Bloggers are known for their open, honest and realistic posts. We aren’t afraid to look silly or to share some of our most heartfelt concerns and experiences, but bloggers also have secrets. Secrets we don’t share.
Until today that is.
Because I am going to blow the lid right off some of those blogging secrets you had no idea about!
The Secret Life Of Bloggers
Our “Office” is a wreck.
Bloggers can often be found plying their craft in conditions that would make an investigative journalist blush. Life doesn’t come to a stop while we type, so we multitask: at kitchen tables, at kid play dates, in waiting rooms at the Doctor’s Office and sometimes with a less than clear view of our computer screen.
Like this.
We Photoshop remorselessly, just like Cosmo!
Well, not JUST like Cosmo. We don’t use the the power of technology to increase our bust size or lose 20 pounds. . .well, generally. Bloggers, nevertheless, need to be masters at photo editing. It is not easy to take amazing first time photos of food, decor and DIY projects. It’s impossible, really, to do it consistently without assistance. Professionals like Cosmo need help and they have grizzled photographers with tens of thousands of dollars worth of equipment. I have a Nikon Coolpix and PicMonkey. Staging is kind of like making sausage. Although the results are great, it is probably best to not watch it being done. This means that sometimes we are taking those photos standing on tiptoes on top of stools and chairs with our family members holding a floor lamp over a plate of homemade macaroni and cheese, being careful to stay far enough away so that the lamp doesn’t get in the picture or drop dead bugs into the delicious food. Consider THAT next time your mouth waters over a picture you see on Pinterest.
Or what about all those adorable smiling faces of children in our blog posts? Have you ever tried to use a toddler as a model for something only to realize after the picture was taken that, somehow, that perfect shot included a smear of yogurt above an eyebrow? Putting aside the physics of how that happened, it is probably better to alter the picture rather than try to repose it, toddler patience and child labor laws being what they are. Also, since the toddler didn’t have yogurt that day, we couldn’t logically explain how the yogurt got there in case anyone asked. . .
Mostly, when you are using children and spouses as models or cameramen, those photos are going to require a little touch up. Husbands tend to whine more than the toddlers.
There are a few other Pinterest related secrets, we bloggers employ, but that is another post all together.
What You See May Not Be The Whole Story.
We may be blogging about fashion or home decor, but what you don’t see is that we are doing it all sitting in yoga pants, a day old unwashed pony tail and with pet hairballs and dishes surrounding us. As bloggers, we can choose what we show you. So that means you will only see the corner of our home we re-vamped and not closets or junk drawers. Or for those times we want to be fashionable, we don’t disclose that our lovely top, which we have only been wearing for the past 10 minutes to avoid any unpleasant yogurt mishaps is paired off camera with a pair of sweats and tennis shoes. Here is the important part, although we may apply selective spit shine, it does not mean we don’t know what we are talking about. Mostly bloggers lives are just like yours. Messy, fun, fabulous and imperfect! We are just willing to put ourselves out there in order to inspire, share and to connect.
Bloggers Could Take Over The World, If We Wanted To.
I have a very intricate network with people from all over the world. I have never been to New Zealand, Ireland, Asia or Africa, but I have blogger friends in all those locations. Every “Mommy Blogger” is probably only a couple of degrees separated from any other mommy blogger. Now couple that with the fact that we are social media experts able to tweet, text, YouTube, post, Periscope and Vine about something faster than you can blink. That is some serious power folks! Advertisers are behind the curve here, as are politicians and news agencies. I vote we don’t tell the latter two.
So perhaps you really should try to be nice to us, because that is the golden rule and all, but also because you really don’t want to rankle our ire. Just in case…..
Bloggers Are Top Rated Creators- Even Better Than News Stand Magazines.
Bloggers come from all walks of life, united by the desire to share our life in order to help others. Many Most do it without pay, putting out top quality posts week after week. Posts that you then go Pin, share, tweet and email to your friends and family, not fully understanding or knowing the amount of work that went into that post. It is because you can relate to bloggers in a way you can not relate to your local 5 o’clock news or news stand magazines.
Luckily for you, the world of blogging isn’t going away any time soon and as more and more bloggers continue to join the ranks, more material from never before heard voices will continue to be created to enrich and inspire large audiences of people.
SOMEBODY has to provide real and interesting content that is shared on social media. If we let the “professionals” do it we would face a Kardashian wasteland punctuated by brief snippets of Donald Trump. Find a blogger and hug them today.
Stay Happy! Stay Informed!
Love,
Jen
Go ahead and share this post, you know you want to!
