Everywhere I look on the blogosphere these days, I am surrounded by BlogHer11 mentions and countdowns, and oh! My goodness! BlogHer11 is less than three months away!
This is even more stressful than when I realized I was supposed to be twittering and have a fan page and ‘this’ many followers and count my comments, and for goodness sake; I know nothing about this blogging deal, do I?
Plus, I'm socially awkward and unintentionally humorous.
Plus, I'm socially awkward and unintentionally humorous.
Do you want to know my plans for August? Well, breathing is on the list. Working, too. Getting ready for the new academic year is pretty high on the list. I likely won’t be attending a blogging conference, because I will most likely be attending a conference directly related to my work—which sounded completely wonderful and fun until I realized that they were in the same week, and now—even though I never really planned to go to BlogHer, now, NOW I feel as if I am missing something.
I want inspiration, dammit! I’m sure that there is some inspiration to be found at a conference this large, right?
I originally didn’t plan to go because going to a conference is expensive. I wondered how it was that everyone seems to be going to conferences all the time, and I felt like the kid in junior high who had the knock-off jeans because money was tight in her household and then I realized that people aren’t really paying for all these conferences out of their own pockets; they are getting sponsored to go!
Duh. Sometimes I feel really naive. Again, like in junior high, and I wondered why that one girl in my grade got all of the attention from the high school boys.
I’m old enough to know why now. It had nothing to do with the fact that she was blonde and I was brunette, by the way. That had been my original line of thinking.
What makes this even more amazing is the fact that I know a conference of this size and magnitude will intimidate the living soul out of me, and I would likely end up hiding behind potted plants for the entirety of my stay. I freak out in large crowds, and I especially freak out in large crowds when I don’t have a social support network in place. I have blogs that I read, and some blogs that I read and comment on, but I don’t know any of these individuals in real life, and who the hell is going to be my buddy at this conference? Who is going to be my lifeline in this sea of words and talented people?
I am seriously getting anxiety about a conference I won’t even be attending.
So, what do I need? I need a conference that 1) will not deplete my meager savings, 2) will not scare me into hiding with its size, 3) is not during a hectic time at work, and 4) gives inspiration. That’s not a tall order, is it? I’m certain you have suggestions, right?
Because, in this instance, I give up. I don’t know what I’m doing; I’m not in the loop. Someone help bring me in the loop! That, or at least tell me that starting my very own conference of as-of-yet-undetermined scope IS a good idea!
Sheesh. I have a hard enough time thinking of titles for my blog posts. How the hell am I going to come up with a good name for a blogging conference? I’m screwed.
P.S. I tried to find a picture that demonstrates my understanding of the popular crowd, but all I kept getting in the results from Google are pictures of the Kardashians. Really? I suppose that does a lot to explain why I was not popular, and why that was probably okay.
P.P.S. Last year I wanted to write a post focused on why I hate collars (even the word collar bothers me) and why I wear low cut shirts almost every day, and my husband was all like, "Oh, that's silly. No one wants to read about that." I now realize that 1) he was just plain wrong, and 2) I would have had a really great tie-in to this post if I had written about my low cut shirt problems. I also thought that low cut shirts would have made me more popular, but all I ended up with was a variety of wardrobe malfunctions in different locales. Thanks a lot, husband of mine!
Thank you for writing this post. This is the worst part of blogging. It's exactly how I felt a year ago, and how I still pretty much feel today, even though I'm attending two conferences and feel well connected in regard to both. BlogHer...terrifies me. I fear it's too big, too clique-y, too networked, but I'm going all the same. I figure I have to try something myself before deciding. Still, I hate all the hype.
ReplyDeleteIf there's one around you, I'd suggest a smaller conference like Type A for your first. (I'd follow my own advice, but there's not one around me in the near future.)
One thing to remember in regard to feeling inadequate: it's actually a very small percentage of bloggers who get sponsored to attend conferences. Most are paying out of pocket, despite what it seems. If you're paying out of pocket, you're not alone. Not at all. As I said, I'm attending two conferences in the next few months, and one is completely sponsored, and one is not. The reason I am able to be sponsored for the one is that I'm attending for my travel blog, and am well connected for that niche. General blogging or 'mommy blogging' is much harder to be sponsored for, so don't feel inadequate!
PS: if you go to BlogHer, let me know. Would love to hide behind the plants with you!
We would SO hide behind the plants together! Thank you so much for your feedback. I am going to try to search out a smaller conference in my neck of the woods, and see if I can muddle through a moderate crowd before tackling a ginormous one!
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