Word! Bloggas!

Happy Saturday, Reader-Friends!

Excuse the silly title; Allow me to migrate into more of a earnest mode.

You know, for awhile I was a little down about my blog’s popularity. I felt that I must not be posting stuff that people deem worthy of their time, which is an insecurity that seems to runs rapid in writers, perhaps even more so in English majors like myself-it’s an identity thing, I guess. My dear friend, Nicole gave me a little blogger pep talk via email not too long ago and reminded me that we don’t blog for popularity-we blog because we want to…it’s therapy, it’s a hobby, it’s for us, the bloggers.  In her own words, “Don't do it for the followers. Write what YOU like, follow blogs YOU like, and find your own unique writing style.”

 

Anyway, that’s just a little note in order to conclude, that lately I have been writing more about the things I want to write about and as a result have enjoyed this little aspect of my life much more. I have also noticed that since I changed my attitude about blogging, I have received more visitors. Have you ever heard of the line“build it and they will come”? Well, honestly, I don’t know where that phrase originated, but in honor of clichés, here is my blogger’s version: Build your blog’s character and they will come. In other words be true to yourself and readers will come. Maybe not by the multitudes, but do you know how many people are in this world? There is bound to be one soul that connects to the words you post. Nicole made another very true statement in her email:”If you can make a difference to just ONE person or meet ONE friend, I would say you're a successful blogger.”

 

I know that once the fall semester starts for me in less than a month my daily life is going to be so hectic (this girl is graduating in May!), but blogging doesn’t need to be another avenue for stress. So I am determined to allow blogging to be something fun, even something relaxing. Which means I can’t be worrying about who is reading, how many are reading, or what I should be saying in order to receive a response. Are there any visual learners out there? This is what blogging should look like:

 

 

I’m not a professional blogger. In fact, I don’t know what the heck I’m doing when it comes to a blogger’s mold. But I’m glad to be able to post about some things I’ve learned on this little journey of blogging, because maybe, just maybe, there is someone in their first year of blogging (or perhaps in their fifteenth) reading this post, and maybe, just maybe, they are struggling with some of the “blogging insecurities” of which  with I struggled. I’m passing on advice I was given and I’m encouraging you to pass it along as well.

 

Special thanks to a couple of my favorite bloggers that aided me in developing my blogger’s voice and attitude:

One of my very first readers, and a real life, true friend Nicole over at…

  And a blogger girlfriend, who spreads sunshine all over this blogsophere and who always has me laughing out loud : Jenni at…  

  Will you be true to your own writer’s heart?