Weddingbee Blog

How did I find Weddingbee?

To be honest, I don’t remember. I think I was so confused about this whole wedding thing that I Googled “how to plan a wedding” or “wedding planning” or something along those lines and ran into it that way. I remember the forums being really helpful for figuring out big things (”What’s a save the date?”), while the blog became useful for inspiration and motivation.

My application story

I’ve always loved to write and already had a blog about my ex-pat adventures in Japan to keep my friends and family updated. Writing a wedding planning blog was a whole new ball game! At first it was just a collection of thoughts and random musings, but as plans became solidified I started writing cohesive posts focusing on one aspect at a time—here’s our venue, I’d like these flowers, etc. I tried my hardest to write for an audience and shy away from the diary-like tone I had used for my ex-pat blog. I thought I had a pretty good collection of wedding posts and I had met all the requirements so I applied. After a few weeks of anxiety I got an email from Pengy and held my breath… I was rejected.

I was heartbroken for a few days but thought of it as a good learning experience on rejection. I kept writing and over time, my writing style evolved and my ideas became even more clear. When I say that my writing style evolved, I mean it became more ME. I know it’s so cheesy to say “I found my voice,” but just like anything, practice brings out stronger skills. I dropped the fake persona and wrote about my experiences in my own voice; I was definitely trying too hard before. A few months later and a lot of my blogging buddies had been accepted as blogging bees which gave me motivation to apply again. Success!

Why blog?

I started wedding blogging because I wanted to share my story. I wanted to represent for the girls that were really putting together a wedding on a shoestring. I wanted to write from the perspective of girls who use what they have to get the job done. I wanted to show that a girl who is not the classiest (I know I’m not) or the most refined can put on a beautiful, meaningful wedding. And I really think the backyard wedding trend is taking off! Most importantly, I wanted to bond with other ladies about the crazy, ridiculous, wonderful experience that wedding planning is, no matter what kind of wedding we might be planning!

My tips:

• Compile thoughts. I know one-line squees are fun, but really take the time to think about one aspect of your wedding. I do all my thinking and forming in the shower, which is really weird. Then I sleep on it, research it, and write about it. I edit a bunch of times, too, so that in the end I’ve hopefully compiled thoughts along with pretty pictures. Sometimes things are organic, especially recapping DIY projects, but initially I think things take time.
• Blog about everything that’s important to you. Chances are it’ll be important to someone else, too. And at least it’s out there for someone, somewhere, sometime—isn’t it funny how the internet works?
• Maybe I’m just a grammar fiend but I do think grammar and spelling are important. Personally, nothing turns me off of reading a thread or blog more than one giant paragraph with no punctuation and seeing the word “rediculous.” Of course, nobody is perfect!
• Nobody is perfect. We’re all unique and all of our experiences are different. I’d like to read all about yours because of that! But, as many have pointed out in this series, being engaging takes practice.

I am no blogging expert so take my tips with a grain of salt, yeah? And have fun!

Writing about why I blog was the most fun for me. I’m wondering—why do you blog?