We’re a week into this blogging thing and my brain is saying, “Whoa!” (For some reason I refer to myself as “we” just as often as I say “I”, so just go with it.) My brain is full. The “no vacancy” sign is up. We’re turning off the lights so you think no one is home. (I said “we” again and I’m thinking it’s cause I’ve had kids for as long as I’ve been an adult and besides the kids there’s always been a furkid so maybe I just say “we” cause I’m never really alone?) *I always feel like, somebody’s watching me*
I’ve been learning so much over the past couple of months prepping for the blog. I didn’t just impulsively set it up. I “ummed and ahhed” about it for some time because my goal is to be a published author. But to do that I need to be good at writing, and also have a social media presence.
Today we’re gonna talk about my ongoing writing journey but I have a lot to say about social media so I’ll get to that in another part of this series.
Getting good at IT for me means I’ve got a system to write by, rituals that inspire, a voice distinctly mine that anyone starting to read my book in the middle without seeing the cover would know I wrote it. Then I want to “rinse and repeat” to write another book, and another, and just keep that going well into my old age and never have to “work” again.
Getting good at writing means I have to learn about WRITING. Sure I can write, I understand the basic principles, but it’s the technical stuff that I need a refresher on. Remembering the points of view, and how the narrator fits into the story, and breaking down the story to keep it captivating but also get to the point. And then doing that consistently.
That’s my word right now. Consistency. I strive for that in everything I do.
So far I’ve done two writing courses, two blogging courses and a content marketing course.
Marketing is a big change for me. I don’t think like a marketer. I am too direct. Too “you either like my stuff or you don’t I wont lick your ass”. I can understand the numbers (stats and things), I can do the work behind it, but thinking SEO the whole time breaks my brain. Like right now my SEO plugin is telling me my headline is shit and my content is good but not great. I just want to tell it to fuck off (by deleting the plugin), but I also know that I wont not understand it forever so it can sit there and do its thing and eventually I’ll pay attention and “get it” and we’ll be a happy team.
My vision with the blog is to have it photo rich – think online magazine style or photo-editorial. Vibrant images just full of life. I’ve done a photography course to better understand what I can do with my phone. Watch this space for a stop motion video or 20 cause I want to try it out.
Once I’ve captured the perfect photo though, I need to know how best to edit and showcase it (without my image optimisation plugin shouting that it’s too big), so I’ve done a Canva course too. OK I lie. I have done several Canva courses (including the free ones that Canva itself offers) and my brain is saying a big fat NOPE. I keep thinking, “it’s just fancy PowerPoint”, but it’s really not.
It’s like TikTok for me. I have tried time and time again to figure it out but the way it yells at me and can’t be muted without having to put the actual sound lower even if my phone is on silent just annoys me.
I’ve also figured out that when we learn something new it feels overwhelming and we feel stupid. So it’s easier to bail right then (like I do every time with TikTok) than it is to keep at it and just take in pieces at a time until you get more familiar.
We have to be kind to ourselves and not say we’re stupid. We ARE trying. We ARE learning. And we WILL know this stuff and when we look back at the journey, the growth will be more rewarding for sticking to it.
With that mindset, the first week has been fantastic! Thank you for subscribing, commenting and encouraging me to keep at it. Also anyone wanting to volunteer as tribute to teach me TikTok (or Canva for that matter) let me know!
PS – These are the courses I’ve taken so far if anyone is feeling inspired to try for yourself. Domestika is one of my favourite sites to learn creative things
