As a year draws to an end, we tend to reflect on that year: what we’ve been through, what we achieved, the not so pleasant moments, and so on. However, we also tend to think of the year ahead and what we expect from it, to the extent that we try to come up with resolutions usually intending to cut out some old habits. Similar thoughts have naturally been going through my head over the past week. One of my focuses has been reflecting on my blogging since this seems like it’s becoming a ‘thing’ for me. In fact this is a little exercise that I did as part of a process to try and improve my writing and blogging skills.
Why did I start this blog?
As one can see in my about page, and my first post, I’ve always loved to write and I love being creative and artistic. I had been interested in sharing my written thoughts for a very long time, but never found the courage to do so. Perhaps I was too scared of people’s judgement. When COVID-19 hit and took the arts world away from us, and I was overloaded with administrative work, I felt a longing for a creative outlet. I guess COVID-19 gave me the courage I needed to make this longtime dream come true. (There’s a bright side to everything.)
What topics do I think I’ll write about?
Being as clumsy as I am, I end up with quite a few funny stories to recite. When I started sharing these incidents with a particular friend, he always encouraged me to write about them and share them publicly because they’re ‘too cute’ or ‘hilarious’. This naturally led to the name of the blog, however I quickly discovered that quite a few people locally, didn’t know the meaning of the word klutz (a clumsy person). I think they saw this as a very random name.
Side Note: What’s a klutz if that klutz doesn’t start the new year with a few extra bruises? Apart from having a minor cut on my left thumb and a very small burn on my right little finger, from cooking Christmas lunch, I hadn’t had any major incidents lately. But of course my clumsiness had to remind me that it won’t be leaving me with the start of the New Year. On new year’s eve, I very awkwardly toppled over the side of my bed, whilst trying to reach and pick up something off the floor. I landed on the floor with quite a loud thud, and have 3 new bruises on my right leg as a result.
Back to the main topic: The intention was not to have exclusive content about my trips, falls, accidents and embarrassing moments though. Firstly, god forbid there are THAT many of them that I’ll have enough content to fill a blog. Also, that would make the blog too boring I feel. Secondly, I wanted to create a place where I can voice thoughts and emotions I feel strongly about.
I did not expect the posts to take the turning that they did. I never anticipated sharing the motorbike accident with ‘strangers’. I definitely didn’t think I’ll have the courage to share the photo with anyone. But when I realised that I was celebrating my tenth anniversary from surviving the accident, it just felt right. Furthermore, I definitely didn’t expect to be writing my most recent posts which have been fueled by mourning and the pain of losing my dad.
The pregnancy post was one that was fueled by a lot of frustration over a long period of time. I was petrified of sharing those thoughts. I was particularly scared of hurting too many people around me with those words, but I did feel strongly that something needed to be said and done.
As these thoughts and feelings surfaced over a number of weeks (or sometimes years, in the case of the pregnancy post particularly), so do many others. Sometimes it just takes time to find the courage to express those thoughts in writing, at other times, inspiration spontaneously takes over and the writing flows. Either way, I can’t really say what topics I’ll be writing about in the future. All I can say is that they’ll always be incredibly personal and true. There will definitely be more theatre/performing related posts and more clumsy moments though.
What are my expectations for the blog and who would I love to connect with?
As I said before, I started this blog with the intention of having a place for self expression. But let’s be honest, if I find enough courage to publicly share some written thoughts, I love having people reading them, otherwise I’d just keep writing in a personal journal. I’m not seeking a particular audience. I’d just like to share these thoughts with anyone who is interested in that particular subject.
The best part of blogging though, is definitely receiving feedback and having a conversation with, at times complete strangers, about common feelings, or sometimes a counter argument. I love receiving feedback, whether it’s from family and friends or random people who just happen to come across something I would have written; and whether it’s about my writing style or the content itself. I created the contact page thinking that I’m not always comfortable sharing my thoughts in a comments section and would rather contact the writer personally. I hope that others will feel comfortable enough to do the same. People have also contacted me by sending private messages through my Facebook page and Instagram account. Whichever way I’m reached, I try my utmost to answer back, as I truly am appreciate of those readers who a share their opinions.
Do I hope to accomplish anything from this blog?
I guess I’d be lying if I said that I don’t wish to grow my audience and readership. My main accomplishment would be knowing that something I wrote touched someone’s heart though. Well that, and noticing improvements in my writing skills and style. I also want to further develop my content writing skills, in the hopes of opening some new doors and opportunities along the way. One achievement I hope to reach relatively smoothly is to continue finding (or making the time) to write and post regularly. At the end of the day, that will be the only way I can reach my other goals 😉
The Klutz Diaries 
Thank you so much for your transparent reasons for writing and blogging. I, too, have discovered the joy of writing this year. I appreciate a site like Word Press that allows us to stretch our talents and make connections with others. In small ways, we can help each other and that’s a big thing!
Happy New Year!
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