Why Did I Start Blogging?

I’ve been thinking about my blog a lot lately. I’m hoping to work in the Publishing industry, in particular as a publicist. As such, keeping my blog fresh and active is important, justifying keeping it going while I am studying and work is getting on top of me and I have no time!

But it got me thinking about how and why I started. I’ve been blogging for about three years now, although it has only been the last year that I’ve spent a lot of time and effort on my blog – engaging on social media, that sort of thing, rather than just the posts.

At heart, I am a reviewer. That is how I started blogging and I still love doing it now. But how did it all begin?

During my first year at university, I had a module on Film Reviews. We had to write a portfolio of reviews in styles of various publications, and I quickly realised how much of a blast I was having!

I started reviewing every book and film I read/saw, posting them up on blogspot. I wasn’t particularly interested in the blog side of things, I just wanted to be reviewing!

But the blog world sucked me in. Before long, I realised that I wanted to engage with the community as a whole and I wanted to experiment with other types of posts. I switched to WordPress and got such a thrill when I had my first few hits.

I won’t lie – I still get very few visitors and know that, compared to some of the amazing blogs out there, mine won’t ever surmount to much. But I don’t care. I still get a thrill out of writing the reviews, so as long as that happens, I will continue to write and post.

One I started paying attention to my blog, I realised that reviewing everything wasn’t working. I was scheduled up to about six months in advance. It might have made things easier in regards to the pressure of posting, but it also meant I couldn’t remember the book by the time the review was published. Answering comments was a nightmare!

After that, I started to schedule properly – planning each month as it came. This became easier once I joined NetGalley and could rely on a steady supply of books, even if I had to hastily dip into the `read now` section to find something.

I would like to think I’m quite organised with my posts. But we all know there are pressures to being a book blogger, despite how great it is! My next target is to clear my NetGalley list and control it – I got a bit carried away when I first joined and have been playing catch-up ever since!

There you have it: my reasons for blogging and what I intend my next step to be. I thought it might be nice to share what personally motivates me with my blog.

How about you? How did you start blogging?

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