The Struggles of Blogging

Upon hearing people speak about 'blogging' it's very difficult not to conjure up the typical image of girls in their early 20s raving about the 'Better Than Sex' mascara and the Anastasia Brow Dip. The same girls who describe themselves as 'full-time bloggers' and use outdated memes on their Twitter feed.The girls who are gifted endless freebies (and, subsequently, get caught selling said freebies).

Am I jealous? Of course I am.

Who wouldn't want to spend their days on the internet writing about things they love? I certainly would.

My adventures into the world of blogging began in 2009 during my gap year. I was fresh out of school, and began working at home doing data input for a local civil engineering company. As with any mindless job, the temptation to stray elsewhere whilst online proved to be too much and I would often find myself scouring the internet for beauty and fashion blogs and absorbing the content like a sponge.

These girls were like me. They were everything I wanted to be.

It didn't take long for me to set up my own blog (which is sadly long gone now!). I would post photos of my outfits, taken in my bedroom and write general nonsense about how I was 'letting my legs out in March' and how I would soon to be embarking on a 'new style adventure'. I would become incredibly frustrated that no one seemed to be interested (bar the occassional unenthused self-promoting comment of 'Great look. Come and check out my blog!'). Obviously now it is all too obvious why no-one was interested, but a younger and more naïve me became incredibly disheartened with the whole thing - enough to give it up completely.

Looking back, I can see that I was very much focused on numbers (or 'pretend internet points', as I like to call them). Views, comments, everything. If I didn't hit a certain number of views or comments, I'd consider deleting the post...

But I've come to realise... None of this matters. Blogging shouldn't be about numbers or trying to hit the 'big-time' or trying to score freebies. It should be about doing it for the sheer enjoyment of it all.

I personally find the process of blogging quite a cathartic experience, and I enjoy speaking to strangers online about things we share an interest in. As such, I'm going to start again - and try not be demoralised when I realise I don't have 8 million subscribers. Crafts, music, style. I will simply be posting about things I enjoy, and I hope you will find my posts of some interest.

Welcome to my blog. Stay tuned.