Why I decided to start a blog

For the longest time I’ve wanted to become a writer. I’ve fantasised about being someone that could take the tangled mess of thoughts in their head and transform them into meaningful words. To be a person that could craft metaphors and create evocative similes. But every time I’ve tried to get those thoughts written down it feels like I’m pushing a lemon through a keyhole (I’m still working on my similes).

So why should you care about why I started a blog? Well… you shouldn’t. This first post isn’t really for you. It’s for me. Yup, I know how arrogant that sounds, but hear me out. Throughout all of the podcasts I’ve listened to, the interviews and seminars I’ve watched, there’s always been one core piece of advice when it comes to writing.

If you want to be a writer, you have to write.

Simple bit of advice really. But like many examples of great advice, it’s also the hardest to follow. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve bought a domain, signed up for a WordPress account, gone through the hassle of setting up a theme (and spending way too much time on how it looks); only to get halfway through writing my first post and falling flat.

And that’s why this post is for me. I need it to be out there. Not so that I can consider myself a “content creator”, or because it’s “the first step to growing your audience”, or any of that bollocks. It’s definitely not because I think I have anything remarkable to say (just look at my web address). I’m doing it because the thoughts in my head are so jumbled that I need to get them out. I’m doing it because I hope that somewhere inside me I have a story that someone will want to listen to one day. I’m doing it because I might make a connection with you. I’m doing it because I’ve got a lemon stuck in a keyhole. But above all, I’m doing it because apparently all I have to do - is start.

If you’ve somehow managed to read through all of that self-indulgent drivel, you might be wondering what I’m actually going to be writing about. I’ll go into more detail in another post, but big picture: I’m going to write about learning. Learning to do anything. I’m going to document the experience of an unremarkable person learning new skills. Anything from juggling, to cooking, to botany. And along the way I’ll hopefully be able to teach you how to do them too. But more on all of that later.

So if any of that interests you, stick around and we can be unremarkable together.

Matt