This morning I was catching up with my best friend on the phone. At the end of our conversation, to my delight, she told me that she had downloaded Elizabeth is Missing, Boy, Snow, Bird, and The Goldfinch to her Kobo after reading about them on my blog. My first reaction was excitement (I’ll be able to discuss things with someone I know in “real life”!); my second reaction was nervousness.
Being a blog owner, for me, is kind of funny that way. Of course I hope that my posts are read by many people and spark a lot of discussion (especially these Monday Musings posts – I always love reading your comments!) but whenever I think about the fact that some of my readers are people I know in real life, I always feel a twinge of self-consciousness. Do you ever feel this way?
I’m not sure why this is the case for me. Realistically, those who know me should be the least likely to judge me harshly. But I suppose it’s my need to impress that makes me feel nervous whenever I find out a friend (or even family member) has stumbled upon this project of mine. However, I do feel energized and elated every time a close friend tells me my blog inspired them to pick up a book. I guess there are two sides to each situation!
How about you? Do you enjoy knowing that your personal friends read your blog? Do you ever get self-conscious about it like I do sometimes (most of the time)?
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When I first started blogging I kept it secret from those I knew in real life, but over time I’ve gotten more comfortable with the idea. I figure most people don’t have much interest anyway (if I had more people in my life that shared my interests, I might not feel the need to blog), so while it’s not a secret anymore, I also don’t advertise it… and I just don’t think much about my RL people reading my blog. For all I know, it happens more often than I think… but if they never comment and never mention it to me, I sort of forget that they’re out there.
That’s what happens to me too! It always takes me by surprise when people I know personally tell me they enjoyed a blog post or a book recommendation they found on my blog.
Yes!! For this exact reason, it’s why even though I’ve been blogging for 3-4 years now, it’s only very recently that I’ve started letting people IRL know about it. It’s so bizarre and I’m not sure why I’m so hesitant about it either.. maybe the judging thing like you mentioned above..
I do share links on my Facebook from time to time, but usually I just assume people will gloss over it 😛 It never really registered that people would actually take the time to read it. I will say though, after the self-consciousness subsides it makes me really excited to hear that my friends enjoy what I’ve been writing!
It always feels weird when someone I know in real life mentions something they read on my blog. I tend to forget it’s not just internet strangers I’m writing to! I always worry I’ve let slip something online that I don’t want people in my offline life to know 😛
Haha! Isn’t it strange? I always feel like I’m writing to my internet friends and strangers when I write my posts… I wonder what it’s like to know me and read my blog 😛
Yesssss I definitely have that twinge of self-consciousness. Maybe more than a twinge, to be honest. 🙂 It’s a fine balance, to be sure.
I definitely get super bashful when it’s mentioned to me in person. I’m just thankful that there are people out there who do take the time to read my blog!
I’d say congratulations that RL people enjoy your blog enough to be regular readers! Funnily, after I started blogging, I found that a long out of regular touch friend from Uni also blogged, and this has brought a new dimension to our relationship, reading and commenting on each other’s blogs. But that is the only RL contact I have.
That’s an amazing connection to have! I definitely think having a blog brings readers (and even strangers) together – even better when you know the other blogger in “real life.” What a fun experience 🙂
It looks like you’re not alone! A lot of people I know still don’t know that I have a blog. It took some time to even let my in-laws know (I did tell my own family almost right away, partly because I wanted help from my brother who knows a lot more about computers than I do. I also knew that my siblings would most likely ignore it. I think my parents read it most of the time, but at this point, I’ve sort of forgotten about it.). There is just something different about writing for new friends or strangers on the internet and writing for people who have known you in ‘real life’. It is gratifying to find out that they enjoy it, though!
I agree – it really is to write for a broader audience as opposed to people you know personally. It makes me wonder if my blogging voice sounds any different from my “real life” voice!
I suspect that mine does, although, in a good way. As an introvert, I find it easier to say what I really want to say online. So, for me, that’s a good thing!
I’ve let a few “RL” people know about the blog, yet rarely do they leave comments. I don’t think my family even reads my posts, and while I used to mention it to my students, I don’t anymore. It’s a rather vulnerable position having a blog. Something like having our journal found on the kitchen table open for everyone to read.
“Vulnerable” describes it perfectly. It’s a thrilling feeling, for sure, but also a scary one sometimes. The friends who read my blog hardly ever comment too! I wonder why that is 🙂
It is indeed very strange. I’m very quiet in real life, so some in-law-relatives have commented they know me more now through my blog than they did in the 20-something years they’d known me before. I prefer to pretend only strangers are reading it; it’s too intimate otherwise.
Haha you’re right – perhaps I just pretend that none of my friends read my blog so I actually can write it! Blogging really is so intimate yet also so public; what a strange dynamic, eh?
I blogged for years before people I knew I real life found out about it. Those anonymous days were a good training ground! Yes, it felt odd when people I knew started reading and commenting about my posts but it wasn’t nearly as terrifying as when my book was released and so much of my life was aired for all to read about! In the end, I have found it freeing and it is kind of flattering when people you know take the time to read your work, yes?
I can’t imagine writing and publishing a book! It must be so gratifying though! And you’re right – it’s very flattering when friends enjoy my writing 🙂 Thank you for commenting!
For a long time almost no one in my real life even knew my blog existed. I just didn’t feel comfortable shouting “LOOK AT ME, READ WHAT I WROTE!” These days more people know but they are rarely the people that ‘participate’ online. I know that my friends occasionally mine my blog for books to read but I also talk to most people I know about books all the time so they can just ask me.
True! My friends who read my blog often will just ask me in person what I’m reading… it’s pretty great that reading can bring people closer together!
I just started my blog in November and honestly not a lot of people know I have one. I briefly mentioned it to my family over the holidays. I just posted about it on my FB page today. I feel weird with the self-promotion thing. And maybe it’s weird, but I would rather strangers see my blog than friends, you know?
I was so nervous to post about my blog on Facebook for the first time! I just convinced myself that people wouldn’t be interested anyway. And I totally get what you mean – sometimes it’s just too nerve-wracking to think that your personal friends are reading your writing. (That being said, I appreciate the support when they do!)
I wouldn’t mind it if my friends read my blog. I’m pretty sure that most of them don’t although I have mentioned to them that I do have a blog.
Haha! That’s true in my case too. I wonder how many of my friends actually do read my blog (and how they’re reacting to this post! Haha).
I understand that feeling. I don’t actually think anyone I know reads my blog, though some friends and family know I have one. But since I primarily do reviews and the people I know either don’t read much or don’t share my taste, I understand why they don’t read my blog. I’m fine with this though, as I’d hate to think they found it boring.
Your thoughts are my thoughts! I didn’t exactly keep my blog a secret when I started out, but I didn’t publicise it either. Then, last year, I made a Facebook page and then found myself inviting my friends to like it. All of a sudden they were all reading my blog and I was a bit daunted! I wrote a particularly emotional and personal post at one point and I had people privately messaging me about it and it received so many likes on Facebook that eventually, members of my extended family saw it – something that I wasn’t entirely comfortable with! I guess that kind of exposure is something we have to get used to if we want a wider audience reading our stuff. A bit of a catch 22.
I feel exactly the same. Only one of my close friends knows about my blog, and, whilst she’s absolutely lovely and very supportive of it, I’m not planning on telling anybody else anytime soon! Quite a large chunk of my family read my blog, so I usually have to push this out of my mind when I’m writing posts. So, all is fine – most of the time. It’s only when relatives mention it out loud and ask me questions about it, I begin to cringe. Of course I appreciate all the support from my family, but my blog has always been a very personal hobby, and I don’t always feel comfortable with my own little personal space clashing so openly with reality.