I’ve been going through a bit of a blogging crisis recently. Despite writing my goals at the start of the year I’ve found it really hard to find a focus to what I’m doing, which in turn has made it increasingly difficult to find the motivation to write and create content.
The fun I was having in just making things and putting them out into the world and seeing what happened when I started this last year had gone. I still love illustrating. I still have moments when the words just seem to type themselves. But I’d started to resent having to sit down and “blog” or do all of the social media stuff that comes along with that.
If I’m honest, I’d let the numbers get to me.
I have fewer views than I did this time last year. My social followers seem to have plateaued. Despite me putting in more work, and creating things I loved, it felt like it made no difference.
While the numbers aren’t everything. They are something.
I never thought I’d be a huge blogger. I’m quite late to the game, with a slightly unfocused niche that doesn’t have the kind of cache as lifestyle or beauty. But I did think I would keep growing if my content kept improving.
So when the numbers started to dwindle I took it very personally. I’ve poured hours and hours into this blog, and to feel it wasn’t growing with the effort was hard, especially because it’s been the focus of the content I’ve put out into the world for the past year.
Focusing on this blog has given me so many opportunities, but it’s also taken my focus away from my other work.
So, I’m redefining who I am as a maker and where I am in the blogging world. I was never really a blogger. I am an illustrator who blogs.
I’m going to focus on developing those skills and creating great visual work I love.
In order to do that, I’m going to be taking a bit of a step back from this blog over the next couple of months from April onwards, and dropping down to two posts a week (Tuesdays and Thursdays). I’ll still be sending out my newsletter every Sunday morning so there’s still going to be plenty of content out there. But reducing my schedule is going to give me the breathing space to hopefully really develop my art for its own sake rather than just to support this blog.
Hopefully in turn that will help me have a more healthy relationship with blogging, and who knows it might even lead to some fresher content.
I’m sorry to hear you’ve been struggling when it comes to blogging, but I can definitely relate. I actually had a really successful book blog prior to launching atypicalnarrative and I think that even when I’m able to not compare myself to others I find it hard not to compare what I’m doing now to my prior blog. It’s a contributor why I’m so hot and cold with blogging. I love it but sometimes it feels unjustified?
I usually just try to remind myself that they’re totally different beasts. I think niche blogs are a bit easier because there’s already a well-defined community to thrust yourself into. For some reason it feels like such a community doesn’t quite exist for blogging illustrators. I’m sure there’s some out there, but it takes a lot more work to find that the other niche blogs and that can be quite discouraging.
Anyways, I hope that switching to a two-post a week schedule helps! I’ll be looking forward to your posts no matter how frequent/infrequent they are!
Thanks Asti, I think “I love it but sometimes it feels unjustified?” really hits the nail on the head. It’s less that I want to be huge but more that I want to feel like I’m getting something back out of it. Fingers crossed the drop down in posts will help, if nothing else it will take some of the pressure off!
I feel exactly the same! For the last few years I blogged less (gradually) and then my blogging mojo vanished completely last year. I felt guilty at first, which wasn’t helpful because I ended up avoiding my blog. I then finally talked into myself that there was nothing to feel bad about and that blogging once or twice a month was totally fine. I’ve lost most of my blog followers but I’ve accepted it and hope to continue to write good quality content when I can…without stressing myself out or feeling guilty.
I absolutely adore your blog because of your distinctive style (illustration, mindful, honest etc.) and I totally understand that you need to step back – like Asti, I will still look forward to your posts no matter how frequent / infrequent they are!
Thanks Katrina, it’s nice to know I’m not the only one who feels like this. A lot of the blogging rhetoric is about being relentlessly positive about the future and growing.
I don’t plan on leaving blogging just yet, but I think the idea of “writing good quality when I can…without stressing myself out” is exactly what I’m going for. Especially because I know how much I enjoy your blog posts when they pop up x