Brands to Bloggers

I think one of the things that most bloggers eventually wish to do (or at least all the ones I have talked with) is work with other companies. It's a great way to make connections in the business world, make connections for potential projects. Some people are lucky enough to have brands drop upon their blogs without much self promotion, and if you're one of these people then congratulations! Sadly, I'm not one of these people but don't worry, you never get anywhere without a little hard work so why not put yourself out there? Get in touch with different brands and pitch your services to them.

For all of these sites there are a few forms to fill out, explaining your followers, average reader count, the amount of unique viewers you receive per month, social media links etc. These help fill out a profile that brands and other bloggers can see. This way they can assess whether you have the right content that they're after.

How do I stay productive

As my career in blogging has progressed, I have noticed a lot of times where I have been really unproductive and you can tell in not only the amount of posts that I write but also in the depth of the content. We are only half way through 2016 and I have now already written and published MORE posts than I did in the entire of 2015. How have you done this? You ask, through a lot of trial and error, scheduling gone wrong and patience tested, I have finally come across some great apps and tips to help me keep on the ball (or at least appear to).

Planning
I am a stickler for planning. I love to make lists and really think things through before I ever do anything (that's probably why I never actually get anything done). You might not believe this but I actually have blog post titles drafted on a spreadsheet to last me until 6th May 2018! Obviously these ideas will most likely be deleted, changed or moved around the graph when those dates happen but its always good for me to have a bit of reassurance that I have something in the bank for a 'no inspiration' day.  You most likely wont want to go quite so overboard with your planning as I do but there's nothing bad to be said about a little structure in your life every now and then. Maybe plan your next day out or make a schedule to help you tackle a big project you have been meaning to start.

Timing
This last year I finally decided to give myself a little stability. I was forever writing posts and just randomly publishing them whenever I felt like it. Now don't get me wrong, this is perfectly fine if that's what you want to do but its just not for me. No one knew if and when I was going to put something out there and so my number of readers had dropped. Since dedicating certain days of the week and certain times to publishing my posts I have noticed a steady increase in the amount of people taking the time out of their lives to read my posts (yes that's you..thank you!) Don't worry if you're not always consistent with it though, everyone knows I'm certainly not. Sometimes the scheduling doesn't work, sometimes I forget to keep an eye on the time or sometimes I actually haven't finished my post in time for its regular showcase to the world (like now for example, it's 3:53pm...there's no way I will finish in 7 minutes). It's okay to sometimes not meet the targets, they are just there to provide a little structure and help me feel a little more in control of my day.

As well as the timing for posting, I have obviously had to carve out time to write my posts. I know they say that you have to wait for inspiration to strike but honestly sometimes I can just sit myself down, look through some of my planned posts and just pick the one that I am drawn to the most. It's the planning ahead that has harnessed my little 'light bulb moments' and allowed me to space them out effectively. It sounds dreadfully boring but it's what works for me. I'm not a very spontaneous person (although I do have my moments!)

Lately, I wonder if many of you have been thinking why I have been tweeting so darn often? Well the answer is very simple; Hootsuite. It's a wonderful app that allows me to draft and schedule loads of tweets and Instagram pictures ready to go up at a time of my choosing. previously I used Buffer but this app only lets you draft 10 things before you hit the limit. Sometimes this was fine for me because I only drafted the next days social media rambles, but sometimes I wanted to do it over several accounts (which obviously adds up fast). Now I am able to draft my tweets to go live every 2 hours between 9am and 10pm! The regularity of this has really boosted the interaction I get with my tweets so you should give it a go!

I hope these tips have inspired you to be a little more productive with your time (or hopefully made things easier for you).

Love,
Louise x

How to keep your blogging spark

So as you all know, I'm no newbie to blogging. 3 years is a long time but quite often it doesn't feel like that means you have had enough experience. When you're writing a blog, whether you want to make it into a career or maybe you just want to blog for fun, its important that you plan what it is you want to write ahead of schedule. Whether we like the idea or not, more often than not, planning is imperative for us.

No matter how often you want to blog, if you truly want to give your site the love that it needs, you need to make sure that the love you have for it never fades. I have been at the mercy of this more than once; it's very easy to get frustrated with the topics that you are talking about. It took a while but I eventually learned that this is perfectly natural, we grow as people as we experience new things. This means that the things that used to make your soul soar my just fizzle out and leave us feeling bored. At the same time, you may be blogging about a certain period of your life, just like I did, and then as you grow older you realise that you no longer need to talk about that past stuff.

Best friend appreciation

So what some of you might not know is that today is my best friends birthday! Emily who created PerksofNeverland is officially 19 today! It's really exciting when I get to be a part of all of her memories and share the joy with her.

I wanted to create a playlist that I really thought showcased our friendship. I want her to know just how proud I am of the fact that she has faught so hard to be the loving, caring, beautiful soul that she is today. So I went through songs that I thought reminded me of memories we have had, songs we always sing/have dedicated to each other and some that pose as messages I want to give her.

3 year Anniversary

I'm forever talking about how long I've been blogging and just how much it has changed my life etc. but today actually signifies my 3rd year doing this! Now, some people could (and have) look at what I do and think that I'm not very "progressed" considering how long I've had this account. There are most definitely others who are more "successful" and when they have been doing this less time than me it can be a little demotivating but my little slice of internet is my happy place. I would not give it up for anything!

It feels weird writing this post purely because it wasn't that long ago that I wrote something similar. Purely for my own memories, I wanted to use this post as a way to recap all of the great things that have been accomplished over the years!

Exercise after ED?

So recently I wrote a post all about the issues that I have personally found between exercise and trying to recovery from my Eating Disorder. The thing is, a lot of people have the same issues as me, even now I have to be very careful with what I allow myself to do because its still very very easy to fall back into that destructive cycle. My friends, it takes a lot of time to begin to change the relationship you have with exercise...here's my story.

Mid-year Sprinke of Glitter diary: review

Many of you guys know that I'm a huge fan of Louise Pentland, otherwise known in the Glitter world as Sprinkle Of Glitter. She is the queen of inspiration in the YouTube world and so naturally when she announced that she was releasing a diary I was straight on those pre-orders! Now 6 months into the use of this book, I figured I'd let you guys know how it's going. I love reviews that include a first impression of a product but I think its great for people to know what it's like when its actually used too.  

A-Z of Recovery: Choosing Life

I'm really enjoying writing this series. It's not only something that I like to do for you guys but writing about all of the reasons to choose recovery really reinforces my choices within myself. It's great if I'm having a bad day and I have something like this to read (or even to write) because it shows me just what I have to recovery for.

When we are in the midst of our darkest times, we often think that there is no reason to get better, that nothing will ever be good in our lives again, or at least that the good stuff will never stay. I've got one question for you though...how will you ever know if you give up trying now?

Journal: life lessons

Warning: this is some pretty heavy content so feel free to skip it

So the main reason for changing the blog name to 'Empty Journal' is because that is how I wanted to treat it; I wanted it to be my online journal that I could fill with whatever I felt that I needed to say during that moment in time. If you're reading this post then I have been really brave and decided to share this part of my life with you all. I have been open with many aspects of my life over the years on here but I have never talked about my love life. Many of you probably don't even want to know about it so feel free to stop reading.

Journal: May edition

So formerly known as my monthly reviews, I have decided to treat this mini series as a sort of journal where I can talk about whatever has happened in my life in that month whether its good or bad.