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I’ve now been writing a blog for three months, and in this post I wanted to take stock and reflect on why I started writing a blog in the first place.

It’s Enjoyable

Some people might say blogs have had their day, particularly with the advent of Substack, but I don’t think so. I already had my own website and it had a blog feature which I took little notice of at the start, however the more research I did on it and considered the possibilities of having a blog the more I was convinced that, not only would it be a good idea to engage with an audience online, but that it would be fun. And it is fun; I genuinely enjoy sitting down to write posts and come up with new ideas for the blog. I hope you enjoy the posts too. It amazes me that more writers don’t have a blog as it’s such a great way to keep in touch with readers and connect with an audience. I’m also aware that it’s 2025 and the majority of people spend a lot of their time online, so having an online presence as a writer can be no bad thing. From an early age I’ve always enjoyed tech things, and can remember for example going round to my friend’s house to play their SNES and how exciting it all was. So, the technology side of having a blog, and trying to get to grips with the SEO, for example, has also been good for me to learn new skills in this way. I haven’t got a huge number of subscribers compared to some others, but, I’m grateful for every single one of them and want to give them the best blog, and most interesting posts I can. And maybe that attitude coupled with my enjoyment of maintaining the blog will play off in the long run. Lastly, the variety and possibilities of a blog are endless: videos, how-to guides, reflections, weekly updates, I could go on - it’s all up for grabs and I love the process of thinking about what I can publish next.

A More Regular Writing Habit

Since I’ve started a blog I have written so much more than I would have done otherwise. Most of that writing is prose, but it doesn’t really matter as I feel like it’s gotten me into a better and more regular habit of sitting down at the desk and writing, which can be no bad thing. And, the more I write, the more I feel like I’m finding my own voice and also editing my work more quickly. I’d say that I could write a 750-word post in about 50 minutes, on average. But, sitting down to write also puts me in the mind of sitting down to read, and also being in the room with my books which makes me more inclined to do that. 

Connecting with an Audience

Having published three books of poetry, and having sold very few copies, I’ve really wanted to change that as much as I can and do all in my power (not everything in that regard is in my power) to make sure that people are aware of my writing and to offer them as many ways as possible to connect with me as a writer and hopefully discover my writing. Also, I really enjoy meeting new readers and writers and wanted to take more initiative in making that happen. There is a lot that a writer cannot control in getting their work to reach an audience, however there is also a lot they can do and a lot of that is very simple basic stuff, such as setting up a website. I like to think I’m doing as much as I can in that regard (even though I’m always trying to think of new ways to capture the attention of new audience members) and starting a blog was a core way of showcasing what I’m about as a writer, but also facilitating new opportunities for writers such as the TPW Poetry Prize. I heard someone on the radio recently describe the battle for people’s attention as a global war, and while that may seem a bit overblown I think there is some truth in that and sitting still as a writer and not trying to reach out to new readers was never going to be an option for me - I wanted to do something and take matters, as far as I could, into my own hands. My stance has always been that doing something is always better than doing nothing -  writing a blog is about doing something. 

Experiment 

Having a blog is a great way of testing out new writing and even experimenting with different forms. For example, while I’m predominantly a poet, I wanted to test some of my food writing in the form of a prose nonfiction memoir and see whether a) I could indeed write in this way, b) I enjoyed it, and c) whether other people wanted to read about it. While I've been satisfied a) and b) I’m not sure yet whether people actually want to read about it. I’ve also got an idea of trying out some prose fiction writing and putting that up there to gauge the reaction. The series of posts that I’ve got going such as Desert Island Poems is with a view to seeing whether I could write enough of these to turn them into books. The beauty of the blog is that I can try these out first and then potentially see if they can form a book. At the least, I think I’d definitely have enough for a book of selected prose if I wanted to pursue that. 

Help Other Writers by Sharing My Knowledge

While I no longer teach in schools, teaching and facilitating is a really important aspect of what I do as a writer and a particularly important strand on my blog. I love passing on what I’ve learnt as a writer and, from the figures I've seen, these ‘how-to’ posts seem to be the most popular on my blog, so in that respect I want to keep building on these. Eventually, I may well collate these posts and turn them into a poetry writing manual. But, the blog allows me to build these articles up over time, see what works, what’s popular and allows it to take shape gradually. 

Overall, writing a blog has been transformative for me in terms of my writing habits, and also as seeing myself as a full-time writer, and aiming towards sustaining a living as a writer and connecting with an audience. 

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