Why did I start blogging?
I have always loved writing and reading. I think the reason why I started writing a blog is that I love writing down my thoughts and stories.
I’m not sure if anyone else is interested in reading them but I do like to share!
Some thoughts on what led me to this point
- I have always kept a diary
- I wrote each of my children the story about their birth and their first few months in this world with yearly updates and presented it to them on their 18th birthdays
- I write a travel blog each time I go on holidays (a) to keep my family and friends updated on our travels and (b) to help me keep the holiday fresh in my mind after I return
- My husband and I love producing photo story books of all our trips
- I enjoyed writing stories comparing my daughters’ lives to my own at their age and also comparing my mother’s and my lives at the same age
- I had an English teacher, Mr Thompson, who told me that I wrote good compositions – this comment has always stuck with me. Isn’t it funny what you remember?
How did I start?
I started my blog back in May 2012 as my sister had begun posting blogs. I thought it sounded like a good idea and joined in. I often do things my sister does as she is an inspiration.
My first post was very raw and I think I deleted it before too many people could see it. My second post, which is now listed as my earliest post, is about a very personal issue – the removal of some of my more prominent facial moles. Nothing like starting with something highly personal!
I often appear very confident but this isn’t always the case. I struggle, at times, with self esteem issues.
My first post related to having a number moles removed from my face. I always told my daughters, when they were young and believed everything I said, that these moles were my beauty spots and so I titled my post ‘3 times less beautiful’.
If I’m honest it was really for myself, telling myself that true beauty comes from within and not to be so vain. It always surprises me when people tell me they don’t even see my moles!
Since then my posts have taken a different tack – celebrating happy times, grieving sad times, re-discovering running, my family, random thoughts, cycling, travel, midlife, and it helped enormously when I was going through my redundancy period. (see note below)
I’ve since started adding photos to my posts and become involved in photography challenges. I miss some of the old WordPress photo and writing challenges.
It has also helped connect me to a whole new community and I’ve become engaged with others in similar situations, from all around the world!
I am enjoying getting back into the whys and wherefores of writing.
Thanks for coming along on the ride with me.
Deb
NOTE: This is an updated post (in August 2020) which I first wrote many years ago, back in January 2014 as part of a blogging challenge I was doing to improve my blogging skills. I’ve learnt a lot since then, and like to think I’ve improved my writing, but it’s always good to go back and read my early words.
Linking up with Denyse’s #lifethisweek with the optional prompt Why did I?
You can also find Deb’s World in lots of other places – stay in touch by clicking any of the buttons below.
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What a lovely read to get to know more of the ‘why’ and the ‘what’ of being a blogger for you. So good to have connected here!!
Thank you for linking up for #lifethisweek. #202. (I know!) Next week’s optional prompt is 33/51 I Want. 17.8.2020 and I hope that you link up then too. Take care, Denyse.
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Thanks Denyse, you were the catalyst to looking back and updating that post, so thank you!
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It’s lovely reading about your blogging journey. I started blogging in 2008 and it started off mundane and pretty personal but over the years has changed. IT is a nice way to chronicle life but I agree about the community. I love most of the community and the bloggers I’ve met IRL.
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Isn’t it funny how we change as we blog? It’s a good thing in my opinion, as it means we’re growing and reflecting on life. Thanks Sanch!
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I love that you made those updates for your girls – that’s what you call a family treasure! I’m always interested to know why people start blogging, for many of us, I think it’s that sense of connection. Like you, I am truly grateful for the friends in my computer 🙂
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Thanks Sammie, I love the connections and hearing about how others started blogging is always a bit like a fly on the wall moment!
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Deb
Like you, I’m very grateful for the new friends and community that I’ve found through my blog!
SSG xxx
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Thanks SSG, it’s been the best part of it all.
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Blogging has helped me find my writing “voice”. I love the immediacy of it and rarely edit (or proofread) my posts (you can tell, can’t you?) where everything else that I do seems to take time. Because this happens so quickly in a roundabout way it helps me with patience for the things that take longer.
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That really surprises me Jo the fact you don’t edit much and but it must be a lovely change from the other side of your work. Thanks for telling me your thoughts on how blogging is for you.
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Hi Deb, I enjoyed reading how you started in blogging. My sister wrote too but didn’t publish anything. I still have her poems about her struggles with mental health and addiction and I still aim to publish them (posthumously as she passed away in 2012). Writing is very much in our blood because I have 4 books written by relatives about their lives – one being my grandfather (his memoirs from fighting in WW1).
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Thanks for your comment Christina. What a lovely ideas to publish your sister’s work and fabulous that you’ve written books about your family! It’s a great way to understand their lives isn’t it?
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I found blogging and the community by accident – though I had been publishing some writing and active in forums before I got my own site.
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Isn’t it funny how some connections and things just happen? Thanks for your thoughts Vanessa.
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I loved reading about why you started blogging Deb. Your post made me think of when I first started. I had no idea back then that anybody would bother reading my blog. I look forward to your posts each week
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Thanks very much Jennifer, it was good to take a look back at this post and update it (slightly). I’m with you, I’m still amazed to have so many (by my standards) people following on all these years later! And I’m so happy to have people like you :). Thanks again for your ongoing support.
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That’s funny because I often do things my sister does because she’s an inspiration to me. Going to a dietician in November 2012 was inspired by my sister who said she’d gone to one, and after hearing about my sister having facial moles removed I had 7 taken off – the best decision I made in 2013. Everyone should have a big sister like mine.
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We are very lucky to have a sisters like us!! Hope that make sense.
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