Completing Blogtober

Today is the last day of October and the last day of #Blogtober.

Blogtober is a challenge I did this month where I aimed to publish a new blog post for each day of the month.

My usual writing schedule is to publish three times a week which can lax at times depending upon how hectic my life is. So I did undertake this challenge with some trepidation and not much belief that I could actually achieve it but I was willing to give it a good shot.

And I did it!

After I had success writing for the first week and making time to schedule blog posts in advance when I knew I would be busy made all the difference. Starting out strong, I wanted to keep pushing myself.

I have a huge pile of drafts just waiting to be edited and posted so this was a great incentive to do a bit of a ‘clean up’ rather than starting all posts afresh. I guess this too was part of the reason I had success writing each day as most posts were partially or mostly written so it did not take the many hours that I would usually put into writing and preparing a post from the get go.

I don’t have a huge following on my blog but I am not writing to gain followers. I actually write because I love writing. Of course, it would be nice to know people are reading and I am helping someone. But at the end of the day, the main person I am helping is me. Writing a blog has been a life goal of mine for many years. So to actually achieve that goal and continue working on it brings me great joy.

Whilst I was living in Morocco I wrote a blog about my experiences living amongst a different culture, religion, and language. It was a way I shared my stories with my family. It was fun and I got a lot of enjoyment out of it. So when I came back home I was determined to continue writing.

I created another blog in 2016 using wix.com, however I lacked the confidence to share anything publicly so the domain just sat there empty. I paid for three years for nothing. I even moved to Adelaide to make it happen. To have time to write and share. I did write but I never shared. Finally in 2019 when I took another gap year from teaching I was determined to make it happen. And Laura the Explaura has been growing ever since. I even celebrated my 200th post during #Blogtober. A huge achievement.

I have been bordering at 200 readers a month for the past year which I think is pretty incredible. However writing consistently for the past month has actually brought more readers and topped 300 readers this past month. Growing my audience has been an unexpected but pleasing side effect.

I have also made connections with fellow bloggers who also completed #Blogtober and was featured on others blogs. Networking has never been my strong point but it does make a difference.

So will I continue to write everyday? It’s too early say. It would be unrealistic to imagine I can but I have gotten into a rhythm now that I may surprise myself and continue to write and post often.

I still have so many things I want to write and want to share. Completing #Blogtober helped give me the nudge I needed I think. It was a great opportunity to push myself creatively and a challenge that I am pleased to say I achieved. It is exciting!

Are you currently challenging yourself to achieve something in your life? We would love for you to join the conversation and leave a comment below.