I missed the last two days of Armchair BEA posts, but I really wanted to end the week on a high note, so I have to participate in today’s topical post – Blogging About Blogging. And I feel really compelled to post about something that I personally struggle with all the time – Blogging Insecurity.
Blogging is hard work. There are a lot of blogs out there. Typically, you aren’t going to get noticed overnight. It takes dedication and love of books and writing to really keep it going. I am going to admit something that I think many of us deal with on some level. I really, REALLY struggle with blog insecurity. There have been multiple occasions where I just wanted to throw in the towel because I just have so many other things going on in real life. And, there are so many other blogs out there, so what am I really adding anyway?
Yes, we ALL deal with insecurity on some level. We think of a great idea for a post and open our Google Reader to find someone else posting about the same topic that day. We look at other blogs and their awesome designs and think that we will never get noticed because we can’t afford a flashy web designer. We have a cool idea for a new meme to find out that someone is already doing it on some level. We read other blogs and their AMAZING writing skills and think, “My writing is a piece of crap – what am I even doing this for?”
Insecurity is a difficult monster to tackle. He/She invades your thoughts at the most inopportune times, making you doubt everything about yourself and your blog. He/She makes you think you are dumb, worthless, and inadequate. But, are you going to let the monster win? Are you going to let the monster destroy your love of reading and writing and sharing that love with others?
Be confident in who you are and what you are doing. Many times it feels like we are blogging in a vacuum. It can be lonely. We can beat ourselves up. We do that better than anyone else can do it to us. Regardless of what your insecurity may be, don’t let the monster win.
Some tips:
1. Ask yourself this question: ”Why am I feeling insecure?” What is the fear? After discovering your fear, think about new behaviors or thought patterns you can develop to overcome your insecurity.
2, You don’t have to have the best looking blog in town or the snappiest posts. Your blog reflects YOU. The reader wants to know YOU. If every blog looked or felt the same, what would be the point?
3. Develop a “So what?” attitude. Who cares if so-and-so has 25,000 followers or the best meme in town? That’s them. I didn’t start blogging to try and impress anyone. I started it because I love to read and I love to write (whether or not I write well is up for debate…..DARN YOU INSECURITY MONSTER! Get away from my keyboard!!!)
4. You need to make your blog about YOU and what makes YOU happy. Trying to do things to impress OTHERS or to make it so it is not reflecting WHO YOU ARE is a recipe for disaster. Have patience. Take your time. Things will happen.
5. Don’t blog just for the free books/review copies. It will quickly become obvious to the authors/publishers. Typically, your blog should be established with reviews for 3-6 months before they will even look to start sending you review books.
6. Most importantly – remember WHY you started your blog. If you ever start feeling insecure, just go back to the beginning. What was your impetus behind launching your blog in the first place? Go back to your roots.
Remember . . . it’s not about being the best or the greatest. It’s about being Y-O-U. And YOU ARE fantastic!
References:
Thanks to my blog friend Lori for talking through this post with me. She’s a rock star! Have you seen her new design since she moved to WordPress? Love!
I also referred to 8 Tips to Deal With Insecurity for some practical ideas.
Thanks for this post! I continually have to remind myself to think about why I'm blogging, and that it doesn't have to do with any other blog out there. I didn't know they existed when I started, (and getting books from publishers/authors didn't even cross my mind), and I shouldn't compare myself now.
Exactly! It's all about YOU and showcasing your style. We are all unique and we shouldn't compare ourselves to others because we are all so different!
This is great advice, and something I've been trying to tell myself since I started my blog this month. Thanks for posting about this, and reinforcing it!
I think insecurity is especially hard for a new blogger because there are SO many blogs out there! You just have to keep plugging away and doing it because you love it and not for any other reason. There are many of us who are here if you have questions or need to vent about something! We've all been where you are, so let us know how we can support you! :) Good luck!
I never would guess you suffer from Blogging Insecurity. I always love stopping by here
Ha! Thank you – that's really sweet of you to say. I have MAJOR blog insecurity…like really bad.. LOL! I think that's why I felt compelled to post about it today. I figure if I'm struggling with it, then many people probably are, too. :)
Exactly! It is all about being you and only you
heck it is to hard to try and be someone else!
Isn't it, though? I will stop by other blogs and think: \”I should do that!\” or \”Why didn't I think of that?\” and I'll kick myself for not being a cooler or better blogger. I'm trying to learn to be content being the blogger that I am and not trying to be anyone else!
Thank you thank you thank you for posting this! I just had a blogging insecurity moment about 30 min ago and was panicking that I needed to change my blog asap. I don't, and I'm not going to unless I really want to. Great post topic!
I'm so glad you decided not to change your blog because you were feeling insecure about it! You should only change it if YOU want to change it and not because you feel like you SHOULD change it! Good for you! :)
What an excellent post and a great pep talk for bloggers, too! I can definitely relate on blog insecurity, but as you said it really is about what you like and what you want to show your readers. Sometimes we need little reminders of why we started blogging, and if we let ourselves get bogged down by the “greener grass,” then we're not doing much good for anyone. What I also try to remember is everyone has to start somewhere, and all bloggers had their first blogpost. We all had to take that first step, it's just a matter of continuing the walk.
Exactly! Going back to that first blog post is a little scary. But looking at how far I've come, I feel really proud. So I try to hold onto those moments when I'm having doubts! LOL! Just be you! We are all growing and our blogs will evolve as we grow. But we shouldn't change them because we feel inferior or insecure about what we are doing. Because then our blogs won't reflect our true selves. Thanks for posting! :)
Excellent post! I try to deal with the insecurity monster by ignoring him, but it doesn't always work. And BTW, I love your blog design! Awesome!
Thank you! That's one thing I've been feeling insecure about lately. I've felt like changing it and making it more … I don't know… modern or something. I'm not really sure what I want to do with it, but I was feeling like I wanted to change it. Thanks for telling me that. It made me feel really good! :)
You know it is not just for new bloggers..Even us moldy old bloggers get insecure…”Why don't they comment? Why aren't they flocking to read my perfect words? I really, really want them to read this book, but no one is here!” I can't break 100 followers, and for a long time felt that no one was out there. Posts like this tell me I am not alone. Not being the coolest kid on the block is okay…you are super just the way you are!! Thank you!
LOL!!!! I think that's the first time I've been called moldy..thanks for making me laugh!! But you are so right! Insecurity hits everyone, not just the new blogger. Us moldy bloggers are always wondering: \”Why?\” \”What's wrong with me?\” \”What am I doing wrong?\” You are definitely not alone!! Just keep doing what you are doing because you love to do it!
This is great advice! I struggle tremendously with this. I will use your tips to try and overcome it.
It's really difficult! If you want to e-mail me, please feel free! I struggle with it a lot, so if I can help, let me know!
A fantastic post as always. It is reassuring to know that bloggers like you are just like the rest of us. I have so many great ideas bouncing around in my head and it is so disappointing to find that someone else just beat me to the punch.
Keep up the good work!
This article is brilliant and has really helped me. I started a book blog a year or so ago but packed it in because I was so insecure I convinced myself it was pointless.
Now I've gone back to it, and I'm trying to avoid the same thing happening again. I've bookmarked this post so I can keep coming back and reassuring myself than I'm not the only one!
Oooh, I've never been called brilliant before!! You've made my day! Thanks! I'm so glad this has helped you and that you continue on with your book blog! Remember to do it for YOU and for no one else! That's the key!
I have to say thank you. I really REALLY struggle with 'Blog insecurity.' It's terrible. For the past week I've been thinking about quitting blogging because I feel like my reviews SUCK! lol. But, then I'm like, I don't really care what people think….right? Either way, I thank you. Even though I'm nervous publishing this comment because of my insecurities, AHH! I will try to incorporate your tips into my blogging life.
Faye, I have to admit that I do that a lot. I will read some of my reviews and think that they are just plain terrible. Then I'll read a favorite blogger's posts and how amazingly written they are and I'll feel especially inadequate!! It's not so much about caring what other people think than just writing from your heart and sharing what you feel. People will connect with you if you are honest and just be who you are. I hope that helps. Keep it going! :)
Wonderful post and i shall provide a link to it if you don't mind.
Please share as you see fit. Thank you for the support!
The puppy made me smile. And what a lovely motivating post for a Friday
Another point about flashy looking blogs, most people will read posts in a RSS reader of some sort where most the design is tripped away. I'm put off by flashy, animated, crowded pages anyway. The simpler the better for me…and anyone can do simple
Ahh.. good point! Thanks for mentioning that!
Great post as always my friend. And thanks for the mention. Remember – I've always got your back!
This is so great. I'm new to the book blogging, and you've hit the nail on the head for me. I'm glad I'm not the only one feeling the dreaded blogging insecurity!
Jennifer, this is an excellent, thoughtful post. It is important to respect the fact that each blog is different and should reflect the personality of its creator.
What a great post. Thank you for sharing that. I struggle a lot with this especially due to a few incidents that have happened this year. thanks to some other fantastic bloggers who have kept me going and been my support system I would have given up and then missed it desperately
That's what is so great about our community. There are so many great people who can lift us up when we are feeling down or feeling insecure about our blogging. I love the relationships we've developed and continue to develop. Keep on going!! :)
Terrific! A post I am sure almost all of us have at one time….or twelve. I think this is one of the reasons I do more than just book reviews on my blog, it's a very personal investment!
Great connecting with you this week!
I loved your blog before your great new look and the fabulous book blogger hop so stomp all over that Insecurity Monster
I am amazed at the YA blogging community and how they differ from each other. I love reading, I love posting and I love networking and will continue to do so. When life takes over, it takes over, my consistent commenters would understand and continue to support.
Let's continue to do what we love. Great post Jennifer
I needed this. I'm new and have no clue as to what I'm doing. Thanks for the post!
I liked #3. Sometimes, we just need to ignore all our insecurities. LOL.
This is a great post. I know that I have been going through this off and on for a while and reacently decided SO WHAT…. I'll do what I please and see what happens and funny enough I've gotten more compliments on my posts and the look of my blog because it did the things that made ME happy.
I'm glad you wrote this post up. I'm going to go share it with my friends now!
HAPPY BLOGGING!
Awesome post! I think you speak for a lot of us! Writers and readers alike.
That was a great post! I started out with a boring old blog called Books I Read, but have really changed it up! I am trying to just be myself. I know a lot of people think they might not like to read books by black authors, but I think I can change their mind if they just check out what I have read. I mean, I don't limit myself to any certain genre, but have really found my place in the blogging world I think!
This is an awesome post. I struggle with this everyday when I attempt to blog my book reviews. Sometimes I'm like yeah let's do this, then other times I just put it off for later. Thanks for the tips.
That was one awesome post! Thank you for taking the time to write it! it has really help put this insecure blogger at ease and also helped to put some things into perspective!
Oh yes I am insecure as well sometimes! I have a blogging buddy, Becky from Becky's Book Reviews. She and I email often: sharing our thoughts, bouncing ideas off each other, sharing our feelings, etc. We are each others sounding board and this I feel helps us both. Often I will be insecure about something and just by sharing it with her, that insecurity then begins to feel minuscule. I'm glad to have followers, but I love to read so much, and love to talk about books, that I just can't see myself doing anything else!
great post! you should know, though, that when i discovered the book blogging world, your site was one of the first i found! basically, i thought you were a book blogging rockstar, and i wanted to be like you. no lie! so, i would've never guess you were insecure about your corner of the blogosphere. keep it up!
Great post – thanks. I love blogging. Armchair BEA was interesting – didn't have as much time as I wanted to participate. Happy reading.
Lovely post. I don't have many followers but I still love blogging and getting out there with this community
Amen on 3-5!
Amen! I try my hardest not to compare myself to anyone else. It would take all the fun out of it for me.
I have had blog insecurity and sometimes still have it at times. I have come to realize that I am doing it because I enjoy doing it. I do like that people subscribe to my blog, but its not the reason that I blog; I blog because I love sharing my ideas about books and things related to reading, etc.
Great post! I agree! It's hard, sometimes I can't look at other blogs because i'm having a little bit of an insecure moment, but like you said, my blog is for me! I started it because I love to read… I have no delusions. I know even a high amount of followers doesn't mean that many people are actually reading my blog. I enjoy comments but my reading and writing is for me. I love the books, but its not worth the blogging, just for review copies. Blogging is hard work and takes time. I have a hard time dealing with mommy guilt… should I be blogging or playing with the kiddos. The answer is moderation! I blog for me and no one else. Its a way to decrease stress. I've learned to say no. I love helping authors, but I can't promote everyone and everything… its not a paid gig and I don't have that much time. Thanks for the great post! It's good to know others feel the same things sometimes… ( :
This is a fantastic post, Jen. I think you have hit on an issue that affects most bloggers at some point in their blogging endeavor. The funny thing is that I think many of us don't realize how many other bloggers are feeling similarly ot have felt similarly. Bringing the insecurity out in the open and naming it is probably the best way to help bloggers who are feeling insecure cope with it. I think tips 4, 5 and 6 are terrific and key to enjoying book blogging. I also think bloggers need to know they can email other bloggers and talk to them about blogging, feeling intimidated, books and their blog.
Great job, Jen!
Thanks for this post! I am fairly new to blogging, and set up my blog to help me keep track of what I've read and my feelings toward the books. Then, I realized that there was a whole network out there and worried that I was in over my head. Thanks for the reminder to keep things in perspective!
~Jenni at the Blook Bog
Great post. Love the doggie. That made me smile. Good luck to you on your moving adventure to WordPress as well.
Jennifer – Thank you so much for posting this. I am really in that struggle right now as I have dealt with insecurity, not just with blogging insecurity, my whole life. I intend to keep this post and refer to it when I feel this way again. I really enjoy your blog, thank you for what you do.
I could not even figure out why you feel insecure. You do have a great blog here, you do have people who like what you do, you write very well, and people do come back which is I think the most important thing in the blog that you do have people who like you enough to come back! You are doing a great job here.
You're awesome! Remember that.
Thanks for the great post that serves as a well-needed reminder, as I’ve been feeling very blog-insecure lately as well. Remember why I started my blog is a great way to breathe new life into what I’m doing as well as help me calm down….
All the tips listed…my philosophy almost to the letter! Great post, Jen!
I suffer from that insecurity as well. In fact there are some bloggers that I don’t find that friendly who are the ones with many, many followers. And I don’t want to be like that, so if my blog stays small, it does. Your tip on writing for yourself is a good one that Stephenie Meyer even talked about when just writing. I started writing a novel a few years ago of a story I wanted to read. Then I started thinking about what I needed to do to get it published, and I had trouble working on it, and quit. I’m going to pull it out this summer and get back to writing the story I want so I can finish it.
Love the who’s awesome graphic! It’s so hard to avoid blogger insecurity. I’ve gotten to over 1000 followers, but I still feel like other blogs are so much bigger and better than me. My reviews are decently written, but I know other bloggers are better. But I still feel like I’m contributing something. And more importantly, I’m having so much fun.
Excellent post — and just what I needed to read. That insecurity monster nips at my heels on a fairly constant basis, and I need to just kick it to the curb. Thanks!
Great tips! I think we all deal with this, and being a new blogger it can be even easier to get lost in the “but their blog is better than mine” thought process. But your tips are ones I try to think about on a constant basis and they’re very practical and reasonable.
The one I try to tell myself the most though is that it’s not about the followers. It’s not about review copies (which I don’t really even care about anyways since I have a fantastic library). I just try to remind myself that it’s about the books and meeting other people who love books too. As long as that mentality sticks, then it’s easier to get past all the other stuff.
Thank you!
~ Sarah ♥ I’m Loving Books
WHAT a great post! And your pic made me smile! Of course we all run into that insecurity now and then … it’s why I don’t pay a lot of attention to my visitor numbers (which right now are not-so-good since I forgot to add my tracking code for the new domain!), but I do write my reviews based on how I personally feel, and every now and then I’ll plug a product that I like or toss a personal post up so that my visitors can get to know ME a little better. I try to be social and visit other bloggers, so they DON’T feel that “Oh, my gosh! Is ANYone reading this?” feeling.
Thanks for this post! I have MAJOR blog insecurity…like really bad.. But your tips are ones I try to think about on a constant basis and they’re very practical and reasonable.