Behind the Blog - What I'm Doing and Why
//What I'm Working On
I have so many creative projects going all at once, it's ridiculous. When I'm not working my usual 40 hour work week, I'm slowly creating content for this blog and website, planning product shoots with a friend for her Etsy shop, or for a blogger and her new coffee mug business, or with a graphic designer for her creative portrait session (which, by the way, I cannot wait to share with you all when they're complete). I also second shoot for a wedding photography company every once in awhile and try to keep a journal and scrapbook going.
That's a lot of creative.
To be more blog specific though, I do have a pretty neat interactive blog project in the works with Jenna of Dearest-Love, but that's still under wraps, so you'll just have to keep checking in to see where we're going to be headed with that.
//How My Work Differs from Others
I think it's easy to get caught up in formulas. Whether it's blogging, creative writing, or photography, people get into a groove and they stick with it because it works...and then they get stale. I like to branch out and be a little different, even if it means no one is watching. I think that's why I chose to step away from pursuing wedding photography full-time. I got tired of batch post processing and wedding timelines. I realized that just because I like weddings doesn't keen I need to be in the business of weddings.
//My Writing Process
Before I started getting serious about blogging, I'd write a blog post whenever I felt inspired to do so, but now that I work full-time and I'm trying to incorporate my blog into my personal photography business, I'm forced to get organized - especially when my full-time job also requires blogging for a different company.
So, I start with an editorial calendar in which I create a schedule that I try to maintain with pre-determined topics or blog post titles. I usually try to stay a day ahead and when I have free time in which I'm feeling particularly inspired, I'll look at the calendar and say, "you know what? I really feel like writing about what it means to be the wife of graduate student right now, so here. we. go. "
Sometimes, I wait til the last minute and get out of work late and get stuck in Atlanta traffic and FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE I am not inspired to write about something like, say, what I was SUPPOSED to post for today - like part 2 of finding work in my field of study.
Luckily, Meg emailed me about 'tagging' me in this blog tour and it sounded like so much fun that I was willing to plop myself down for a good couple of hours and go on and on at you all about what I like to do and why!
//Why I Blog
I blog because I love to write and share and connect. I majored in English with a concentration on creative writing. I'm pretty sure a good friend (and writing group facilitator from college) would be shaking me right now for not pursuing creative writing and submitting to lit mags and other publications like I said I would, but life got in the way --- which is kind of funny when you think about it from the perspective of a writer.
I blog to keep the writer in me breathing. I blog to remind the writer in me that I can write even better than what's meant for a blog audience. I blog to inspire the writer in me to push myself to something bigger and greater.
I also blog because it's a part of my business model for photography.
Yeah, there's that too. :)
//Bloggers You Might Grow to love just as much as I do
Julie via Vylette: I met Julie at the Maiedae Mixer a few weeks ago and really enjoyed getting to know her and follow her blog. She just posted some red velvet cupcake amazingness so be sure to check that out.
Erin via Brains of the Outfit: Erin is another Atlanta girlfriend of mine and this girl is a go-getter. She does marketing, PR, blogging, styling AND started a coffee mug business. I have yet to see what this girl CANNOT do.