Now Let Me Ink That Page: New Year, New Beginnings, New Home

Dear Pennies & Pens,

So it’s 2014! Like Jay Z said, Momma, I made it. Personally, I am thoroughly relieved that it’s the new year. For the past few years, I’ve been dealing with my own struggles, trials, and tribulations. And I’ll admit that I’ve pretty much been wallowing in it. But this year, I made one resolution and one resolution only. And that is to be more positive. About everything. Whether it’s work, life, love, or business, I will see the glass as half full.

As I hinted in my previous post, I am taking de la Pen…All Pen Everything in a whole new direction. Don’t get me wrong, I won’t change completely. But there will be some major changes. I just realized how bored I was writing about fashion with some music/art posts (and those random sports posts from 2012). Fashion is a cool world, you get to meet interesting people, attend events, see the latest clothing and accessories, and work on really cool projects. That’s what I always loved about it and what I’ll always cherish. However, now that I’m in Texas, I’m looking to turn over a new leaf. That means exploring new worlds.

I feel that with this move, I should conquer new heights and start a new chapter in Texas instead of seeking to make Texas NYC. That was the main advice my dad gave me when I left NYC for TX. To understand how different these two places are and to not do exactly what I did in NYC. I’ve been in TX less than a year and there is no way you could compare the two or live the same life. For example, I’ve seen public transportation maybe five times since being in Texas which is crazy because all you see is the subway and bus in NYC. And people actually take time to be nice to you in Texas, the only NYers who were ever nice to me were co-workers, friends, and friends of friends but no stranger would ever dare smile at you let alone “be nice”.

Plus let me be real. I was so damn bored with how the site was going. I got to a point to where I felt like I was writing de la Pen…All Pen Everything for everyone except me. And tell me how that makes any sense?! There I was in the trenches, writing and publishing new posts, promoting those posts, and yet I was always on the short end of the stick. I thought I needed to monetize, turn the site into a business as I said here. But because I don’t have thousands or millions of followers, you can imagine how many advertisers or sponsors came knocking at my door. So that was a total waste. Buzzkill.

Which let me interject and say, I’ll never understand why brands feel the need to only work with the major bloggers/influencers who have basically pimped themselves out to the highest bidder. But as long as they have thousands/millions of followers, their voice is somehow valid. Remember, quality over quantity, people. I knew this was real when a major blogger emailed me to ask why I stopped commenting as much on their site. The answer is simple: I grew up but your site didn’t. It stayed the same. Here in 2014, your content is exactly the same as it was in 2008 when I started reading it. Are you kidding me?! This blogger gets more traffic than I’ve ever dreamed of getting but it’s only a matter of time before that fades. Why else do you think they emailed me? To regain that loyal readership that made the site successful in the first place. You need readers to keep advertisers, always remember that. Yes, advertisers/sponsors pay you but only in money. Readers pay with loyalty, appreciation, comments, RTs, shares. And that’s what you should value. Not that almighty dollar that will stop coming as soon as you stop appreciating the people who made you successful in the first place.

This brings me to my biggest fear. That someone could go back to 2010, when I first launched de la Pen and see no growth from then to now. And I’m not talking about site design, readership, amount of sponsors/advertisers, I’m talking about growth in me. There should be no reason why people feel like I’m still saying and doing the same thing, I was always doing. That takes me back to why I left NYC. I had been there five years, and that’s enough. It ran its course. Change is never easy but it must be done. You can always tell when a person has never traveled or has only lived in one place. They tend to be more set in their ways and terrified of change. Personally, I’m the type to come to Houston and then hop the Megabus to Dallas within two weeks just because I can. I mean honestly, why be that connected to a place?! It’s just that a place, a thing, a noun.

I’m from Cincinnati, OH but ask me would I ever go back for more than a visit?! Hell no. Grew up there, that’s enough. Went to college in Hampton, Virginia but ask me would I move there? Hell no. Lived in NYC but ask me if I miss it? Not really. I lived there five years, saw most of NYC and what I didn’t see I can come back to visit and see. I’d never cherish a place that much. But oddly, I have ridiculously fond memories of all the places I just named. And I view each one as home. But they were home to me at different points in my life. But now that I’m in a new place in life, I’m in a new home. With that said, welcome to my new home.

And there it is. de la Pen…All Pen Everything. 

P.S. For All Pen Everything…All the Time — Follow me Twitter: @LoudPen Foursquare: @LoudPen Instagram: @LoudPen  Tumblr: The Blogging PR Girl and Facebook: LoudPen.