Conversations: Week 3: What Pushed you to Start Blogging and Why do you Continue to Blog?

Conversations is a fortnightly discussion hosted by Geraldine @ Corralling Books and Joan @ Fiddler Blue. Head on over to their blogs for all the information on these posts! This week is all about blogging habits and why we blog.

My blogging start was probably a bit different from post people, and that it is because it was actually my parent's idea for me to start a blog! They thought it would be a great way for me to practice writing through reviews, and for me to become more social. I wanted to be a journalist, so they thought that writing book reviews would be good practice at writing articles. So basically, as unexciting as it sounds, I started blogging just because I wanted to prove to my parents that I could do something they wanted me to do. I just wanted to make them happy by taking their advice.

It really was my parents who took control of my blog at first. My mom came up with the name, my dad came up with a template, and then they basically handed it over to me to start blogging. None of us knew anything about it, and I had no idea where to begin. There were a lot of Google searches, to say the least.

When I started to gain a small following, that's when I realized that I wanted to do this properly and long-term. By then my parents had pretty much given up on the blog, so it was just me to direct it wherever I wanted it to go. I knew I wanted to continue because people's lovely comments on my posts motivated me to keep going.

I have always been a quitter growing up. I don't usually stick with things long-term, and almost all of my interests have fizzled out. To be honest, I didn't think this blog would last the summer I started. However seeing that people actually enjoyed my posts was enough for me to carry on and see where it went, and boy am I happy that I did.

I continue to blog now because with each passing day gives me more opportunity to meet new people, connect with more authors, and discover more amazing books. I wouldn't have read half of the amazing books that I have read now if it wasn't for connecting with different people and sharing recs. I wouldn't have a proper book under my belt if it wasn't for bloggers who told me about NaNoWriMo. I wouldn't have a support system who could literally cheer me up about anything, if I had quit.

Bottom line is, I continue to blog because it has become my life. My blog buddies have become my friends, and I would feel incomplete if I stopped now. People say I need to get a hobby other than reading, but honestly, blogging is my hobby. It's what makes me truly comfortable, it's what makes me, me.

I want to know what you think! Why do you continue to blog?

Emily @ Paperback Princess