succeed.

the only ones i've ever heard of d*s "blacklisting" are the big-box companies that do nothing to support indie designers and steal ideas from the small frys.

i think d*s should be commended for her ability to bring small designers into the public spotlight.

i bet there are thousands of designers who've sold pieces due to a little publicity on design*sponge, and there is something great to be said for that!

I'm "horrified" by what Grace has to put up with. This is ridiculous. I'm so sorry Grace. Those of us who know you know this is so, so ridiculous.

Karen

i find it interesting that the original "one of the many" (who had the most to say on this subject) has mysteriously disappeared and yet "lara" and "jamie" (and others) continue to stoke the issues "one" raised. no one with a real name or identity has made any assertions that have been backed up by any facts.

I am an "indie" designer, like Jaimie (who is local to where again?) but have never heard such horror stories about Design*Sponge. In fact, I have heard nothing but gratitude and people who want her to write about them. Seems like people like to whine and sling mud but don't like to prove the nasty things they say...

Sorry kc,
I personally know some indie designers that have been blacklisted. I agree, she has done great work bringing small designers into the spotlight, but that isn't the whole story.

if you'd care to share specific details, i'm sure that would carry more weight than anonymous accusations.

even if there are one or two horror stories (and what successful company hasn't had those), i have to think that the thousands of success stories of indie designers who have been "discovered" by the press and public through d*s way outshine those!!

by the way, just read the comment guidelines:

what part of this:
(Comments that include profanity, personal attacks or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. Additionally, entries that are unsigned or contain "signatures" by someone other than the actual author will be removed.)

"personal attacks" doesn't apply to D*S? Why is this post even still up?

jaime - if you don't mind, please let us know who these designers were, and if you know what they did to get blacklisted that would be helpful as well. thank you.

I cannot name specific companies becaues that will only further hurt them and prompt further attacks, that is the whole point. I am a furniture designer in Williamsburg in Brooklyn and have been for 7 years, I know the scene. Does anyone remember the blacklisting of the 50's? That's the kind of situation it is, if you say anything, you get attacked. I'm not going to say anymore before I am put on that list.

jamie {and others} ... how do you think bloggers "succeed"? do you think they are making tons of money and going to posh parties and living the high life? blogger-backlash is happening and sadly it's for the wrong reasons. i know lots of bloggers personally {i have done it for nearly two years} and we do it to spread love, inspiration and talk about design & art. if bloggers were/are power-hungry i would suggest to them to look elsewhere ... blogs are not going to make you rich or famous! come on now. d*s posts about design & art finds that she enjoys in the marketplace. what is so wrong with that?

honestly, this whole thread is nauseating.

don't like grace? don't read her stuff. have an issue with grace? call her and talk about it. in other words, BE GROWNUPS.

this is the forum for the kind of hostile, accusatory comments that are being left here.

do you feel better now?

D*S! What a GREAT post. Ironically, your site is one of my "inspiration" pages when I find myself in a rut. It's how I "virtually" get myself out there and view/talk to fellow artists.

I think a rut is just your brain's way of saying, "Hey. Allright. That's enough creative stuff for now...trend overload!" And, it's amazing what brings you back - it's always unexpected and a little bit wonderful, too.

Enjoy the rut. Relax. When you're ready, you won't be able to write your new ideas down fast enough!

-Dawn

Thanks for the post Grace. I have been feeling in a bit of a rut lately myself...well, rut mixed with having too many things going on in two many areas, its easy to lose focus. Nice to know its not just me! Keep up the lovely work.

G--
I really think you should remove that persons'oh so negative commentary. I was enjoying your article and then that whole natter fest really kinda ruined the experience for me. Since there is no understanding insanity, move it on out.
If it was constructive, I could understand. Poison is poison. Send it where it belongs, I say-strongly.

I have never seen anything negative by Grace on her blog, so I am really surprised by these comments. In fact, I am usually surprised by how overwhelmingly positive she manages to be all the time--but then, I'm a New Yorker! ;) I also frequent Apartment Therapy, and have only seen positive comments by Grace there (and AT has a link to Grace's blog and vice versa, so I can't think that there is a feud going on there). Bizarre.

In any event, I enjoy reading Grace's column and I'm not sure what's unprofessional about discussing burnout, as Xamuel seems to think. She helped me get in touch with some interesting women (my own #6) and I think she has only been generous, at least in my experience as a reader of her blog.

Maybe all this could be solved if Grace would just talk about a more legitimate business than her blog and her writing and being a "style editor". There's a lot of information in these columns about blogging and buying envelopes and chatting with people that must be helpful to hobby crafters who want to sell their wares, or for fellow bloggers, but I've yet to see anything come close to talking about how actual business people operate.

I run a small design consultancy in AZ for three years now, and if I took any of the advice from these posts I'd likely be out of business in a week. Maybe that's what Xamuel refers to with his/her "unprofessional" comment. Business people find advice like this laughable. I know because I was directed here from a web forum about business in a thread about how ridiculous this site is.

But then again, none of you in this comment list are asking a business person about business. Your asking a blogger. So don't be surprised when you don't get any insight about real business.

We welcome debate on the BizBox blog, but please direct personal complaints to Grace via e-mail.

Thanks,
Jennifer

Excellent comment Jennifer! You are so right, it is advice from a blogger. If blogging is such a wonderful hobby, how can we take her seriously as a business owner? I love blogs and getting inspiration from them but as a business owner myself, I know it is ridiculous to compare the business of blogging to any other legitimate business. BizBox, can you please ask a contributor that knows what they are talking about? Give us readers that respect. I enjoy occasionally reading d*s, there's lots of cute stuff on it, but so was her advice. Real business owners need real advice, not blogger advice, we aren't all bloggers or crafters.

OMG! That was so mean. Yuck, I didn´t know there were such yucky people in the design community! Stay strong Grace. I adore you and ds. Your posts brighten my day. Keep up the great work and stay strong. I´m off to take a bath now. I feel yucky from those terrible words.

Methinks some people are jealous. Yes, Lacey, advice like doing research and networking with peers are absolutely likely to drive a business into the ground.

I also think it's interesting that a young woman is getting all this flack. I somehow doubt an older man would be getting all these vitrolic comments, even if he did run a successful blog. Most small businesses do not change lives. One could argue that florists and drycleaners will never be rich and famous--does that mean they shouldn't bother running their own business?

Your tips are great and the decision to take a break is so important!

People need to get out and breathe once in a while to refresh the creative juices.

If only more people could adopt a work ethic that realized that quality not quantity is what counts, then I think we'd have much happier, less burned out people running around.

and think about it... even if you closed up shop and went to culinary school, you'd probably work yourself to death there and hit yet another plateau and we'd be reading a whole new entry on that.

Blog rants are good. It's a public conversation that needs to be had. Thanks for sharing your honest perspective.

go grace!
don't listen to that dillusional psycho stalker
commenting under different names.
maybe you should keep records + call the police.
you are so positive + generous + honest.
i'm sorry you have to endure whackos like this.
p.s. i'm not putting my real identity on this because i don't want that freako stalker having a link to my blog + imagining i'm blacklisting him.
so sad.

Karyn, the relevancy of Grace as a business-person has been discussed on previous posts and is not germane to the conversation at hand. Also, your point that "none of you are asking about business" is correct - no one in this comment section has asked a business question at all.

However, consider this: you say you run a "small design consultancy" in AZ - well, Grace runs one in NYC. Her clients now include Conde Nast and House & Garden magazine. Maybe you've heard of them? Sounds like she must know something to get that far.

You offer vague criticisms, but provide no “real business” insight yourself – so what value do you add to this conversation? Why hasn’t anyone asked you to write for BizBox?

The most successful business people spend more time listening to other successful people than they do laughing at them.

What is the NYT story people keep referring to? What did NYT called Grace out on?
I love D*S.. can't imagine how Grace can bully anyone, but if there is a story in NYT, I want to read it. And I guess, I'm curious to know what the story is...

Does being "blacklisted" mean not being featured on d*s? If so, last I heard, that was Grace's blog. She can decide what to feature and what not to. Choosing to feature certain designers and not others is a far cry from blacklisting. If Target doesn't give a designer their own line, is that designer blacklisted? What if Moss decides not to carry a certain product?

If you want to be featured on a blog and are having a hard time finding one that will, you can always start your own.

I for one love checking out d*s almost everyday. And like another commenter, have only ever seen positive comments by Grace on her own blog as well as others (like AT etc.).

Hey, "gimme a break", if Grace is so awesome at her "consultancy" with Conde Nast (ooh la la), how come all we hear about here on the BIZbox is her time sitting on a couch blogging and checking emails, or her trip to buy envelopes at Staples?

Oh, it's so hard to sit at home for 12 hours and read emails and post on a blog about stuff people send! I'm in a rut!

Sounds like that job IS a rut. Funny that Grace can't think of anything new to talk about, when she apparnetly does all these other things like writing for publications and being a "consultant.

We haven't heard one single thing about any of these actual businesses she does have, so if she says she's out of ideas, that means that either they must just be a sham.

Amateur hour. But go on, keep defending her, and go ahead and call me jealous, because I so, SO wish that I could sit around all day and do nothing.

People wrote to me explaining that Grace Bonney, aka design*sponge is a bit more than meets the eye. In a New York Times article (Hot off the Web: Gossip and Guidance, January 27, 2005) she acknowledged to them that she works for a PR firm and sometimes writes on her blog about client products without disclosing she's paid to promote them.

Now that I know it's really a catalog, I still enjoy it, but like a lot of things in modern times, I no longer really trust it.

Why don't more people understand that the freedom to trust is one of our most important freedoms?

Hi Grace

I really like this post (until i made the mistake reading all the negativity, but anyway). I too, feel similarily with you in regards to my businesses. I have too many aspects of my life that I am pursuing and 2 very different career paths. Sometimes I feel that do I need to do all these things at once? Is life really this short that I can't take 1 thing at a time? I have also thought about being burnt out. Sure I do each things well with great reviews from customers, but I feel that I can do better if I just concentrate on one thing. But at the same time, I also feel "too greedy" to just do one.

I want to thank you for sharing how you feel so I know I am not alone. I think I am long overdue a vacation :)

Cheers,

Cindy@staged4more

............it is advice from a blogger. If blogging is such a wonderful hobby, how can we take her seriously as a business owner? I love blogs and getting inspiration from them but as a business owner myself, I know it is ridiculous to compare the business of blogging to any other legitimate business. BizBox, can you please ask a contributor that knows what they are talking about? Give us readers that respect. I enjoy occasionally reading d*s, there's lots of cute stuff on it, but so was her advice. Real business owners need real advice, not blogger advice, we aren't all bloggers or crafters.

Posted by Lacey

-------------------------

I sooooo agree with you!!!

And Farcel, you are speaking the truth, I almost fell off of the chair laughing! I was thinking the same exact thing, LMAO!!!!!!

If people don't already know that designsponge is a paid service for *some* designers, they're just not thinking...

Grace is a PR person who gets paid to write about most of the designers she writes about. If that doesn't bother you (which it shouldn't), then go on reading the cute little blog.

If it bothers you, then stop reading it. Just be mature enough to realize that Grace needs to pay bills and "real" blogging alone won't do it. She needs to get paid and that's exactly what she is doing with designsponge. Want to get featured? Advertise on her site... offer her money. You'll get on the site.

Get over it.

Who are you george ,one of her hobby crafters being featured? Who says people are still reading her monotonous ( I'm a big fan of fabric, cutesy stationery and myself ) blog. People are just probably sick of hearing about it, it's nothing special. Last time I checked individuals were allowed to state their opinion. Everyone doesn' have to be a "big fan" of grace and here annoying promotional diary.

I'm pretty much staying out of the lets bash Grace fest here but I will respond to the mention of the NY Times Article. I addressed this article (from 2 years ago) when it was written. There was a mistake in the fact checking process which I explained on my site.

I have never taken money for a post and never will. I included my old employer's contact information and will include it here again if anyone would like to verify it with her. I did in fact work for a PR company at the time of the article (but haven't for over a year now) but my role at the company was that of an assisant- I was not permitted to post about our clients on the site. I did post their products occasionally but always identified that within the post. If anyone would like further explanation or details please feel free to email me at "designsponge@gmail.com"

You can contact my former employer at:

http://theloukincompany.com/sys-tmpl/door/

If anyone claims to have proof otherwise I'd love to see it.

Grace

Hi, Grace again-

Just wanted to add an update for anyone still reading this post.

Slate.com contacted me and it looks like the IP address from the person posting as "One of the Many" is the same IP address for as many as 4 different posts on this site under different names. I'm guessing you can figure out which ones. It leads us to believe that "One of the Many" was really one of one. We have the repeat IP addresses on file, so we're just keeping an eye out now. Just wanted to update.

Grace :)

A valid e-mail address must accompany any comment posted on BizBox. It appears that folks are posting under different names from the same IP address. To prevent misleading aliases, we must now require a valid e-mail address for all posters.

Thanks,
Jennifer

Blacklisted from design*sponge? Oh, the horror!!

If your career depends on being listed in design*sponge, you should find another career.

Keep your chin up, Grace. It's still the Wild West out here in cyberspace.

Hi grace

I have gone through this site it was very good i got more information on small business and i have seen similar site it is also a very good in giving the information on smallbusiness

www. businessbooming.com

Yes,i read the article.New ideas aren't coming as quickly. when they do ,they just don't feel right.it is very interesting article for small business.i do have an interesting article regarding small business small business blog

Thank you, for sharing this story in this wonderful format.
businessbrainstorming