My Co-Blogging Story and Why I Went Back Solo

When I approached Stacie in 2014 about the prospect of co-blogging, the adventure sounded exciting. It meant I'd be able to hold back a little on my daily posting, I'd have time for other things, for other people, for something aside from my blog, and no matter how much I loved Book Badger, I realised I needed more in life, and co-blogging provided that for me. So why, 6 months down the line, did I decide that co-blogging was no longer for me, and what have I actually learnt from the experience? I intend to answers those questions today.


I would like to make something clear before I go into detail about my experiences - co-blogging, while fun and exciting, is not an easy out for people looking for less responsibility, it's just as demanding and requires much more organisation and planning than blogging alone, neither is it something you should be afraid of pulling out of; if your co-blogger(s) appreciate you and everything you've done together, they will understand should you wish to take on a solo adventure. Remember this when deciding which blogging route is right for you.

Co-blogging with Stacie was a one of a kind experience.

Was it without it's issues? Of course not. The minute you start mixing things together, whether that be colours, chemicals, emotions or people, there's bound to be a few stumbling blocks, and while I wouldn't say that Stacie and I encountered stumbling blocks, we definitely learnt the hard way how co-blogging can not only impact your blogging experience, but also your real life ones too.

It's hard to upkeep a co-blog when a co-blogger goes MIA.

As I mentioned earlier, sometimes, life just infers and gets in the way, and for Stacie, that came about ten-fold, leaving me to take care of all blog content, rather than just my half, maintenance and design. The first few weeks came and went I didn't bat much of an eyelid, it was one of the benefits of planning ahead and usually being full of ideas, and then life hit me hard too, knocking my confidence, my private life, my mood and my general motivation, even leading me to fear being online. That's quite an issue when you've just started taking full reins of what was meant to be an easier blogging experience, but co-blogging is just as time consuming, if not more, for a number of reasons;

• You and your co-blogger(s) need to be in regular contact to function well together
• Any changes to the blog, from graphics to fonts, to direction and design need to be discussed
• Organisation and planning is key to making sure everyone knows what they're doing
• Being able to respond as quickly as possible should anything happen is a must -

and so much more. It sounds easy, but when Stacie and I first started co-blogging, we emailed constantly, talked almost all the time on Twitter and I shared absolutely everything she could possibly have needed to know down the line, anything from design to functionality, what to do should anything happen, helping her plan and bounce ideas off, we relied on each other just as much as we did ourselves, and it was extremely demanding. Positive, wonderful, really fantastic, but demanding.

When I took the reins and blogged again on my own on Beautiful Bookish Butterflies with Stacie MIA, my blogging attitudes began to change of their own accord, as did my own personal blogging direction. I began to care less and less about how much content I published (what was one more empty day going to change amongst Stacie's missing days?) and started taking more time for myself, and when I did blog, there were less and less reviews and more and more discussions and advice, I made changes to Beautiful Bookish Butterflies without consulting Stacie first because I didn't know when I'd next speak to her (our graphics, the redesign) and eventually, we rarely spoke. We feared what the other would say in response to our actions. We were scared that we were failing the other, changing what we'd created together, and altered our friendship in doing so.

The good news is that our friendship is still in tact, in fact, since I mentioned Nellie and Co, I feel as though we've become closer again; we're in contact more often, we open up to each other a little more again, and generally, we're feeling much more positive than we were, but we are the perfect example of how bad things can get should a blogger go MIA.

The two months of solo-blogging I experienced pushed me to create better content, come up with new ideas and be a blogger.

When you come to realise that people are expected you to publish not only your own content, but also fill the gap others leave behind, you either start to stretch yourself thin, or grow to accommodate the new space, and I did the latter. I pushed myself to search for fresh content ideas. I searched my favourite blogs for ways I could challenge myself and target other interests that I feel I'm knowledgeable in. I paid close attention to what blogs I was reading, what content I was reading, and noticed that my own personal blog direction had somewhere along the line, changed.

This change is most noticeable through my lack of reviews lately, but also hugely noticeable through my monthly community wrap-ups featuring posts I've loved. If you try to balance out blogging vs books, you'd find that I link up more blogging related content than I do books, and it's coincidently, the content I was writing when Stacie was MIA. I became influenced by the blogs I was reading and changed the type of blogger I wanted to be, and the type of content I wanted to publish. I was no longer really feeling the book 'vibe'. I didn't feel like a 'book blogger' anymore, just a blogger, just someone that wants to share everything I know with people who can learn from it all, just someone who wants to push myself to be better at what I'm already great at. Beautiful Bookish Butterflies didn't feel like home anymore, so instead making it accommodate my changes, I decided a new home was in order. This home, Nellie and Co.

Nellie and Co. is my open door to anything and everything I may want to do and be. Nellie and Co. is my fresh start.

I talked briefly earlier this year about how its natural for you and your blog to change with time, and I stand by that post passionately. Everybody changes with time, as do peoples aims in life, as do the things we hope to achieve, as do the people who have in our lives, as do the things we do and the things we and dislike, so really, it was to be expected that myself and my blogging experience would change with me.

I've become interested in growing myself and my blog into something much bigger. I've become more interested in dedicating myself to the things I'm most passionate about - teaching other Blogger users how to get the most out of their site, giving advice to other bloggers, talking about subjects I feel most passionately about and subjects that relate to me on a personal level. I want the ability to grow, and develop into whatever and to wherever my body, mind and blog take me, and I want to be able to do that with complete control, choosing my content, choosing my subjects and choosing the right place for me to do that, and that's here.

Co-blogging was beautiful, but I'm excited to be in control again.

Over the last few weeks on social media, you've seen how much time I've already dedicated to Nellie and Co, and you've probably seen me happier, more positive and excited than I've been in a long time, and that's because I'm ready for this new adventure. If and when things get tough, which they probably will, I'll ride the wave and see where it takes me. If I realise I want to expand into something new and different and take my blog with me, I'll be doing just that, but right now, Nellie and Co. will be my safe haven, my new home, and I'm extremely excited to share what I've got in store.

Co-blogging can most definitely be the best thing for some people, but for people who are constantly creatively looking for new challenges, being inspired by others and feeling the pull of new and exciting directions, much like me, it's probably not where you should be. The experience of co-blogging has changed me, my attitudes and made me feel much differently about blogging, both positively and negatively, and it's helped put me on the path I'm meant to be on, so please, whatever you do, never be afraid of the co-blog, and never be afraid to leave it behind. Blogging is always a personal and special thing, whether it's for business and pleasure, and you should always, no matter the circumstances, but your blogging needs and wants first. Explore, find your niche and where you're meant to be, and love every moment. I know I intend to.

Hold the fort, it's not quite over yet though..

Stacie was, in my opinion, the best person I could have co-blogged with, and she without a doubt has been a fantastic support throughout all of my blogging endeavours, so I wanted to treat you all a) with a belated giveaway as funds were tight when I opened Nellie and Co. and b) with one of Beautiful Bookish Butterflies most popular reviewed books, both as a nod to my old home, and a thank you! Here's what you could win..

   

Giveaway is international and prizes will be shipped via the Book Depository. Please make sure TBD ships to your area of the world before entering. Duplicate entries will be removed, as will any 'giveaway only' accounts. Please check the full terms and conditions before entering. Giveaway closes 16th Aug. 2015.

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Have you ever co-blogged, considered or left it behind?