Legend of a Writer: Blogging Life

Super Quick Blogoversary Announcement!

Blogging Life February 14, 2021

Behind the Blogger Tag

Blogging Life January 17, 2021

Happy Sunday!

As you're reading this, I'm currently heading back to college. #yikes I can't promise that I won't disappear, but I'm hoping to post once every two weeks. HOPEFULLY I learned enough about time management last semester to successfully pull this off.

~~just watch me fail epically at this~~

But, in case I do disappear right off the bat, I decided to do the Behind the Blogger Tag to reassure you that I am actually a blogger and not a supernatural being who can only stay in this form for so long. XD

Thank the person who nominated you. Thank you so much, Jenna! <3

Answer the questions.

Ping back to the creator: Ellyn of Allonsythornraxx (which is the best name EVER)

Nominate 5+ bloggers to do the tag.

Why did you start blogging, and why have you kept blogging?

Oof, that's a loaded question.

I started blogging rather reluctantly. My parents and teachers kept saying that it would be "a great way to improve my writing." So I started my first blog out of peer pressure. XD

Why I kept blogging . . . well, it was because of you, honestly. Through blogging, I discovered a community of young writers unlike anything from my wildest dreams. And I knew that these were my people. So yeah, thank you for giving me a chance. <3 <3

What is your favorite type of blog post to write?

Recently, I've loved writing story analysis posts! Ironically, those are also the scariest posts for me to publish. I'm always worried I missed some huge plot thing in my analysis which would ruin it. XD But you know, those posts are always a work in progress. ~~and maybe one day I'll actually write about a book instead of anime~~

What are your top three favorite blog posts?

That's SO HARD. But since you're making me choose . . .

You Were Made For More - no, it's not the greatest poem ever written, but it really helped me get through the summer of 2018.
They're Not Just For Kids: A Rant - I'm thinking of making an anime-focused part 2, because the stigma of cartoons only being "for kids" is still something that ticks me off.
How To Write a Bestselling YA Fantasy Novel - definitely a classic XD

Honestly, I still like a lot of my blog posts, even the older ones. It surprises me, because usually people HATE their early posts. And . . . yeah, mine aren't the greatest things to ever appear on the Internet. But we all had to start somewhere, and I don't think I did a horrible job on them. *shrugs*

What are some of your favorite things to do to relax?

~~Binge-watch YouTube~~

~~Binge-watch TV shows~~

~~Procrastinate~~

Read books, of course! I'm a book blogger, what did you expect? ;) But I also really love to journal. It's a great way for me to unload stress and unwind from the day.

What are three of your favorite things?

My Zuko Funko Pop.

My bullet journal.

And the stash of dark chocolate I've hoarded in my desk for weeks. Don't ask how much there is. It's embarrassing.

What are your proudest blogging moments?

Oh, heavens . . . every blogging moment I've ever had has slipped out of my mind.

Honestly, my proudest blogging moments were the first time someone commented on my blog, and the first time someone responded to my comment on their blog. At that moment, I just remember feeling a huge sense of relief that people were accepting me into the community.

I'm a very self-doubting person, in case you can't tell. XD

What are your hobbies outside of blogging?

I mean, reading, writing, Spotify . . . storytelling in general.

Describe your personality in three words.

*flees from this question* You expect me to sum up my entire being in three words???

*sighs* All right, fine.

Obsessed with stories.

What are your top three pet peeves?

~~when people ask me to describe myself in three words~~

Interruptions. When I think I've finished a task and then realize I missed an entire part of it. When I throw off a bullet journal spread by misdrawing one line in pen.

What's something your followers don't know about you?

I recently acquired Lord of the Rings Trivial Pursuit, and it comes with a copy of the One Ring. So basically, I'm a Ringbearer now. XD

Ah, yes, the hardest part of the tag. Picking people to tag. XD

Samantha @ Bookshire

Emily @ The Ones That Really Matter

Ribbon Ash @ Virtual Paper

Diamond @ I Have 12% of a Plan

and YOU! Because you are an AMAZING blogger, and you deserve to show the world. :D

And here are the questions for copy/paste purposes:

Why did you start blogging, and why have you kept blogging?

What is your favorite type of blog post to write?

What are your top three favorite blog posts?

What are some of your favorite things to do to relax?

What are three of your favorite things?

What are your proudest blogging moments?

What are your hobbies outside of blogging?

Describe your personality in three words.

What are your top three pet peeves?

What's something your followers don't know about you?

And that's the end of this tag! I hope this was entertaining for you to read.

You won't see me post next week, but hopefully I'll be able to post every other week! *fingers crossed*

So, until then . . .

-Nicole <3

How did you get started blogging? What are YOUR top three pet peeves? (Please tell me I'm not the only one who struggles to describe themselves XD) Let's chat!

Instagram Manifestos and Why I Made One

Blogging Life January 03, 2021

Happy Sunday!

At long last, 2021 has arrived, and with it comes a plethora of New Years resolutions, goals, and ambitions. One resolution in particular I see a lot of content creators take on is tracking social media growth. (In this post, I'll mainly be talking about Instagram.) It makes sense - you want to grow your audience, and coming up with goals and trackers of your follow count can be beneficial.

But I've never been able to really relate to that desire. At this point in my life, I'm not overly concerned with tracking stats and making little graphs of my progress. That isn't really helpful for my Instagram use. Instead, I've adapted something I like to call an Instagram Manifesto.

Yes, it sounds like something right out of a Mission Impossible movie, but it's actually been extremely useful as I plan out how I want to use Instagram this year.

First off, what is an Instagram Manifesto?

For me, it's basically a mission statement for how I want to use Instagram. The idea is that, whenever I get on the app, I want to only use it in the ways listed in the manifesto. Anything else is either a waste of time, very draining, or both.

Over the past few months, I've found myself gravitating towards Instagram as a place of procrastination. I never really understood the "hours scrolling" metaphor until I ended up literally scrolling through memes for hours. I never left those hours feeling productive or happy. If anything, they made me feel worse about myself, because Instagram culture, especially the anime and fandom culture I tend towards, drains me socially and emotionally.

In the last week of 2020, I ended up completely deleting the app from my phone and the bookmark from my laptop because I just felt so tired of the Internet.

I didn't get Instagram because I wanted to feel drained, though. I didn't get Instagram to scroll through stupid, unfunny memes for hours. I got Instagram because . . . well, you can just read my manifesto for yourself.

For me, Instagram is a place for me to hone my photography skills, to talk about books and other story-related passions, and to connect with old friends and make new ones. It should be used as a nice break from work and a good way to catch up with people who I rarely see.

That's my manifesto, right there. It covers every positive reason I got the app, and it only includes those things that won't drain me in a negative way. Anything that isn't on the manifesto, isn't worth doing.

And even in the few days I've been back on Instagram, it's helped tremendously. I've been able to stay more focused on using the positive aspects of the app and avoiding the negative ones. I've barely looked at memes, which, believe me, was a significant time drain. And I've felt less drained in general.

Obviously, a manifesto can't do everything, and I'm sure in the coming weeks that my motivation to utilize it will shrink significantly. BUT now I have guidelines that I can at least try to follow, even if I fail and begin the endless scroll again.

If you have good self-control with social media, you probably don't need to create a manifesto. But if you're like me and easily distracted, having a manifesto could be the motivation you need to stay focused. It's also more helpful for me, since I'm trying to focus on making more personal connections rather than gaining lots of followers that I never interact with. As a result, trackers and graphs aren't really a good way for me to see my Instagram account. If you're the same way, maybe draw up a mission statement.

In 2021, I really want to be intentional with my social media usage, and I'm hoping this is the first step towards that goal. Because if I spend one more hour mindlessly going through Instagram Reels, I think I might die. XD

Anyways, I hope some of you found this remotely helpful! And even if you didn't . . . well, I hope you enjoyed my semi-rant about my lack of self-control. Social media can be so fun, but more often than not it's a nuisance. It's a battle we have to fight in order to balance the good with the bad. *sighs*

-Nicole <3

How do you manage your Instagram usage? Why did you get the social media apps you use? Any social media goals for 2021? Let's talk!