Behind the Blog: Did You Know?

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As part of the blogging community, I’ve realized how important it is for my readers to feel connected to me. But not just me, this goes for all bloggers. Readers want to empathize and share stories they feel closely and relate to. Most importantly, readers want to feel unity by knowing they are not alone in their thoughts and emotions. And as bloggers, our goal is to create a safe space for our readers, while promoting inclusion and support through a clickable website.

Blogger Olivia Lucie Blake expressed in a post that although her blog and personal life are separate, she wanted to allow her readers to get a deeper glimpse into her world. And so, she created the Behind the Blogger tag challenge.

I am humbled and grateful to be nominated for this challenge by Cassie of Let’s Grow Mom. Thank you so much, Cassie! This tag challenge provides the opportunity for bloggers to share four (4) interesting and unknown facts about themselves on their sites. After, a call of action for the participation of additional bloggers is summoned.

I will tag additional bloggers at the end of this post. If I have tagged you, I hope you understand that there is absolutely no pressure or expectation for you to participate in this challenge. I simply admire your site and content! But if you would like to participate, I cannot wait to hear more about you.

So, without further ado, let’s dive right in!

Photo by Anete Lūsiņa on Unsplash

I Started Writing at the Age of 12

I remember the exact moment I fell in love with writing. I was in my 7th Grade English class. Mr. Riviezzo, my teacher, assigned the students a writing exercise where he would play different instrumentals based on various tones and moods. The instrumentals would switch at random times, never quite allowing you to catch up with the current state of your thoughts.

The goal of the writing exercise was to keep writing as the instrumentals shifted, while letting the story unfold with no limitations. I remember the excitement I felt doing this exercise. Me, scribbling on my loose-leaf paper ferociously, as if I was attempting to keep up with all the thoughts and emotions pouring out of me. In that moment, I knew that I loved writing.

It is mind boggling to me that I kept this hidden until the age of 29, when I first shared my writing publicly. But there was never any love lost. Writing still feels exciting to me, even after all these years.

I Never Write the Introduction of my Blog Posts First

And I mean NEVER. I get this weird anxiety thing about writing introductions. I almost feel, should I say pressured?

If you truly think about it, introductions are majorly important. They set the tone of the post. Within the introduction, the reader decides if they wish to continue reading or if they rather hit the exit key of the web browser, urgently. See? Too much pressure.

For me, I like to write the “meat and potatoes” of the post first, where the depth of the content will be. Once the sections are completed, and after proofreading, I work on the introduction based on the tone I feel is appropriate. This allows me to connect with the topic and not overanalyze the methods that should be used to introduce the topic.

I Didn’t Get My Driver’s License Until the Age of 25

I struggled with an irrational fear about driving for many years. I honestly gave up before I could try! The thought of getting into a car accident terrified me and I was not confident enough in my capabilities to successfully maneuver a car. Drastic, right? Trust me, I’m slightly embarrassed to be sharing this with you all (slightly blushes), but it’s true.

When I first got my license, I still allowed fear to dictate where I drove to or even my desire to drive. If it was too far, I didn’t want to drive there. If I had to travel by highway, no way, not doing it. If I had to get across a busy, double intersection, I would rather make a U-turn before throwing myself into danger like that (okay, I still do this…). It took me 2 years of driving to finally feel comfortable and confident in my capabilities. Now, although I still very much hate driving, it is out of sheer laziness and not fear. 😊

I Collect Shot Glasses from Different States and Countries that I Visit

This is a tradition I began when I visited Spain, a trip I gifted myself for graduating college. When I visit a different state or country, I make it a priority to buy a shot glass that represents where I am visiting. I also aim to search for the most unique looking shot glass that represents the culture. For example, my shot glass from New Orleans is the shape of a saxophone and says, “Bourbon Street.”

 I have over 20 shot glasses collected so far. I showcase them in an antique passed down to me by my father, which I turned into a bar. Whenever I have company, the shot glasses serve as great ice breakers and provides the opportunity for me to reminisce about that trip while being able to share tips, should that person wish to travel to the place in topic.  

Photo by Andrea Davis on Unsplash

I hope you enjoyed reading my unknown facts for the tag series. I would love to also extend the invite to all my readers to also participate in the challenge by sharing at least one interesting or unknown fact about yourself. Also, if you have any questions about the unknown facts listed above, please feel free to ask this in the comment section and I would be happy to answer them. I would love to hear from you all!

Here are my nominees:

The 20-Odd Blog

Brianna Stryker Writes

The Redefined Melanin Mamma

Beauty of Cafe205

Mind. Beauty. Simplicity.

Sending my love ❤

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Like a lotus flower, I emerge from dark, murky waters to reveal my beauty. Feeling and healing on this journey of life; glowing and flowing. I have always loved writing, but it has taken me 29 trips around the sun before I had to confidence to share publicly. I hope my writing, which is near and dear to my heart, sparks light and love in all of you. Make yourself at home and enjoy the ride!

53 thoughts on “Behind the Blog: Did You Know?”

  1. cool! nice to get to know you. I also had a fear of driving for the longest — I still do sometimes. I think it’s pretty normal, or at least I hope so. 🙂 and that’s cool that you collect shot glasses — you have 20 so far?? wow! which one is your favorite? And from which state do you hope to collect one from next?
    and interesting that you write the intro last — but I get it because the introduction is the hardest. I write it first but it is the section that takes me the longest to write..

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    1. It’s nice to know I’m not alone with my history of fear with driving! I live in Florida so my peers constantly tease me about this because to get anywhere, you have to be willing to drive.

      Yes, 20 or possibly more shot glasses! I got tired of counting lol. I have a few favorites- I have a mini tiki glass shot glass that I got from Hawaii, the New Orleans shot glass is another favorite, and I love the shot glass I got from France- it’s a mini wine glass. I’m hoping my next one will be from Denver. I have visited Denver before but completely forgot to buy a shot glass, which is a shame because that trip was so memorable! I have to go back JUST for the shot glass lol.

      The intro has always been the most difficult for me. For this post, I attempted to write the intro first and it was a disaster. Constant revisions and a lot of time wasted staring blankly at my computer screen.

      Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

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    1. Yes, I was 12 when I was first truly inspired. I’ve always loved reading since a young age and I was always a story telling as a kid (my imagination back then was unmatched!). After I discovered my love for writing, I tried to dabble in poetry too but that’s not my forte.

      As for your driver’s license, the best piece of advice I can give is to just get it done! I wasted so much of my years between 19-25 dreading driving and procrastinating. And it was hard to adjust to at first but now I can’t imagine life without driving! Especially because you NEED a car to get around in Florida.

      Thank you for reading and commenting, Penny! xx

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  3. So you never write your opening paragraph first? I don’t have a consistent time when I write mine, sometimes it’s the first thing I write, sometimes it’s the last, and sometimes I just think of an introduction paragraph as I’m writing the rest of the article. Oh, I’m 40 and I still haven’t learnt to drive, so 25 isn’t that old

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    1. Never. I’m very much a creature of habit and I tend to stick with what works for me. I tried to write the intro to this post first and it was a complete disaster! Lots of revisions and lots of time wasted staring at my computer screen.

      As for driving, I live in Florida so it’s very hard to get around without a car. There’s limited public transportation here with few routes and running times of an hour apart. My peers still tease me about getting my license so late as the norm here is to get it in high school since they offer Driver’s Ed as a course.

      Thank you for reading and commenting!

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  4. I love this post concept. I have to say I really understand not writing the intro first. It is weirdly intimidating! Also I started writing at a young age too.

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  5. Nice to know more about you. I passed my driving test when I was 22. I was desperate to drive because I was working as a trainee journalist and it was very hard to cover stories and parish councils on public transport – I lived in a rural area.
    It’s lovely to collect momentoes of travel. The shot glasses sound fun and varied!

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    1. I can definitely understand the urgency of getting your driver’s license because of that! And yes, the shot glasses are very fun and varied. I always aim for a different look each time. Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

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  6. Thanks for participating in the tag Angie. I knew that I would enjoy hearing more about you. I discovered that we share the same writing quirk. I also write my introduction last. Initially, I might write a few words that I know I want to include, but I just get on with it. Once I have a feel for the post and my intention, I go back and write the introduction. I’ve always been that way. So nice to have someone share the same process. I always said that if I had money to hire someone to do something for me, I would love to have a driver. Sometimes, I enjoy it sometimes, but I could also do without it.

    ~ Cassie

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  8. I always start by writing the introduction to the blog post first, but you might have just convinced me to switch up from now on! Love the idea of collecting shot glasses from the places you visit on your travels, it’s nice to have a mementos x

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    1. I’m happy to hear I have inspired you! Please do let me know how this method works for you. And yes, collecting shot glasses is definitely my favorite hobby. Keeps me connected to my travels. Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

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  9. This is awesome! I started blogging like for 3 years now and have always written the title of my blog post first, then look for contents that matches the title which is weird lol. This is very informative. Will surely start doing things differently from now on. Thanks for such a nice post!

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    1. Happy to hear I have inspired you with a new method! Please let me know how this works out for you. And I don’t think your current method is weird at all! Honestly makes sense to me lol. Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

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  10. What a wonderful tag! It was so great getting to know you better. I didn’t get my license until 24! I’m glad to hear I wasn’t the only one afraid of driving. It’s so cool that you collect shot glasses! It’s nice to bring home something from a trip that gives you nice memories!

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    1. It’s been quite the relief hearing that I am not the only one who got her license later than usual lol. And yes, I agree- it is nice to bring a piece of my travels home with me. Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

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  11. Great to get to know you. For my blog, In my Every Day Life, I also never write the introduction to a blog post first, I write the meat and potatoes first and then the beginning and end will come to me. I don’t remember how old I was when I got my drivers license, I was either 20 or 21 🙂 Happy to meet you, I signed up to follow you xo

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  12. Oh!! I don’t write my blog post intros first, either. I literally put a place holder of “intro blah blah blah intro”, sometimes even “and more intro” for spacing purposes.

    I didn’t get my license until I was 19 or 20 — I don’t remember exactly, but I stopped driving for years after that (due to trauma) and only recently picked it back up again.

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    1. Glad to hear I’m not the only one who writes intros last! And I’m sorry to hear that trauma caused you to stop driving but that’s great that you picked it back up! Thank you for reading and commenting!

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  13. This is such a cool tag – I really enjoyed getting to know you! I’m the opposite with intros, I always write them first but it’s actually for the same reason you write them last – I like getting the hardest part out of the way first, but I understand doing it the other way around too! Having a collection of different shot glasses is so cool too, I’m the same but with postcards and key rings haha. Thanks for sharing x

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  14. Nice to know a bit of you! I myself learn to drive when I was 23 and start my blog last 2018. Hmmm, I wonder how many shot glasses are there in your room?
    Anyways, thanks for sharing.

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  15. It’s so lovely to get to know you more!
    I’m 23 at the mo and haven’t started to learn to drive out of an irritational fear too. I reckon I’ll be around 25 by the time I actually get around to it!

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  16. It was really lovely to get to know you abit more lovely. I’m the same, I find writing the beginning of my blog really intimidating, I much prefer writing my recipes first then the rest of my blog. This is a wonderful tag! Thank you so much for sharing Xo

    Elle – ellegracedeveson.com

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  18. I always enjoy reading blogger tags, it’s such a fun way to find out more about my fellow writers. That’s so interesting about your shot glass collection, I don’t know anyone else that collects shot glasses and the New Orleans one sounds fabulous!

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    1. I agree- definitely a fun way to find out about the person behind the craft! And yes, the New Orleans shot glass is one of my favorites in the collection. Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

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  20. I loved reading this post. Thank you for sharing.

    I love writing intros to posts but always leave them unfinished & have to go back to them!

    Also didn’t get my driving licence until 23.

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    1. Thank you for sharing! I can definitely understand intro being left unfinished until the end but at least you’re not intimidated by writing them! It’s a relief to know I’m not the only one who didn’t get their license right out of high school. Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

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  23. What a fun tag! I never write my introductions first either, I actually write the conclusion first, because in the case of book reviews, that is what tend to be easiest to write for me. Thanks for sharing, it was nice to get to know a little bit about you!

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  25. An interesting blog, tells a lot about you.
    I want to share a personal opinion:
    I feel like, readers might not be interested to know anything about me. My niche is health and wellness, and time and again I share stuff that’s around me, I want to share a stuff that’s relatable and tried by me. But, also I keep the personal life hidden . Yes, people can see my name and pic, but nothing beyond that. I never talk about what I ate or what I did yesterday, because people don’t want to read that. If I start sharing about me, then it will be hard to balance between health and wellness topics and my personal life.
    This comment is just an opinion and I meant no offense to your content.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. It really just depends on your niche. For my blogs, people feel more connected to me because I share my personal life. But ultimately, it’s a balance of what to share and what not to share. For this particular post, it was a challenge that I was nominated for, so I served that purpose. Thank you for sharing your opinion.

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