Blogging: Nine Months Strong

ine Month's I've been a' bloggin'.  Nine month's I've been a writin!  It's shocking how close to a year that is, isn't it?  Scary.  It's also not THAT big of a deal.  Don't worry, I've got my head screwed on straight.  But I do spend a lot of time thinking about my blog, so please allow me a few musings about this project I've undertaken. 

Over the last nine months, I do believe I've gotten better at blogging.  I use tags.  I post more frequently.  My posts have topics.  The amount of pageviews I get has gone up per month.  That's all good.

I also still really like the idea of blogs, and the unassuming way they invite people into your life, as I mention here.

But sometimes I'm confused by what tone I want my blog to have and what exactly I'm trying to convey to you/the world.  I definately have no idea what makes my blog different, special and therefore worthwhile.  I wonder about my blogging voice:  I try to stay positive, because I find that if I write a lot about what's been bugging me, I dwell on those things more than I need to.  I'm not really helping myself out by doing that; and I'm probably bumming you guys out too.  But on the other hand, I worry that I present an image of myself that's fake.  Too happy, too cheery, too crafty, too fake.  Is that just another form of marketing a persona, instead of really communicating with my friends?  What do you think?

I have an extra layer of confusion, sometimes, because the blogs I like to read are lifestyle/design/DIY blogs with wide readerships.  The style and format I try to imitate is not necessarily applicable to what I'm nominally doing here- communicating with friends and family flung far and wide.  But then the reason I like those blogs is because they give and teach; they present a world filled with pretty and happy.  I hope to help out with that mighty-fine goal through my little postings. 

Writing this blog and reading other blogs has also provided me with a better sense of longtime lifestyle and crafting goals:  I often notice how much I wish my photography skills were better/I owned a better camera/my apartment had better light/and that I owned the Adobe Suite: Illustrator, Photoshop, etc.  One day, one day, I'll buy myself these things/take more classes to get better at using and making them.  Also a sewing machine. 

Anyway.  All in all, I've been enjoying this, and I hope you have too.  I guess I'll just keep sounding my "barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world" (Walt Whitman/Zelda). 

Thanks for reading and commenting; it's good to know you're out there!