How I became a blogger

How I Became a Blogger-feature

I’ve always been one of those people that just kind of falls into things by accident. Luckily, they usually seem to work out in my favour—sometimes it’s little things like finding a $5 bill on the ground right outside my car door, or sometimes it’s big things like picking a pet parakeet that would live for almost a decade. And, you know, definitely be a source of joy and support for some of life’s most tumultuous times.

My career definitely falls into that category.

See, I’ve never really had a clear idea of what I wanted to be when I grew up. When I was a kid, the only thing I knew I wanted to be was famous. Eventually, my seven-year-old self decided I would be the next Spice Girls, so I found myself a couple of cohorts and started writing atrocious songs in my diary.

My ten-year-old self realized I wanted no part of that, and instead decided that I would be an author. That led to some chapters of a terrible YA book about a girl who was basically an Animagus (yes, this was around the time Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was published) and could turn into a unicorn.

My teenage self realized how horrible all my writing had been so far, and instead, I decided to set my heart on being an architect—before I met Calculus.

Then, I decided I’d follow my passion for Spanish and eventually translate books, because I loved the puzzle of translating phrases indirectly and I wouldn’t actively have to write anything. I went to university for that, and got several years in before I realized that much more than translating, I loved writing essays.

And for once, my writing wasn’t atrocious.

My first real job

All through university, I supported myself by working part-time in a grocery store. It wasn’t too glamorous, but it helped with bills, and that’s all I needed.

The first real job I got was actually while I was still in school; I managed to land an internship (yes, technically an unpaid one) at a wedding magazine. Because it was a startup, that quickly turned into a staff writer position, then an assistant editor position, and eventually a graphic designer hybrid.

I did the math once, and doing articles and design work for two issues a year, I made about $500 a year at that job. But for me, the experience was worth it. I could still do school, and work my other job, while learning how to manage a team, social media, blogs, and so much more.

ENTER BLOG #1

When I graduated, I decided I’d put my extra time into my first blog ever using all the new knowledge of blogs and social media I had. That blog—which was about book reviews and fun stories—got its introductory post and nothing more.

Then, I got an office job.

Half a year after I graduated, my experience as an assistant editor translated into an actual job. In job interviews, people tend to accept things at face value—which means that the words I had on my resume said so much more than the fact that I never really got paid for what I was doing.

I ended up with another internship (a paid one this time) at a news company in Toronto, writing about engineering stuff and architecture. I absolutely loved the work I was doing there; I learned how to research and write quickly, how to source stories, how to cite things, how to manage client relationships with huge companies like Autodesk.

Plus, a lot of the time I could get away with writing about pretty buildings, which the me-who-formerly-wanted-to-be-an-architect absolutely loved.

It was at this job that I met one of my dearest friends, who introduced me to things like Joe Santagato and Jenna Marbles and Starbucks.

ENTER BLOG #2

She and I decided to start my second blog ever, a design and architecture blog called eh+ design. You know, because we’re Canadian, my name starts with an E, hers starts with an H, and it sounds like A+. Such pun.

But that poor blog, which got a logo and a Facebook page and everything (and actually still exists), also fizzled.

Eventually, it was time for me to get out of that job. The commute (about two hours driving one-way) was becoming too much. I wasn’t allowed to work from home often, and I couldn’t afford to move closer. So I started looking for something new. There isn’t a whole lot in my home town, though, so I had to broaden my horizons.

That’s how I landed in marketing.

When I started my first marketing job, I had a lot of catching up to do. Sure, I’d been managing blogs and social media accounts for years—but drip campaigns? Conversion rates? I was lost.

I did a lot of research to catch myself up (including buying some For Dummies books), and eventually found myself in charge of things like campaigns and strategies.

ENTER BLOG #3

About six months into my new job in marketing, I decided I finally knew enough to succeed at running my own blog. And that’s where the Girly Geek Blog came from.

Eventually, I lost that job for some pretty political reasons that I’m legally not allowed to talk about.

That was when I started to question myself.

I spent six months at home, trying to find a new job, and trying to find enough purpose in my life to keep doing what I was doing. There were days where blogging was the only thing that got me out of bed in the morning, and days where I couldn’t face the idea of doing the thing that had gotten me fired.

I went through a pretty serious phase of depression; I had to scale back how much I was writing for my own fun blog. I gained a lot of weight. I got out of the habit of doing things like makeup or some days, even getting dressed. I was happy in my pajamas.

But eventually, I ‘fessed up to my Instagram friends what had happened, and the amount of support I received proved to me that there were people out there who genuinely believed in me. I stepped up my game, learned how to do what I was doing even better, and landed myself a job with people who believe in my work.

If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading my story. It’s been a long journey, but I wouldn’t change anything about my life for the world. And I hope it inspires you to trust your own work—because even if you don’t, other people do. And that should tell you something.

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