I wanted to do a heart spill post to let ya know what’s been on my mind.
I’ve been having trouble lately thinking about this blog and what I want it to become. Lately, I’ve been reading more posts and listening to podcasts about how to make blogging your business and develop more traffic.
I originally started this blog as a hobby and creative outlet, but truly in order to make it grow and reach more readers, you must have a specific niche.
This idea of a niche scares me. I like blogging about whatever is on my mind and don’t want it to be limited to something that falls under the umbrella of my “niche” or think about if this post will serve my readers or not.
I want to share from an authentic and honest place and don’t want it to be clouded by some perception of what I think I should be doing.
But on the other hand, I do want to reach more people and know that my posts ARE all over the place and about this and that topics and maybe if I became more specific and narrowed it down to something, then it would be easier for people to know what I am about instead of getting lost in the inner tangles of my mind.
I also don’t want my creative hobby to become some business minded endeavor. That might steal away the joy.
But I also notice that as I grow and discover and figure things out and see clearer where my path is headed, maybe starting this blog as a creative hobby and talking about whatever excited me was the way for me to get started and now I’m feeling the impulse to hunker down and pick one or two topics so that you can get more quality over quantity.
I definitely do not have anything figured out. I am discovering as I am going, and maybe there’s value just in that.
In the process, in the discovery.
Yesterday, I went to a Nicholas Sparks q&a which is almost embarrassing because it’s Nicholas Sparks, but if a massively successful writer is coming to our remote seaside town in Connecticut, you bet I will be there.
I was struck by something he said about how he hates writing. He hates the writing process. He described it as grueling, painful, and hard.
Despite him talking about not really enjoying it, he does it every single day. He writes for 6 hours every day, because that is his work.
The fact that he’s written 22 novels, 14 of them have become #1 Bestsellers and 11 of them have been made into major motion pictures just proves that if you do the work, success (by however you define that) will come.
Thinking about if I need to pick a “niche” or not has stifled my creativity and I haven’t been coming up with many blog posts ideas lately.
I think for the rest of October, I am going to acknowledge this part of me and continue to post how I please and fulfill my commitment to blogging 5-7 days a week, and then in November, I can reevaluate where I’m at and see if I want to make any changes.
Today, that is my truth and that’s okay. Much love ❤
Mermaid Musings 