There have been quite a few posts going around the Wota-world recently to do with being a blogger, how you can get started and what being a blogger entails. There are a lot of useful tips in these posts, with the two most recent by Serenyty of Happy Disco who helps you along with two fantastic posts,
Why You (Yes, you!) Should Become an Idol Blogger! and
Why You (Yes, you!) Should Be An Idol Blogger, Part 2 and a series of posts, titled
Selective Hearing's Blogging Manuals, by Greg of Selective Hearing who gives handy tips on the
platforms you can choose,
what to write about and more! So if you are new to blogging, then these are certainly the posts you could turn to for help if you are at all confused.
Now, reading these after having my blog for around 2 years, I began to think about what it is like being an Idol blogger and a general blogger, and what got me started as a blogger.
Here's a bit of back history concerning my days on the internet: I was never a blogger, and before now, I never saw myself as blogger material. I had always been active in other parts of the internet, especially in fanfiction writing and youtube. There are a lot of things I have done concerning youtube, such as make-up tutorials, a dance cover, fandubbing (singing), AMV's, fandubs for anime and more recently, I have begun Vlogging/reviewing about Idol PV's that I enjoy or dislike. However, the one thing that I have always been active in since my family recieved internet when I was a pre-teen was fanfiction.
Now, throughout all of these activities, I had tried blogging on various occasions, only to find that I never liked it. I had tried blogging about various things, such as make-up and fashion, anime and manga and even myself. It never worked out for me, and I never really enjoyed it. The only one that I thoroughly enjoyed and actually kept up for a while was a blog that reviewed shoujo anime and manga, and I actually really liked that blog, but I just stopped. After that, I really had no desire to start a blog again.
And then I got into Idols. Roll around mid-2009, I had just begun to like Morning Musume, and I was looking for reviews on their latest single at the time,
Nanchatte Renai. I loved reviews, and I loved peoples opinions, and by looking for reviews, I stumbled upon
Selective Hearing. After that, I found more blogs which I began to follow frequently, such as
Pink Wota,
Itsumo Genki and
Janakya Mottainai. These were the four staple blogs which stuck out to me, and the blogs that I began to follow religiously. I loved how they wrote, I really enjoyed their opinions and how their blogs varied in style and taste. It isn't surprising that these four bloggers are the ones who inspired me to become an Idol blogger, and whilst they might not know that they are the reason I opened this blog in the first place, I have great respect for all of them, because they made me like Idols a lot more, and they pretty much shaped me into the Idol blogger that I am right now.
But the start of being an Idol Blogger was probably the hardest start I had blogging wise - I honestly had no idea what direction I would go in with blogging. At first, I was pretty much set on creating a rant blog, one where I could pretty much talk about videos that I absolutely detested, though I eventually found myself creating a few posts that weren't rant woorthy, such as my Top 8 members at the time, and a small review of Okai Chisato's 1st Solo DVD trailer. I wasn't overly active during the start of my blogging days, but that was probably because I really didn't know what direction I wanted to go in at the time. It wasn't until around May of 2011 that I began writing reviews more than anything.
And honestly, I love reviewing - it's something I just really like doing. I've always enjoyed writing, and to be able to write about something I love is extremely enjoyable and is worth the time I put into this blog. There are days where I don't write anything, granted, but on the days that I do write, I try to take my time thinking about what I want to say. Okay, so I'm not the most analytical person on the blogging planet, nor do I really make much sense sometimes, but I try to write how I seriously feel when I write my reviews. If I'm excited, I will try to write about my excitement, and if I am disappointed, I will write about my disappointment. It totally depends on the song or PV, really, and what sort of mood I am in - sometimes I will be sleepy, so I rant like a drunken sailor, and other days I will be wide awake. Sometimes, I can't think about what to say, and that really stumps me when I want to write about a PV I currently love or really dislike, but it happens, and when it does happen, I seriously hate it.
Of course blogging does take up a lot of my time, but sometimes I don't have enough time for it - not every blogger does! I have a job now which helps me to pay for my Idol hobby, and I also have a hobby outside of blogging, which is Amateur dramatics. I have other activities which I will do over the summer, as well as college which starts again in September, but for the most part, I find that blogging is the one thing that really takes up the most of my time, but that's because I really love doing it. I don't think that I would have it any other way.
But it isn't just writing about Idols which makes me love being a blogger, it's also reading everyone else's blogs and being able to form a whole new opinion because of another blogger. I have a select few blogs which I prefer to read, but I have read a good amount Idol blogs since becoming a blogger. I like to read everyone else's opinions and see how they differ from mine. I won't agree with every blog I read, but I enjoy finding out about another writers side of the story and basically getting their view, and taking it into account as well. I love realising something new about a PV which I hadn't seen before, such as little details that others pick up and point out.
I personally think that being an Idol Blogger is amazing because you get to state your opinion. Not everybody will agree with it, but it's something you have to accept. There will always be those comments on your blog where people call you out as a hater because you say something that they don't like, or their opinions don't match yours, but that's how Idol blogging, or any blogging is, in general. There will be people who enjoy what you write, and people who absolutely hate what you write, which is perfectly fine. We are all open to our own opinions, and that's why I love blogs - we all have an opinion, and we are all allowed to voice it, regardless of what others think about it.
You also get to meet some amazing people through blogging - there are fellow fans of a certain genre who will comment on your blog and talk to you, and you will be able to make friends with other bloggers. I've been able to talk to Greg, Ray and Aim through this blog as well as make friends with other bloggers such as Nia from
Nia's Wonderland and
Wotaku Mummy. I've also been able to experience other things through being a blogger, such as being a part of International Wota and
Idolminded, as well as becoming a staff member of my beloved Selective Hearing. I am extremely thankful that I was able to talk to both Ray and Greg and become a part of the staff for their sites, as they have both helped me with my blog in their own way, such as Greg being an inspiration to me in terms of blogging, and Ray continuously helping to promote my blog through both IW and Idolminded. So for that, I am extremely tankful and happy that I am able to work with and to know the both of them.
Whilst this may not always happen, there are blogs out there which look for people to add for different opinions, updates and other things. Sites like
Hello! SayuNii,
Chuu! Sugoi! Idol! and Selective Hearing have staff members who update certain topics, whether they are review or news based, and other blogs such as Idolminded will sometimes bring in guest bloggers so that new or unknown writers can create an article which can help them gain more viewers and get them known in the Wota world. There are also the chances of roundtables and group chats with other bloggers which will help your readers to find out about a new blogger, and vice versa for the person you have blogged with. I love roundtables, and I made one a while ago with a friend of mine based on
Fact or Fiction over certain questions or speculations regarding Hello! Project members. Basically, roundtables are fun, and you get different opinions from everyone and it can really shape a post and make your readers think, and it's something I would definitely like to do again in the future with other bloggers.
And those are only some of the reasons to as why I love Idol Blogging, and honestly speaking (or writing), I think that choosing to become an Idol Blogger is one of the best decisions I have made since I started using the Internet, with the other decision being becoming a fanfiction writer. These two hobbies are probably the two things that I have become the most proud of since being on the internet, and I wouldn't change anything about either of them - writing is something I really love, so I am glad that I am able to write about the things I love on this blog. One of my greatest joys since starting Okay! Musume Time is being able to get excited about writing a new review and getting to see comments on my blog.
Being an Idol Blogger is great, and I would advise anyone thinking about starting an Idol Blog to try it. You may want to try something different to what I have here, like a News blog, a translation based blog or something else, but whatever you want to do, give it a go, and if you want more exposure, ask others to advertise your blog on sites such as Idolminded or Hello! SayuNii, or ask friends to read your blog. Everything may go slow at first, but eventually everything picks up if you continue to write and enjoy what you do.
I may have started out as someone who never intended to pursue blogging, but now I am a blogger. I'm surprised that I chose to go down this path, but honestly? I wouldn't change anything about it, because I love writing here. It's enjoyable, and I hope that my readers enjoy what I write too, because they are the ones I am also writing for.
And one of the best things about being an Idol Blogger?...
I get to be an opinionated Wota, of course.
Chiima~
PING!!! Idolminded Recommended Reading: July 8th, 2012
