First posts are really intimidating.
If you’re a blogger, you know what I’m talking about. If you’re not a blogger, this might be some great insight into the writing process. It’s like the first chapter of a book, really. To the reader, it’s just an introductory chapter, getting to know the main character. But for the author, it’s intimidating. This is how we present ourselves to the reader.
So prepare, because ahead there be danger. And by danger I mean the first post of a new blogger.
First posts are like the villain of all great stories. Or terrible stories. Or stories in general. We have the protagonist, – a blogger getting their blog on – and we have our antagonist – the title “first blog” staring at us with a creepy grin.
Just picture this:
A (future) blogger sits in his/her natural habitat. They’re in a bookstore, a coffee shop, or listening to some indie band while clicking away on Tumblr. For some reason, this person decides that they want to start a blog. So they come up with a name, they set it all up to their liking. They start planning out what their blog will be about, the different posts they might write. But in the end they all pause and stare in horror at one thing.
The first post. A bleak background, accompanied by a cursor that blinks back at this blogger as if to say, “Don’t look at me, this was your idea.”
If that isn’t scary, let me put it in different terms: It’s a smirking Moriarty. It’s a Dalek or Cybermen yelling at you in electronic voices. It’s the Joker with new lipstick. The first post is the greatest adversary any new blogger will face.
Now, I’ll admit that might be a bit dramatic. But you get the idea. First posts are scary. This is the first post that people will see. They’ll judge you on your spelling, your grammar, and the fact that you’ve referenced fandoms way too many times in so few paragraphs. First posts are the bane of our existence until it’s out of the way and completed.
You sigh, and start to write a “Hello” to the world of blogging and blog followers. You talk about yourself a little bit, probably reveal too much information, and wonder if anyone will read your post or if it will fall into the black hole. Halfway through you scrap the whole thing and start over.
This is the third time I’ve started writing this post.
Every day(ish) someone is faced with this great villain. A new blogger must stare down this foe and try not to visibly shake in front of them. After all, the first post can smell fear. Or so I’ve heard.
But, like all protagonists, they gather their courage and step forward to meet their enemy. Eventually, the protagonist defeats the antagonist. It might take you a few tries. It might take an adult beverage. But, eventually, you will write that first blog post. You will laugh and dance when it is done, wondering why you were ever so terrified of that first blog post. It was just one post, a silly little thing about a silly little blogger who was afraid to start.
Then, somewhere between publishing your first post and everlasting blogger joy, you will remember something very important.
The second post is just as hard.
Stay strong, bloggers.
– The Introverted Rebel, Caity
Introverted Rebel 