My husband Will and I enjoy a good session of ludicrous dreaming, discussing plans and ideas that seem unlikely to happen but are fun to discuss all the same. Once upon a time, we had such a conversation about this blog.
The idea was born right around New Year 2011; we were talking about the highs and lows of the year gone by and our hopes and dreams for the year to come. He suggested I start a blog; I told him that was silly because I didn’t read blogs at the time.
But I warmed up to the idea … and soon was flooded with ideas and plans. (That is my VERY FIRST brainstorming notebook, pictured above.) Once I got going, it happened fast: ten years ago today I launched Modern Mrs Darcy.
This isn’t the only big milestone we’ve been marking around here lately. A few weeks ago my podcast quietly turned five. These two ventures have a lot in common, but I felt—and feel—very different about starting them.
Prepare yourself for something that sounds ridiculous (to 2021 ears): back then, when I began, the common wisdom was the time to start a blog had passed. In 2011, you were late. The window was closed, the ship had sailed; anyone who was going to make a go of this blogging thing should have started years prior.
In contrast, I started the podcast in the second week of 2016—relatively early, as far as podcasting for individuals like me goes. I felt green, yes, but I didn’t feel late.
I felt very differently about starting these two things, although I’m not sure how much my feelings really mattered here. I was never in danger of being late, not the way they meant it then.
Readers still regularly ask me questions about starting their own ventures, about blogging and podcasting and book writing and the like. Every week in my inbox, they ask: is now a good (or good enough) time to begin? Have I missed my chance? Am I late?
I always tell them—and I hope I’m right—you are not late. It’s never too late to send something true or good or useful into the world. I believe that good work will out; there’s always an audience for the good stuff. Perhaps that’s a Pollyanna way of looking at the world, but regular readers know I’m a glass-half-full kind of girl.
Not only do I believe it: here on Modern Mrs Darcy and What Should I Read Next, I try to make it happen. Of course I’d love new readers to find Modern Mrs Darcy and What Should I Read Next, but it goes deeper than that: one of the key things I try to do here is connect the right readers with the right works, whether that’s a blog post or a book or a rom com or anything at all that you would be happy to find. I believe good work will out, but only with a bunch of helping hands, and it’s my honor to be one of them.
For that same reason, I’m also eternally grateful to those of you who spread the word about my work, who help my podcast and blog and books find their audience. Thank you.
Thanks for joining me on this journey, whether you were here on day 2 or day 200 or day 3653 (and yes, I just pulled out my calculator to do that math). I hope you’ve found some good stuff along the way.
A few highlights from the past 10 years
- Total posts as of today: 2,233 (This number doesn’t include deleted posts, though I probably haven’t deleted as many as I should have)
- Reader comments: 104,214
- Total pageviews: over 72 million (um, wow)
- 9 Summer Reading Guides (which means this year’s will be #10, woohoo!)
- 3 published books
- 2 member communities with thousands of members: The Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club and our What Should I Read Next patreon community
- 48 author discussions hosted in this space
- 339 book lists (which is probably more, but we categorize them differently now than we did in 2011)
If you’ve never commented before I would love to hear from you today. I’m sure you’ve heard it before “don’t read the comments” but the comments here on Modern Mrs Darcy are lovely and I would love to hear from you, especially if you haven’t commented before.
Later this month I’ll be sharing some of the things I’ve learned in ten years of blogging—if there’s anything you’d especially like to know, would you tell me in the comments below?
Today and every day, thank you for reading!
Anne
P.S. I found this look back at what I learned in just four years of blogging to be fascinating. For a more timely reflection, last year I wrote about how your blog is your test kitchen, and other things I’ve learned in 9 years of blogging.
214 comments
Congrats to you and your team, Anne! You’ve influenced so many people to have overflowing bookshelves and satisfied reading lives!
Happy ten years, Anne! Thank you for all the work y’all put into the blog. I appreciate it.
I started a book review blog this year. If mine is half as engaging and helpful as yours, I will be pleased.
I’m starting one right now! (Well, not like RIGHT NOW, right now, but I’ve been gradually getting it up and running over the last few weeks.) I wish you luck – and I agree – if mine is 10% as successful as MMD, I will be over the moon!!
I’ve found so many wonderful books through you and your lists. Thank you for blogging. Please don’t stop.
Congratulations to you and your team!!
Congratulations!!! Thank you for both the blog & the podcast. I love them both!
Congratulations! I think I only really discovered you within the past two years, but wish it would have been ten years ago! You are a kindred spirit and have helped my reading life so much! Cheers to you!
Congratulations to you on your decade of blogging! I read your posts, but don’t comment often. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve directed other reading friends to your blog. I’ve found several books from your posts as well, so thank you for that. I’m glad you started, and I hope you have many more years ahead of you! Thank you.
Congratulations! This is my first time posting but I’m a regular when it comes to reading the blog and listening to the podcast. I would also like to thank you for the comments section. It is a great resource for books and place to find validation in certain opinions about books. Your blog has changed my reading life for the better. I wouldn’t acknowledge reading as my hobby before this blog and didn’t know there were as many people like me (book addicts) as there thankfully are. Be well and thank you again.
Yay! Congrats, Anne … and thank you for all you do to bring us bookish aficionados together! There’s always a wonderful takeaway when I visit here.
Bless you!
Anne, what a milestone! Congratulations!! Your blog is such an inspiration and a constant reminder that book people are the best people. I hope you enjoy many more successful blogging years!
I would love to know when/how you decided it was time to bring on a team as opposed to working on the blog all by yourself. Or did you always have a team?
Came here to ask the same thing, Afoma! 🙂
I too am interested in Anne’s staff. I never realized that jobs like those even existed.
My (reading) life is so much better because of you. I’m grateful every single day.
Congratulations, Anne! I can’t exactly remember when I discovered your blog, but I have been a devoted fan ever since. I hope to meet you someday post-COVID since I live in Danville, not too far from you. I have always been an avid reader, but your blog has pushed me to read more and expand my genre horizons. I even went so far as to make a list of 100 years worth of published books after hearing someone on a podcast do it. I am almost through my list, even though I have strayed a bit in the last year due to the need for a bit of lighter fare. Thank you for all you do!
Congratulations, Anne! You, and now I will also include the fantastic team you have assembled, have greatly enriched my life with this work. I look forward to many more years of reading and learning with you!
You’ve definitely earned all the congratulations Anne and Will!!! Hard work and a genuine passion for what you do has been clear from the beginning and others can’t help but join in. I’m happy to be someone who found you back during the first Book Club signups, and I’ve been a happy clubber ever since :*) My reading life had definitely hit a slump, but not since I opened that first set of books from MMD! Thanks for all the great reads and the awesome community you have created for passionate readers everywhere!
Congratulations! Your blog has brought so much happiness over the years.
Congratulations Anne!
Congratulations! How has your team grown over the years, and how do you hope it may grow in the future?
Congratulations! What an accomplishment to have touched so many people’s lives in only a decade.
Congrats and cheers for 10 happy years! 🙂
Yours was the very first book blog I came across and I’ve been reading it consistently since I came across it in 2012! Your lists always influence what’s on my TBR list and I’m so grateful for your insights as well as commenters on your posts. Like you said, the comments are always so good and encouraging here! Thank you for sharing your passion for reading with us! As you always say, how good it is to be with people who are reading!
Happy Anniversary!
My heartfelt thanks to you, Anne, to your family and to your team for all you do (seen and unseen) to produce this blog and podcast.
‘’How good it is…”!
Congratulations Anne! Your podcast is the one I look forward to listening to the most. As I’m a fairly recent listener, I’m in the process of going back to old episodes. I also really enjoy your blog and look forward to your weekly emails. So much great information and escapism too!
Congratulations and thank you for all your words over the years! This place is a safe haven for an introverted bookworm such as myself. Blessings & many more years of fun here on the blog!
Wow, congratulations! I always enjoy your content. Thank you, and keep it up!
Congratulations to you, Anne! I believe it’s never “too late” to try something new and am so grateful you decided to pursue this blog and your podcast. I recommend the Modern Mrs Darcy to anyone interested in finding out how to improve their reading life ❤️
This is amazing! Congrats on this accomplishment! I just became an annual member of the MMD book club and just love the community. So thank you for creating such a wonderful bookish community and I’m so glad I found it!
Congratulations and thank you for all you do. Reading your blog has greatly influenced my reading life for the better!
Congratulations! This “latecomer” has benefitted in so many ways- most especially, in book recommendations and my reading life in general. Many blessings!
Congratulations to you and your team! So thankful for all the book recommendations. Love your work 😊
I honestly don’t remember how I found you and signed up for your posts but I am sure glad I did. I live up in White Rock, BC, Canada. I have enjoyed everything you have written about and will continue to do so. And a huge thank you for staying the course during this Pandemic. It cannot have been easy but we are so glad you are still there for us.
Take care and cheers to your next milestone.
Congratulations on 10 years! What an amazing milestone! I started reading MMD sometime in 2015 or 2016. Since then, your blog has completely changed my reading life – from suggestions on tracking/journaling to actual book recommendations. I’ve read more in the last 5+ years than I have my whole adult life. Your blog is such a blessing. Thank you, and best wishes on your continued verbosity and success!
I’m a fairly new follower of your blog, about a year or so. Now my TBR is bigger than ever, having found so many new titles, authors, genres than I would have ever been exposed to. Keep up the awesome work, and thanks!
This is such a treat to read because it is my Birthday today, too! It has been a weird year, and I am new to the blog and podcast in the last year, but both have helped get me through these long-quarantined days. Thank you for the inspiration, the recommendations, and the sense of community that comes just from reading and listening. Congratulations on a decade of adventure and learning! What more can be asked for? Happy Birthday Modern Mrs. Darcy!
Congrats to you and huge thanks for all you do!
Congratulations:)!. I love the blog, love the pod cast and hope there’s another ten years!
Happy anniversary! I am so glad you continue to come back to this space because you are just delightful! I am a Patreon member and read as many books from the SRG as I can! You have enriched my reading life so much! Best of all, you introduced me to Louise Penny! I adore her series and will be so sad when it ends!!
Congrats, Anne! How do you determine what blog posts to delete?
Congratulations!
I can’t remember exactly how I found your little corner of the internet but I am so very thankful that I did.
I believe that I have been following you for 8 years now and I have learned so much about myself as a reader and met so many amazing people! I am quiet in the book club but I have been there since day one and it is the best part of the web, IMO. Thank you for all of your hard work and creativity! *hugs*
Happy Anniversary! I found your blog through another blogger’s link to the Summer Reading Guide a few years ago. Now I’m a book club member and very grateful for this “happy corner of the Internet.”
Congrats on your ten year anniversary! A phenomenal accomplishment. Consider yourself a successful blogger, author, podcaster and entrepreneur. It takes guts and gumption to even take that first step. I started a business for grant writing in 2009 and sold it in 2017. I was scared and excited the entire 10 years.
Hats off to you and all who support you!
Happy Birthday and many more! I love your blog and podcast and have told many people to check you out. I appreciate all of the hard work you and your team invest in bringing us great content.
Congrats on 10 years! All my best book experiences have come from you (including Inspector Gamache). Thank you for your hard work!!
This is fantastic, congratulations! I rarely read blogs anymore, but yours is one that I truly enjoy and it resonates with me so much, and I barely have time to read!! Thanks for all of the lists and ideas, and for the warm feelings I get whenever I read your posts!
Congratulations on 10 years! I adore both your blog and your podcast, but I really adore your daily Ebook deals—thanks to you, my Kindle is loaded with (way too many) good reads to look forward to every day. This reader in Arizona appreciates you!
Well done Anne! I followed you over from Mark’s Daily Apple thru StitchFix, Blue Apron and the Whole30! You are an influencer.
My reading life was pretty dormant until I found your blog and podcast in 2016. My list of books to read EXPLODED and I figured out changes to make in my daily routine to accommodate my desire to read all the books. Those habits have remained to this day and reading is once again such a joy in my life. Thanks for all you do! And thanks for introducing me to Louise Penny!
Congrats on ten years!
Congratulations! Your blog has been a lifeline since the pandemic started. Before that, it was an enjoyable diversion. I am so grateful for both. Thank you!
What has surprised you the most about having a blog?
What are three things you wish you had known, before you started your blog?
Are there any innovations or revolutions in blogging on the horizon? Or do you see it as a relatively mature endeavour now, with mostly incremental changes being the norm?
I loved those early years blog posts, like the “waiting room” or the early “what is saving my life right now”. They were personal, reflective, and gave me deep thought. They were insightful and deep.
Lately in a season of life that allows more reading, I read and love, just as much, the more recent blog posts about book recommendations and use this as a literary community and Patreon membership in addition to those aforementioned posts.
Both kinds of posts resonate with me and I will read anything you write. Thank you, Anne.
Congratulations to you and your team on the anniversary of this blog! Your posts have led me to some wonderful reads and the readings challenges have expanded my interests. Keep blogging!
My reading life has been greatly enhanced by your many recommendations! Keep ’em coming, and thanks for all the work you put into this!
Anne,
This is my first comment although I been listening and reading to your podcast and blog for some time.
Congratulations to you and your fine team at reaching a decade. Tears came to my eyes as many times I’ve said to myself, how DOES she do it”?
Thank you for your serendipitous blog which includes so many topics. Ones that send me exploring to learn more.
I’ve yet to find that kindred spirit reader but I live vicariously through your readers.
Well done. Many thanks for all that you share.
Happy 10 Years Anne and the MMD Team! If only we could add another number to the list above to quantify how many people you have helped to elevate their reading lives! I’m so lucky to have discovered your blog, podcast and book club. I’m an enthusiastic participant in all of them and can’t thank you enough for what you have done for my personal reading life. Here’s to Happy Reading for (at the very least) another 10 years more!
What an accomplishment! When I say you’re blog changed by reading life, I truly meant it. In 2016 (I think) I did your two reading challenges. I believe it they were called Reading for Fun and Reading for Growth. Some of my picks were “The Glass Castle,” “We Should All Be Feminists,” and “1984.” The Reading for Growth challenge opened my eyes and expanded my reading into the genres and topics I had never been interested in. I am so grateful for your work and dedication to the literature community.
Anne,
I’ve been a reader of your blog since the first logo/design. But that’s not why I’m commenting.
I’m commenting to say that your blog is the ONLY blog that I have certain posts in open tabs on my phone permanently so that I can always reference the AMAZING comments section for that particular post!!
Seriously, I have more than a dozen tabs on my phone dedicated to a few select posts of yours so that the books recommended in the comments are always available to me when I’m looking for my next read.
Your commenters are the BEST, hands-down! Thank you, everyone, for the books you take the time to mention in a comment.💙
Congratulations, Anne! Well-deserved 🙂 Every beginning of a new year, I look forward to the printables from your website. I remember back in January 2018, sitting at the desk at a job I disliked, MMD was like a little happy lightbulb that brought me immense joy. I think the hard part about starting to blog now in 2021 is the social media and networking aspect of it; writing and blogging can seem easier than maintaining an active platform of readers/community on IG, FB, Twitter and the likes… It can be so easy to get caught up in the whole SEO, traffic drive, and engagement aspect of things and lose sight on the actual blogging part
Congratulations!! I’m so grateful that you are still blogging. Thank you for putting such goodness into this world.
Happy Anniversary, Anne and Company! The reading world is a better place because you followed your call to create Modern Mrs. Darcy. Thanks for all the work you’ve done and inspiration you have offered over these ten years!!
Happy blogoversary! I have only been reading you for a few years, but I so enjoy the great book-related conversation! Thank you, and here’s to many more!
What an amazing milestone! So many lives you’ve touched and changed, Anne, including mine. I’ve been an avid reader my whole life but never regularly wrote down what I read until I discovered your printable reading journal in 2017. This will mark 5 years of reading journaling for me, and I love it! I very seldom comment, but I enjoy reading the comments. This is one of those rare places on social media where the comments are positive and encouraging. I especially LOVE the comments on the 15th of each month for “What I’ve Been Reading Lately.” Congrats, Anne, and thanks for everything!
Congratulations Anne! You have made such a difference in my reading life and truly love seeing an email from MMD, listening to podcasts, reading your books (we are kindred souls) and most recently joining your book club. I truly connect with people who read, so thank you for friendships I’ve made over some of your book recommendations!
Bravo, Anne! This is one of the only blogs/newsletters/podcasts that I listen to regularly. Your recommendations and desire to help your audience are a bright spot in the virtual world.
Happy anniversary! Wow! I’ve been a loyal reader since the very beginning and I love going on this journey with you.
Congratulations and great job. I just found you in Sept of 2020. Pulled up your podcasts from 2016 and forward. I have always loved to read and started my books I have read list in 1987. I have kept it up ever since. Since Sept. of listening to you, I have read quite a few books that I never would have heard of . Some I enjoyed and some not so much and some I didn’t finish. Keep up the good work. Oh, I am a 73 yr. old woman and just found out I even enjoy picking up a YA book every so often.
Congratulations! You are an inspiration for women to not fear taking a step into the unknown. Look at what at what one simple blog post has reaped in ten years!
Congratulations! Love the content, keep up the great work!
I found MMD 5 or 6 years ago when I was at my local library looking for something to read. Nothing on display or the New Releases shelves struck my fancy, so I Googled “what to read” or something like that, and your site came up. You had a list of mystery novels that included a glowing recommendation for Louise Penny’s Three Pines series. I checked out the first book and met one of my all-time favorite characters for the first time. Thank you for deciding “better late than never” and sharing your love of reading with us for the past 10 years!
Congratulations on 10 years of blogging! I will always be thankful that a random Pinterest post led me to you years ago. I look forward to your posts each week and the Summer Read Guide launch is a very exciting day at my house every Spring when it comes out.
Happy Anniversary!! Thanks for all you do! Your material is always so genuine, thoughtful and meaningful. No easy task to accomplish, yet you do it so well. Kudos! Please know how much you, your work & your team are greatly appreciated, especially during these difficult times of Covid where reading has become such a saving grace to many of us!
Congratulations! I really cannot remember how I found your blog or podcast. What I can tell you is that your podcast began to be my companion on my long covid walks (starting in late March 2020). I decided that you really had helped me through the pandemic and decided to “repay” you the only way I knew how – I joined your bookclub. Your bookclub has also been a wonderful salve for me during this time. Reading has always been a pleasure for me but now with the right book(s) in hand it is even more so! Congratulations again. I can’t wait to see what the next 10 years will bring.
Congratulations! I’m not going to say much that others have not said – Love the blog and podcast and you! I am the ultimate WSIRN podcast pusher. I tell everyone – have you listened to this? You have to!
Thanks for making my TBR explode regularly and for making me laugh and think and READ MORE!
Congratulations, Anne, to you and your Modern Mrs. Darcy Team!!!! You put so much good out into the world, and you’ve enriched my life (and not just my reaading life) in so many wonderful ways. Thank you for all you do!
Congratulations, Anne. I found MMD about a year and a half ago and it has meant so much to have access to book-minded people. A little oasis in the desert of non-readers that constitute my friend list. You have put together a fantastic team. Love the book school episodes. Chelsey and Ginger are great additions to the team. Can’t thank you enough for what you do! Here’s to another ten!
Revolutionized is not too strong a word for what your blog did to my reading life! According to an article you referenced recently, I “was” a reader, but now I’m a Book Person, and I’m not sorry!! I love all things books, and so what, if I take pictures of them?? I didn’t read blogs. or listen to podcasts in 2018, but somehow I connected with you on Instagram, and I didn’t understand the whole #bookstagram world, but I loved the Book Lists!! Now I’m more fully connected, and my favorite part is your monthly reviews of books, along with your teases of what you’re currently reading. I used to read what came to hand or was recommended by friends and family, but this blog has opened up sooooo many new authors and wonderful books and it’s just FUN. My shelves are groaning with unread books, but that’s OK!! It’s a new obsession to look for and find (used) the books I’ve heard about!! Thank you so much for what you do, we are all appreciative.
Congrats to you, your family and team! Without you, my reading life would not be the same. So grateful for you!
Happy ten year anniversary, Anne. Modern Mrs Darcy is my number one blog – I find inspiration for my reading life, food for thought, and a bright spot in my day. This blog and your podcast give me something uplifting and comforting. Thank you.
Happy 10 year anniversary! I enjoy the many book lists you provide!
Congratulations!! I’m so happy I found you! I wish you much success and another 10 years (if you want it)!! 💗🙂
Hi Anne! I have never commented before – Happy 10 Years! I discovered you last year during an epic Libby eBook binge at the beginning of the pandemic. Since then, I have joined Patreon & the Book Club along with my sister, and listen to the podcast on walks and longer drives. Your recommendations have really taken my reading to the next level and I am forever grateful for the escapes during times like these! Appreciate all that you and your team do!
Congratulations! I’ve never commented. I had bookmarked one of your posts years back about what books to read based on your MBTI. I referenced that post sometime during 2020 and perused your blog, deciding to become a subscriber. I have not heard your podcast, yet. I don’t really care for podcasts, generally. It requires so much attention to listen. Reading is easier because I can put down what I’m reading when I need to and pick it bacK up when I’m ready. In 2020, I read Reading People. It spurred me on to research enneagram stuff. I am currently reading Don’t Overthink It. Great books, both of them. I like your writing style and how it inspires me to dig a little deeper. Congratulations on 10 years!
Jennifer
Congrats…my favorite podcast!
Hi, Anne! Since you asked, here 🙂 I’m one of those people who may have wondered ‘Is it too late?’ when I started blogging in Nov. 2018. But I decided I’d had enough of second-guessing myself over the years, and so I just pressed Play. And I’m so glad I did. I’ve become not only a better writer + a better reader, but the blogging world has kept me accountable to, as my 16-yr-old daughter likes to say, ‘Living my best life here…’ Blogland is a place I never imagined fitting in, because of all the things I’m ‘not.’ (Technological being one of them!) But guess what? I’ve set up house in a little corner of my own–and I’m happy to be here! Huge congrats to YOU on your milestone! I’m thrilled to be a member of the community you’ve built–and thanks for the invitation.
Congratulations Anne! Your blog is by far the one I’ve followed the longest, as it constantly leads me down untold numbers of rabbit holes (that’s a good thing). My favorite posts, however, are the book lists–combining two of my favorite things, books and lists. Please keep them coming!
I have most likely commented before but I wanted to thank you for this space on the internet. I have always felt that I was different for my love of reading. It is so nice to know that I am among friends here. My to be read pile is enormous thanks to you! Here’s to another 10 years! Cheers!
Well done! I don’t remember when I first found your blog, but I do remember when you started the podcast. Both have been so helpful to me in my reading life, and just for life in general. Wishing you and your team continued success and blessings.
Congratulations! I am so happy I found your blog and podcast a few years ago. Yours is the only blog I regularly check. I enjoy it so much!
Anne,just joined the MMD bookclub this weekend! What a great community! Long time listener to WSIRN love love all the reccomendations and books lists. TBR list keeps growing. Excellent problem to have when you love to read! Keep up the good work!!
Congratulations! I look forward to your posts, podcasts, and reading guides. Such a bright spot in my day (and life). Thank you!
I have found many good books thanks to you, and I’ve enjoyed many posts about fashion and food and plants. Congratulations, Anne!
Thanks for bringing me new reading adventures and new concepts, especially the Highly Sensitive Person.
Congratulations! I read your blog just about daily and my TBR list has grown exponentially as a result! Thanks so much for great content concerning both reading and other topics. I particularly enjoy “What’s saving my life right now.”
Anne, I’ve never been a blog follower, with the exception of a friend’s chronicle of their year long world wide travel experience, until yours. Your blog was recommended to me by my best friend, a high school English teacher, when we were discussing our recent reads. I am so glad she recommended it, as I love it, and my TBR list is now bursting. This was only back in July and I’m only sorry I missed the first 9.5 years of your endeavor. It feels so nice to be part of a reading community, thank you for being the conduit. Best wishes for many more years to come!
I discovered your podcast last spring in the early shut-in days of the pandemic. Your warm and friendly voice, your infectious laugh, and your wonderful book discussions are in my list of what’s saving me these days. Congratulations on reaching this milestone in your blogging life. And THANK YOU for sharing your book list archives! I emailed that page to myself for easy future reference, and plan to share it with my book club members. 😊❤️
After years of “not reading” or barely finishing a book a year, you helped me rediscover the joy of turning the page again. I’ve discovered so many wonderful titles with you and have set up book goals for the year. Once again my reading life is bringing me much pleasure especially now(in the midst of the covid doom and gloom) so many, many thanks.
Anne,
I don’t think I’ve ever commented before. But thank you for this blog and podcast! I first discovered Modern Mrs Darcy in high school and I’m now married with a baby. Those site screenshots took me way back I remember those designs. I remember how much I loved the 2016 redesign. And when you released the podcast- I have listened to every episode! I have found so many books because of this site! Thanks for creating the awesome content. Congratulations on ten years! I look forward to reading and listening for years to come!
Congratulations Anne! I am almost 2 years into my journey as a recipe blogger, and I can tell you firsthand that I understand just how much work it takes to build something like this. Thank you for showing up day after day, and sharing your passion with us. I can’t tell you how many great books I have found thanks to you and how many people I have recommended your podcast and reading guides to. So thank you!!
I love this post! I couldn’t agree more: we’re born to create, and I love what you’ve created here. Thank you for sharing the early looks – I love to see the evolution and know that each phase happened right on time. Congratulations on a decade!
Congratulations Anne and team! I love, love, love reading all the recommendations (books and more) and look forward to the summer reading guide every year. Truly this is my favorite blog. Cheers to you!
I’m so excited for you! Congratulations! And, thank you, for my reading life because it would not be without you.
Congratulations!!! Your blog and the MMD Book Club have given me so much joy since discovering it about a year ago. Thank you so much for what you do. Here’s to many more years to come. I’ll be following right along. 😊
Congratulations to you and your team! I love your blog, love your podcast…all of it! I love all the topics on the blog – bookish topics but also just things that are making your life easier or what you’re loving lately. I feel like we have more in common than just a love for books and reading so it’s interesting to hear these things too. I cannot believe your podcast has been around that long. I think I’ve pretty much listened since the beginning and look forward to it each week, even when the guest has completely different taste in books than I do. I don’t know how I found you, maybe Tsh Oxenreider? but I’m so glad I did. I have become a more widely read and prolific reader because of you and have gone back to the way I used to read in my childhood and early teens before I became “too busy” to read. Thank you so much for all you do!!!
Congratulations on 10 years of blogging. I actually found your blog after listening to your podcast. I am an avid reader who never really knew were to turn for my next read. I was in a rut finding myself rereading the same books and authors over and over. Wow, what a difference you have made in my reading life. I’m not scared to try new genres or authors anymore. I’ve also learned it ok to quit a book that’s not working for you. My TBR list is quite long and being added to weekly. Keep up the great work!
I thought I found this blog/podcast/community late two years ago. I love this space you have created. I used to struggle on what to read next, now I have the overwhelming feeling that I will never finish all the books on my TBR. But thanks to classes I now know what to weed out! While my ultimate dream is to read for a living, as look down the barrel of 40 yo, I don’t think that’s going to happen. I can just live vicariously through you!
Just chuckling at this – as your dream is also mine. I went back to school at age 38 to get my library science degree and now I do read books for a living. SO worth the time it took to get the degree & now I’m a librarian!
Congratulations! I’m glad that this venture has been successful for you. I enjoy reading your posts.
I’m one of those that refrains from commenting on blogs, but I do love this space and the many wonderful books I have added to my “Must Read” list. Interestingly, I am asked by a few friends to recommend books and they often ask how I hear about them and I always respond, “Why, Modern Mrs. Darcy, of course!”
Hi Anne, I’ve been with you almost from the beginning, back when your blog covered a whole lot more than books. I still remembering reading your e-book for working moms. I always enjoy your content and find your drive and persistence so inspiring. Thanks for continuing to publish!
Congratulations, Anne! You have brought so much happiness to the world.😊Thank you!
Hi! You asked for comments, so here’s mine – I just discovered you/your podcast/your blog/your books – and I feel like I have a new friend! I am an elementary school librarian who always wanted to read books for a living. Now I am! I am loving everything I hear from you. Thank you and I can’t wait to dig in further!
Big congrats and many thanks for all the reading, reviewing, writing, more reading and oh the talking! I love listening to your talking almost as much as I love reading. Thank you, Anne, for bringing us more books the joy of talking books along the way!!!
So many congratulations to you Anne! I’ve been with you for many of these 10 years and have learned and enjoyed a lot. Looking forward to many more years.
I love reading your blog and listening to your podcast – grateful for you putting such good work out into the world and glad you didn’t let being “too late” hold you back! 🙂 Happy birthday, Blog!
I recently complained about the direction the ad company had taken your blog (overwhelming number of ads and pop-ups) and it’s so much better. That made me feel really good, as does your content.
I’m not entirely sure if I have commented before so I will now anyway! Congratulations on 10 years! I’ve been following for only a little over two years but have gained soooo much from those two years. I think it’s really funny to say that it’s “too late” to start a podcast or blog. Especially when I think about how successful current 23 year old bloggers were only 13 ten years ago and couldn’t have started back then. And many of the top shows on Apple podcasts only started in the last couple of years!
Congrats on 10 years. I don’t comment much, but my TBR list is heavily influenced by you! It’s currently sitting at 25, but I can’t ever seem to get it below 20. 🙂
Awesome milestone! Thanks for enriching my life with your words.
Congratulations, dear Anne, Ginger, Brenda and all the team! I love the book recommendations from MMD and WSIRN, even though this means I have been really neglecting German books in the last couple of years due to now mostly reading English literature. Thank you for putting beautiful books into my hands, for educating with all the classes and for broadening my knowledge and horizon in so many ways! I love the author chats, too, and I wish I had the time to participate more in the MMD discussion. You have really been enriching my (reading) life, Anne! Thank you! 🙂
Congrats. You have given me so many reading suggestions through your reading guides, podcasts, and blog. Here’s to many more years.
Congratulations, Anne! Happy 10 years to you and the MMD team. You’re one of my favorite spots on the internet.
Congratulations! I have never followed any blogs but yours. Reading your posts bring the same comforting feeling as walking into a library and bookstore. Thank you for being a bright spot in so many people’s days!
What an accomplishment! I actually found Modern Mrs. Darcy through What Should I Read Next, and I love what they’ve both added to my life. Congratulations!
Dear Anne — Congratulations on hitting such a momentous milestone! I love your advice, “It’s never too late to send something true or good or useful into the world. I believe that good work will out; there’s always an audience for the good stuff.” SO TRUE!! As a late-life career changer, I know the fear of getting started and the thrill of seeing the venture take off! I’m new to the MMD Book Club, and I am so grateful for the bookish community I have found here. I thank you (and your wonderful team) for creating this space and content for us all to enjoy and savor!
Congratulations! Ten years is quite an accomplishment! I enjoy reading all your columns, following the Friday links, and have read many books I would not otherwise have encountered and enjoyed, so thank you for ALL that!
Congratulations! I’ve never commented before, but you’ve been a regular morning stop for me for years, and I love the posts, the kindle deals, the book recs and the lovely commenters. Thank you for making such a joyful online space!
congrats on the great milestone! I only discovered you and your blog this past weekend – thanks to Sherri McConnell at “A Quilting Life”. So happy to have found your blog.
I’m not sure if I’ve ever commented, but I adore your blog and podcast, Anne. Thank you so much for taking a chance on both! You bring much joy to my life and I appreciate you, your musings, insights, advice, book recommendations, and thoughts on life in general. I’ve loved all of your books as well! I hope to one day be a podcast guest or even (dare I hope it?!) meet you at an event in a future that somehow resembles the pre-COVID past.
Congratulations on your milestone and may you have many happy returns of the day!
Congratulations Anne and thank you! I found your podcast and blog back in 2017 when I was pregnant with my first and have been faithfully following ever since. My reading life has definitely improved with the addition of WSIRN and this blog. In fact, my Goodreads account has a shelf dedicated to WSIRN recommendations! Thank you for sharing and to all the wonderful guests you’ve had over the years! All the best!
I don’t think I have every commented and just wanted to say congratulations! I have followed you from the beginning and am grateful for the value you add to my life. Cheering you on, always!
Thank you for putting this delightful blog into the world. I have found lovely tips for living a better life, found great gifts for my loved ones and I have a much richer and fulfilling reading life thanks to you and your team. Congratulations and thank you.
I’ve just started following your blog and have already changed my reading habits for the better. Your recommendations by category really help me get out of my reading rut ( mostly non-fiction). I’m looking forward to exploring the rest of your site, including listening to some podcasts.
Hi from Germany/ Poland! I have never commented, I believe. Congratulations!
A while ago you asked what books we have reread. I wanted to comment but forgot. So the only book I have ever reread was Witch Child by Celia Rees. I read that book at 13 when it came out and then again at 30. 😊
I think I started reading in 2012. Thanks, Anne, for so many good recommendations over the years and for being a kind, thoughtful person. I’ve learned a lot from you! xo
I’ve never commented before so here I am! I’ve been reading your blog for the past 3 or 4? years. Thank you for your blog and for being genuine in your writing- it’s refreshing! I love this: “It’s never too late to send something true or good or useful into the world.” Thank you for this encouragement 😌 and congrats on 10 years!
You inspired me to keep track of all my reads this year! Love your blog and suggestions! Thank you.
Janice and I want to wish you HUGE congrats on this major milestone. We’ve been fans of your blog all through the years. (We started blogging back in 2006 and we remember how shocking it felt to hit 10 years.) You create fabulous content and you deserve all your success. We know how much hard work it takes to keep a business like this going for so many years. Way to go!!!
Dear Anne-
Thank you for all of it. I’ve been a devoted fan for years. Congratulations on your success and best wishes for many more years to come! Now please excuse me while I get back to the final chapters of “We Were the Lucky ones.”😭 It’s been on my TBR for so long because of MMD! 📚❤️
All the goodness you are putting out into the world, from the obvious push for living your best reading life, to all the supplemental goodness that feathers right into the overarching goal of living your best life overall, books and all – it’s rich nourishment for my mind and soul. I’m connected to most of your content, with the most recent gift to myself being an annual membership to the book club, and just really appreciate the outpouring of resources and support that allows me to connect with others, contemplate life through literature, and live a life I respect and honor, born of my own story that I get to write as I learn and grow. Thank you for all you do.
Dear Anne, I love your blog and I think you have a wonderfully soothing voice for podcasting. Happy ten years of blogging!
Happy Anniversary and Congratulations! You bring so much pleasure and so many thoughts and ideas to all of us! Thanks for deciding to take the plunge. xoxoxox
Woohoo Anne! Ten years. So awesome. Cheering so loudly for you!
I know I found your blog within your first year, though I do not remember the exact month.
I still hope to meet you face-to-face someday.
Thanks for all your insightful words and great bookish work and recommendations.
And I totally adored the confetti on your blog today!!! 🎉
Congratulations! You have definitely improved my reading life over the last few years. You are my favorite blogger.
Thank you for your great book suggestions and keep them coming!
Congratulations on a decade of book blogging. I began my book blog in 2012 so I guess I was really late to the party! I have found it a lovely way to connect with fellow readers and be part of an ongoing conversation about books. Thank you for all the great books and podcasts I have discovered through your work!
Congratulations from Australia!!! I first stumbled across your work on Pinterest, then i subscribed to your podcast, newsletter and onwards to your blog. I have found many lovely readings through your book lists and recommendations and when I hear you laugh I feel like we are friends.
Thank you 🙏🏻
Congratulations on 10 years! Your blog is my absolute favorite! Here’s to many more years!
Congratulations on turning TEN! Thank you for filling my inbox and Feedly reader with great books and ideas. I appreciate you!
Thank you for 10 years of amazing content!
I saw a copy of Don’t Overthink It in the LAX airport this week and thought you would like to see it. (Picture is a link in website portion)
Can’t wait for your next book!
Congrats! I’ve been reading for years. It’s my favorite spot on the internet. Thank you for sharing all your beautiful words through the years. I am much better for it.
“What should I read next” is still my favourite podcast!
Thank you so much for all of the time and effort you put into both your blog and your podcast!
What an incredible milestone! Congrats to you, Anne, and the rest of the team!! Such an amazing space to talk all things books!!!
Thank you very much for your efforts. I have loved the author interviews, learning about new books and being in “class”. I have thoroughly enjoyed being a member and learning about many bookish delights. I would not have have enjoyed the reading experience as much without Modern Mrs Darcy.
Congratulations, Anne! I found Modern Mrs. Darcy through a friend’s post on Facebook a few years ago. Your blog and podcast have enhanced and expanded my reading life so much! I look forward to every post and podcast. Thank you!
Congratulations on 10 years of blogging. I have been following your blog and podcast for a few years and really think its unique – you have reinvigorated my reading life, given me so many great book recommendations and I also love your other articles about productivity and many other interesting things.
Congratulations! I found your blog in 2015, when my family and I were expats living in France. I looked forward to your new posts every afternoon. You saved my reading life by helping me find so many great titles I could get on my kindle. Thank you for the wonderful work you do!
I found the blog in 2015 too Kim!
I admire and appreciate your work so much. You are personable and professional – I think the way you do your work shows tremendous respect for your readers and listeners. So thank you!
Love your blog! Congrats on such a huge milestone!
Happy birthday to MMD! You’ve done wonderful things for my reading life, and by extension, my actual life. Thanks for bringing good into this world for a whole decade, Anne.
Happy 10 years. I still love blogs the best. I have been following you since May of 2015. I know this because I save many of your blog emails. Thank you for all of the good books I have learned about through you. And I started following you due to your blog title. I have been a fan of Jane Austen since grammar school.
Congratulations, Anne and team! I am so grateful for this blog, the podcast, the booklists, the Instagram content, the book club, etc., etc., etc! This is my favorite bookish place online, for sure!
I join the many others in celebrating your phenomenal ten years of Modern Mrs. Darcy. Your blog is my very favorite, and I love Fridays when I get to check your post on that day. You have led me to multiple beloved books, and I thank you for enriching my life in many ways!
Long time reader, first time commenter…your blog is still one of my go-to resources for what to read next. Thanks for taking the plunge, even when it felt too late! I’m grateful all these years later!
Congratulations Anne! I hope the next 10 years exceed your expectations as well. I began listening to your Podcast in 2018 and my TBR shelf exploded. I have tried different genres because of your blog and show and I LOVE audio books now. Thank you for that suggestion. What a great reading community, I really love reading the suggestions your readers make as well.
Congratulations Anne! I hope the next 10 years exceed your expectations as well. I began listening to your Podcast in 2018 and my TBR shelf exploded. I have tried different genres because of your blog and show and I LOVE audio books now. Thank you for that suggestion. What a great reading community, I really love reading the suggestions your readers make as well.
Oh, and finally reading (with my ears) Pride and Prejudice and loving it!
I’ve been reading your blog about a year now. It is different from my normal blogs (running) and brings me a refreshing change of pace and helps expand my reading portfolio.
I am always amazed at the different topics you bring to the table. Thanknyou for this.
Congratulations! I’ve been following the blog for ages, and it’s such a positive, pleasant “place” to visit. I look forward to the Summer Reading Guide every year. Keep up the wonderful work!
Congratulations from a long-time blog reader, brand-new book club member. I love the idea that it’s never too late.
Congratulations! I so love to read these kinds of posts. Especially seeing that I literally just started my own blog in December of 2020. Really late!!
Happy, happy blogaversary!
I have been following since 2018ish? I enjoy the podcast so much. Especially because as a 42-year-old mom of three, avid reader, career music educator, Costco patron and yoga pants enthusiast, I just find your ideas relatable. Can I shamefully also suggest that millennial upspeak is a deterrent for other literary podcasts? I’m sorry. But it is a truth I live with. I love the Book Club community and find your team wicked cool. I do have favorites, but I will *not* reveal those here. Keep at Team Bogel!
Many congratulations of your first ten years, I have been following for around three years now and really look forward to the posts, especially the Links I Love posts as there is always something that speaks to me. Thanks to you I have notebook full of book recommendations. I think today deserves some cake and candles. x
Congratulations 🎉 Thank you for your wonderful blog!
Huge congrats to you .. what a milestone!!!
Congratulations on the 10 years! While I only discovered your blog in 2020, I hope to enjoy it for many years to come. Cheers to the next 10+!
Hi Anne, congratulations on this milestone! How on earth do you find time to read all these comments?? I have absolutely loved discovering your podcast this past year – my Tuesdays would not be the same without it now! 🙂
Happy 10th Anniversary!! I’ve loved The Modern Mrs. Darcy for years and the podcast has been a perfect antidote to the past year! Thank you for bringing a little light on dark days 📚 🕯💞
Congratulations!! This blog and your podcast have added so many fantastic books to my TBR. I’m very thankful.
Thank you for enriching my reading life, Anne! I appreciate your reviews and how you rate the sensual/sexual content.
I am a newbie at reading your blogs, but I love them! Thank you for the wonderful service you provide us avid readers. I have discovered and “rediscovered” so many wonderful books here. I am so impressed by your tenacity at keeping this up for so many years. I blogged for 6 weeks ten years ago, as my husband and I made a cross-country road trip. I found it very challenging (but fun, too) to sit down almost every night and actually DO it! The hardest part for me was inserting photos, which were key in that type of blog, but maybe things have gotten easier? Anyway, I was satisfied with my efforts, and, of course, my blog is still out there in webland.
This is so fun! (I love the confetti as you open this post!) Happy birthday, MMD! I for one am so glad I found this blog – my reading life is better thanks to it.
Congrats on the milestones! I’m a longtime reader of MMD and avid listener of WSIRN (it was actually the first weekly podcast I listened to — my very first podcast exposure was Serial by This American Life). My reading life has been very much enriched by all that you share. Thanks for being you and doing what you do and sharing parts of your life with us!
Anne, I probably wouldn’t be working full-time in books without your inspiration. And you gave me the push today to go forward with the second iteration of my podcast
Congratulations on 10 years!!! Your blog, podcast and books have changed my reading life! Thank you!
Congratulations Anne and team. I have thoroughly enjoyed this blog for the last 2 years. I hope to have many more years from you.
Anne, yours is my favorite blog, as well as my favorite Podcast. I always look forward to updates.
I love your book lists! Congrats on the great blog.
Congratulations! Thank you for so many great book recommendations. I was clicking through, “this look back at what I learned in just 4 years of blogging” and came across your list of your 5 favorite posts. When you click on the #1 post, When we were in the fire, it went to nothing. Did you remove your favorite post?
Finding Modern Mrs. Darcy and WSIRN in 2018 was such a gift to me as I became a mother and began my new life away from the 9-5 world. Thank you for the richness you share here! I have found so many great book recommendations on the blog (and in the comments section). I definitely think of Anne as a kindred spirit!
Happy Anniversary! I want to thank you and your team for your wonderful content. Sometimes it works like a balm that soothes my soul; sometimes it tickles my brain; sometimes it lights a spark in my heart that helps me go on, or get going, or start over.
Congratulations! This is my favorite blog. And this is the first comment I’ve ever left on a blog anywhere ever. : )
This is the only blog I read religiously, and the only podcast- yes, the only one- that I listen to. Your book recommendations are amazing, and I constantly tell other readers about your blog. Reading MMD during COVID has been a total highlight, as has the book club! Thank you, Anne! My favorite book you’ve recommended has probably been Winds of War or The River.
I’m relatively new to the blog (I don’t think I recognize the 2016 layout, so sometime since that changed?), but I’m so glad I landed here through whatever Pinterest rabbit hole inevitably brought me. Happy anniversary, and thanks for all the content, book recs and otherwise.
Thank you so much for these past years. You have enriched my life in so many ways and have been a kindred spirit that I didn’t even know that I would need. You have brought so many books into my life! So glad you started blogging and talking!!
Anne, I’ve been a long-time reader of your blog (6-7ish years). I have discovered so many favorite authors from your recommendations. It’s been lovely to watch your brand grow. Thank you!
Thanks so much for this post and for your podcast. I’m a big fan and often recommend it to other readerly friends. It’s the perfect podcast for people who want to discover new books, or just reflect on their reading life.
Your post also made me think about my own blog (now about eight years old) and how it has changed over the years. I sometimes worry about the fact that it has changed its focus. I started off talking about design principles but now I write almost exclusively about books and writing. Your post made me feel that it’s ok to change direction.
So thanks again Anne for all you do, and congratulations.
Congratulations! I love reading the blog, finding books suggestions and browsing through the “Links I love” posts.
I found your site about 8 (?) years ago. You are my go to. I love this community and the effort you put into finding the “just right book” for everyone. Thank you for all you do! 🙂
Congratulations! I had started a blog myself. I am looking forward to hearing some tips and tricks. I struggled with a large reading pile. I hope that you continue to grow and love what you are doing!
I just want to thank you for all you have brought to my reading life in the past two years. I was kind of in a rut, reading the same type of books over and over until I started listening to your podcast. My reading life is richer and more varied these days. I received a Christmas gift of joining the MMD Book Club this year and I am having so much fun! Thanks for all you do!!
Congratulations! I love what you did with the summer reading guides section. I never noticed it before but the layout is awesome!
Congratulations! You have been a favorite spot on the web for the last 7 years for me. Keep up the good work!
Thank you so much for all you’ve done and continue to do to enrich my life. Your blog and podcast are “my happy place” and that is not a small thing. My TBR will never be small with you and your team around. Blessings to all of you!
Anne, your ten years have been a joy- love the Friday reads. Much as I enjoy your bookish blogs, it is the others`that come out to me, Like last night I recalled “use all the floss”. It’s something I wasn’t doing and your post shook my brain and I did it, You affect lives`in so many ways!
Congratulations on your milestone and thank you so much for all you’ve shared! 🙂
It’s been a pleasure following you all these years, Anne.
Thank you, Anne. Because of you I am a better and wider reader. I started my own book club and have been running it for nearly 7 years. Even though I wasn’t an English major, I have better language to explain my reading tastes and can thoughtfully discuss a book beyond “Did you like it?”. I love this community you have brought together. Cheers to your anniversary!
Wow, what an amazing look back at your 10 years! Most of my favorite books are ones you’ve recommended. “Four Seasons In Rome” continues to be one of my favorite books of all time, and I heard about it thanks to you. We lived in Italy for a sabbatical when our kids were 2 and 4, and Doerr understood and beautifully put into words his feelings and experiences that so closely mirrored our experience. I’m forever grateful for that book, and for so many others that I’ve heard about from you!
I’ve said it before Anne you helped jumpstart my love for reading again! I have always loved memoirs but until I went back and listened to every podcast of yours I found a love for a variety of books, especially fiction and mystery. I now help my mom find her books as she cozies into retirement (but really has not stopped!) but reading is her greatest form of relaxation and enjoyment. So thank you! I am so happy for your successes thus far! Good luck going forward, Anne!
I just found your blog this week! I feel “late” to your fabulous content. But I am excited to be joining. I am an avid reader raising three avid readers. We LOVE to read! Thanks for being passionate about reading as well!
Have been reading your blog since the beginning, thank you for sharing your blog with us! Gentle feedback on the newest summer 2021 look: very corporate, impersonal, and crowded with action adds. I hope you can reinsert more of yourself back into the blog’s look. Wishing you the best going forward.
We’re tweaking! Thanks for your patience as we try to get everything in its place.