I Apologize. . .

When we kicked off 2022, I had glaring bright neon visions for the future of Beyond the Balcony. I had intended the site to really come into its own and be a destination for those that wanted to read pieces on movies and other pop culture. I planned to write reviews for every new release that I'd see on top of a series of reviews for every MCU and Disney animated theatrical release. While the focus would be on movies, I also intended to launch a weekly serialized fiction that would help fuel my creativity and give the site something a little different.

We are now in November of 2022, and while I do appreciate our amazing readers, it is clear the site has flopped when it comes to me delivering on the promised pieces and especially increasing readers. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is another major movie that has passed without a written review for it to arrive on the site.

Why did I fail to deliver the reviews and articles for Beyond the Balcony this year?

The biggest is just being able to juggle all my writing projects. The site and podcast are things that I hope to become a part of my career but right now I put way more money into them then I get out. This means that my day job is writing copy for various clients that usually means marketing materials or ghostwriting. I am also consistently pitching articles to various large publications. On top of that, I have various administrative work and meetings that consume my day until 3pm arrives, and I have to go pick up my kids. The family is the main focus until they are off to bed, and then I cap off the day trying to catch up on the writing work I didn't get to that day.

For various reasons, I have also been battling depression and anxiety, which means some nights I am battling burnout on top of deadlines.

Of course, this is all an excuse. An excuse that I can latch on to for another 10 years. But if I want this site to grow and to have a thriving community, then it needs to start becoming a bigger focus. I need to not do things like completely skipping out on reviewing major pictures like Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

So, I apologize. I haven't held up my end of the deal with my readers. I am blessed to still have readers after being so inconsistent in recent years. I do appreciate you.

My aim is to end the year with far more reviews for 2022 releases. I strive to create daily articles that are entertaining and insightful and get the site closer to vision that I have for it. It will be my warm-up to kick-off 2023 as the best year ever on this site.

I should also thank Scott Martin who has worked very hard this year and created many interesting articles on this site. There has been some great things to read this year.

Thank you for being great readers. I will aim to craft a site that you deserve.