Thursday, May 23, 2013

Finding my place online


I started Lost and Found a year ago this month. I’d been book blogging for about a year, and I wanted a place where I could talk about things other than books and writing. I wanted to share bits of my life, my photography, my thoughts. I thought that maybe because I was already known in the blogging world, my friends and followers might be interested in my personal blog. I know that I love when my book blog friends share bits of their lives - it’s nice to know the person behind the computer, and learn about their other interests.

The thing is, I was wrong. Not only do most of my bookish friends not read this blog (except for Jessica and Patricia - I love you guys!), hardly anyone reads it. I’ve participated in blog hops to try to make friends, I visit other blogs and comment, I follow blogs that look interesting. But still this blog is a lonely little place. 

And I’ve just recently realized that it’s ok. I don’t have a very exciting life - it’s pretty monotonous and there’s not often much to talk about. If I were someone else, I probably wouldn’t want to read this blog either, so I can’t really blame people lol. But I enjoy sharing little bits of my life, as unexciting as they are, and all I can do is hope someday I’ll have more to talk about, more to share, more to draw people in and hold their interest.

I'm sure it sounds like I'm feeling sorry for myself, and I'm honestly not. I just hate that feeling of not belonging. I’ve felt it most of my life, and when I started book blogging, I finally felt like I found a community I belonged to. I fit in. I was able to be myself and share that geeky, fangirly side of myself that I’d kept hidden. Now that I’ve branched out, I’m not really sure where I fit in. There are so many ‘types’ of blogs, and I know which I don’t fit into better than which I do fit into. The most common types of blogs I’ve come across, which Lost and found is not:

  • I’m not a mommy blogger (although I do have two nephews that I talk about a lot and share pictures of…it’s not the same though)
  • I’m not a wifey blogger
  • I'm not a travel or ex-pat blogger (although I wish I were a travel blogger!)
  • I’m not a fashion blogger
  • I’m not a product review blogger
  • I’m not a Christian/Mormon/Jewish/insert religious affiliation here blogger
  • I’m not a pet blogger
  • I’m not a hobby blogger
  • I’m not a DIY blogger
So what am I? What is Lost and Found? I was going to add that I’m not a photography blogger, but the majority of what I share on here seems to be photography. I’m not a professional (I wish!), I just enjoy taking pictures and sharing them.

Maybe it’s ok not to fit into a certain mold. I’ve always done my own thing, so why should blogging be any different? If I want to show my inner nerd and talk about Doctor Who and Supernatural and other TV shows, why not? If I want to share funny littleanecdotes about my nephews, why not? If I want to talk about the future, or the past, or the little mundane things that make up my present, why not? And if nobody reads it? Well…*shrugs* That’s ok too, I guess. But this is my little space and I like the idea of getting to do and say whatever I want.   








3 comments:

Anonymous said...

You are a life blogger! You blog about your life. Okay, that is a bit corny. =)

Unknown said...

I like what Patricia said - you're a life blogger. I blog over at LiveJournal and I blog about EVERYTHING. Life, friends, family, books (though not nearly as much now bc of my book blog), etc.

Also! I finally followed you here. I've been meaning to FOR FOREVER and I kept forgetting. I'm via email now so I'm looking forward to your posts.

BTW? You're pretty kick-ass. Be you and let you shine, girl!

Jessica L. Tate said...

I hear ya! It's hard to figure out your place with a blog that doesn't necessarily have a "type". Even author/writer blogs don't always get that much traffic. But, you're probably right--like you said in the last paragraph--maybe it is okay to not fit into a certain mold. Just do what you love and you'll find ways to connect with people, even if it is only a handful of people. :)