I am really excited to share today’s post as I actually really enjoy writing posts about blogging. The title may be slightly misleading as I have been blogging on and off since I was about 12 (I would cringe looking back at old posts now). I’m always so grateful that I decided to start blogging again as I genuinely love writing and being a part of the blogging community. Since May 2020 I re-started my blog and have been consistent with it for almost a year now so I’m going to say that I started blogging. Though I’m not new to blogging as such and the name of my blog existed beforehand I did not do anywhere near the amount of work I do now for my blog. I thought I’d use the Blogging Nostalgia Tag to share why I started blogging, and why I started again!
This post is part of the Blogging Nostalgia Tag created by Izzy Matias and MingWrites. Also huge thank you to Alisha for tagging me and be sure to check her blog post here too (and her wax melt business as they smell gorgeous)!
Blogging Nostalgia Tag Instructions
- Insert the blogging nostalgia tag banner anywhere in your blog post
- Thank the person who nominated you, and include the link to their responses.
- Answer the 9 questions in the blogging tag. You do not have to come up with new questions in the blogging tag.
- Nominate up to ten bloggers, do not stress if you cannot come up with ten names!
- Notify the nominees via any channel that is convenient for you, (e.g. email, Twitter, Facebook, blog comments, etc)
- List the rules on your blog post, preferably before you attempt the blogging tag.
- You are not required to include the words ‘Blogging nostalgia tag’ in your blog post title or URL slug. We understand that some bloggers will want to optimise this for SEO. Therefore, a brief mention in the body text will be sufficient!
Introduce Yourself and Share Three Fun Facts
Why are these questions always so difficult?! Hi, I’m Tash the writer behind this blog! I’m currently in my final term at university studying English Literature and currently have no idea what to do afterwards. I’m a bit of an everything blogger and love writing (one of the main reasons why I started blogging) so I love using this outlet to write about anything and everything that interests me.
Onto the (probably not so fun) facts:
- I’m a left-handed – I don’t know if this is that fun a fact but that’s all I’ve got at the moment. It used to be one of lives biggest struggles having to write in ink at school as I made such a mess and it smudged everywhere!
- I can recite the 50 states of America in alphabetical order (kind of) – back in school I had to learn the 50 US states for an assembly and recite them. This was back in year three but I can probably still say a good 30-40 of them now. I learnt them by adapting the states to fit to Kylie Minogue’s ‘Can’t get you Out of my Head’ and clearly it worked as I still can’t get them out of it!
- I can raise my right eyebrow like they do in the old Cadbury’s advert!
What was your first blog platform, and do you still remember your blog name?
Sadly I do still remember my first blog name. It was TashBrilliantBookBlog and, in case you couldn’t tell, I was a book blog. I then started a second blog called SkinDeep which was about beauty. Then rebranded the book blog to A Book with a View before eventually deciding to combine the two blogs and talk about a bit of everything with A Girl with a View. The name was inspired by Forster’s book A Room with a View which I read for A-level and really loved.
I started off on blogger and stayed there for my whole time as a blogger before finally switching to self-hosted on WordPress a few months ago!
Why did you start blogging?
I started blogging because I entered a competition to win an iPad back in 2012. You had to make a video review and upload it to YouTube. I didn’t win but I noticed that lots of the people that entered had book blogs. So I decided that I wanted to give it a go as I loved reading and set up my blog to do that. I worked with lots of children’s publishers and authors back in the day and even wrote reviews for The Guardian newspaper’s children’s book site and recorded a podcast with an author at their offices in London. Still the scariest day of my life, haha!
What is your favourite part about blogging?
For me, writing the blog posts is hands-down one of my favourite aspects of blogging. I have always enjoyed writing so it’s such a fun outlet to write what you want. I also love the blogging community. Back in the day I never really used social media to promote my blog so it was lonely out there but since starting blogging again I have become so involved in the community and it makes so much difference!
What do you blog about, and why did you choose those topics? Is your blog related to your field of study? Why or why not?
I’d say I’m mainly a lifestyle blogger. Though I do also include travel, university, beauty and book-related posts as they’re also things I enjoy and are part of my life. I want to start including more book-related posts as they’re some of my favourites to read and I love getting recommendations. I tested the waters with my best books I’ve read recently post and it’s been one of my most popular so stay tuned for more bookish content!
If you could pick any blog niche without considering web traffic or monetisation potential, what would it be?
I think I would still pick the niches I am in now. I didn’t start blogging with the intention of it being a full-time job. It’s a creative outlet and something I enjoy so getting hundreds of thousands of views and money would be nice but isn’t essential. I love writing and I love engaging in the community and making friends so I didn’t really consider these aspects when picking my blog.
Share a fun blogging memory with us
Hmmm, I’m not sure I really have that many. Since having this blog I haven’t exactly been able to go out and do much outside of sitting at a laptop. I guess, like I mentioned earlier, getting to record a podcast with the Guardian is probably the most fun blogging memory I have. I was invited as a result of my blog but that’s not exactly the most exciting of memories, haha!
If you could start over, what would you do differently?
Hands down I would start on WordPress. Blogger is okay as a platform but WordPress is just considerably better. It has already made such a difference to my blog that I wish I’d started out on that platform.
Finally, is there a blogger who inspires you? Name the first blogger you think of and your favourite three blog posts from him or her. Do not overthink this question, we are not playing favourite here!
I think Lauren is the first blogger who springs to mind here. I absolutely love her blog and always read her posts every week. She puts out such great content and is so so lovely as well! My favourite posts from her are probably her 48 hours in Lincoln guide, friendships (the low down), and 7 ways to enhance your CV!
My Blogging Nostalgia Tag Nominees
If you have been tagged there is absolutely no pressure to take part at all!
If you do take part in this tag, try and write a little something about each of your nominees.
- Lauren – unsurprising given she’s one of my favourite bloggers and so lovely too!
- Caroline – again so lovely and writes some of my favourite content!
- Eleanor – Eleanor has some of my favourite posts and I always enjoy chatting to her on Twitter!
- Zoe – I absolutely love reading Zoe’s posts and she’s so lovely too (can you sense a theme here, the blogging community is just so nice)! I also love her new header too!
Woah, thank you for making it to the end of this mammoth post! I hope you’ve enjoyed reading and learning a bit more about why I started blogging.
Why did you start blogging? I would love to know!
This was a great tag, I haven’t read this one before! Blogging since 12! I used to have Piczo websites when I was that age, they were so much fun so I guess I’ve always had some sort of website since that age as well!
This is a great tag and so lovely to read more about you and your blog! Here’s to many years of blogging for you x
Love reading more about who is behind the blog! Wow, you started young and the podcast with The Guardian must have been a great opportunity! Thank you for sharing x
Thank you so much for the tag and mentioning me as a blogger that inspires you, that’s really brightened up my day and means a lot to me! 🙂 loved reading this xx
You started blogging at a really young age and I can totally to relate to all the name stuff. You create a name for your blog and as you grow, you grow out of it and start to feel like the name is childish so yea you change it haha. I started blogging last year at 17 (before my 18th birthday), I created a blog on blogger named Ruthie’s lifestyle blog haha then I deleted it in November and started Ruthiee loves Glamour in November too. Ruthiee loves Glamour is so much better and I love it. It’s amazing just how important it has come to be to me. I love blogging and it was so good to read this.
This is such a fun tag idea; most of the tags I see are related to books or awards so a blogging tag is a nice change! I love that you have been writing for so long, even if it is on and off. That you recorded a podcast sounds like an amazing time to look back upon when in need of a refresher of how far writing can take you.
Thanks for sharing a little bit more about you and your writing! I started my blog out of a firm love of writing and the need to share. <3
I’m left handed too!
I started my current blog in 2012 but I’ve been blogging on different platforms since 2003!
Corinne
Aw thank you so much for your kind words- I love chatting on Twitter too! This is a great tag, it’s great to think back on when you started/re-started your blog 🙂
Congratulations on the tag! This is really nice! I enjoyed reading your answers. I loved reading about your progression of your blog, how you ended up with the name ” A Girl With a View” (which I love).
By the way, I totally understand your blogger point of view, I am thinking about switching to WordPress but then there’s something stopping me and I am not exactly sure what it is.
Inna | https://thedaiilysunlight.blogspot.com/
Switching to WordPress has made such a difference, I wish I’d done it sooner!
This is such a sweet tag – I love blogging nostalgia, I’ve been blogging for so long that it’s nice to be reminded of the journey. Your new theme looks beautiful x
I love a good old fashioned tag post! Also glad to know I’m not the only person who started on Blogger and regretted it!
Katie | katieemmabeauty.com
This was a lot of fun! I love reading posts about getting to know the bloggers a bit but wow, blogging since you were 12?! That’s dedication! I love that you’ve re-fallen in love with it over the last year.
This is a great tag, like you, I can name most of the US states (not in alphabetical order like you though, that’s a skill I need to master!) x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
Absolutely love this post! So interesting to learn how you started out – so cool about the podcast 😲💗 Thank you for the nomination – will get around to it at some point xx
What a brilliant tag! I always love reading more about the person behind the blog. This ties in perfectly though because it is about you and your blog.
Really interesting to read, thanks for sharing x
Such a great tag and it was lovely to read more about how your blog came to be and your blogging journey. I love that you want to include more bookish posts as it’s the opposite for me and I’d like to include more lifestyle posts in my blog. Also love that you learnt the 50 states to a Kylie song!
It was so much fun to read this and get to know you better, virtually! I love that you found a way to combine all of your passions into this one blog and that you’re back to it after time away. I’m looking forward to seeing more of your posts in the future!
Thank you!
What a cool tag – I love this kind of thing as a blog reader!
The 50 states is verry impressive and to a Kylie song – hilarious!
Rosie
Blogging since 12! Wow that’s something. As someone who loves travel, had a handle on naming the US states but never in alphabetical order. But thinking of it, alphabetical order is a more innovative way of remembering.
I say Cheers to many more years in the blogging sphere.
Seems like we started out the same way, my first blog was a book blog on blogger too. In hindsight it would have been so much better to start on WordPress as I’ve never been able to keep my old blogs for long. Great post, it was fun to get to know more about you x
My first time reading this blogging nostalgia! I enjoy reading your blogging journey. I started back in June 2020 and I enjoy it so far. What a brilliant tag!
This is such a fun post! It’s so fun to see how your blogging journey has progressed over the years! How fun that you got to do a podcast for the guardian! My blog name sued to be IS NOT THAT STRANGE from much ado before I rebranded and I miss it sometimes but I love where I’m at right now!
Thank you! I love your blog!
Glad to have you back in blogging! It’s been such a journey for you. I’m sure you’ll continue to grow through blogging.
Thank you!
I wish I had started on wordpress, I’m on blogger too and truth be told it is so complicated! I think it’s good to have on and off blogging days and moments, it’s important to only write when you feel passionate to, not just pressured to! xx
http://www.iridescentplaces.com
I agree! Thank you for reading
Excellent post. Blogging since 12! Wow, that’s a lot of words! Keep up the good work.
Thanks!
What a fun post! It sounds like blogging has brought some enrichment and fulfillment into your life.
I started my current blog as a way to keep myself accountable while I’m writing, so I don’t get overwhelmed or bored and quit. I also share writing tips so the blog isn’t just about me-me-me. It’s been fun so far, and I’ve started getting good feedback from my followers.
I’m left-handed too! My first blog platform was Livejournal!
Corinne x
What a fun article! When I was 12 the internet wasn’t even a thing but I was writing. I started my first blog back in 2011 and it was a book blog too, and I kept that up for years but then started a second blog on WordPress, had no idea what I was doing and then started my current blog and am growing and learning and loving it more than ever. I love that so many of us entered blogging through our love of books.
Giulia, tidbitsofcare.com
Haha yes! I’ve found out that so many people began as book bloggers which is fun!